Turned away with 2 children?

[LTtravel2]

(I have used Priceline before and used to be a member at this board. I have now forgotten my login and have started a new profile.)

So my previous Priceline experience have been with just one infant and that was no problem.

We now have 2 small kids and my question is if a hotel can turn us away because we are 4 people? As priceline are just guaranteeing double occupancy in the room.

I know that we could get a queen bed and we are fine sleeping in it all 4 of us. I am just worried that the hotel will turn us away.

Thanks for any insight.

I always use the Priceline link or hotwire link to start my travel search.

[AaronJB]

Welcome to Betterbidding.

It's very unlikely but not impossible. In some areas it's very likely you'll not only have no problems but may be able to request two beds (like Orlando.) New York City is where you may run into trouble. I don't believe anyone (that I can remember) has reported to the board that they were turned away, but in some cities like NYC there may have max occupancy issues with the city's commonly very small rooms. HOTWIRE is generally a better choice when a party of four.

What are the details of your trip?

Thank you for using the board's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[LTtravel2]

Thanks for your fast reply. We will hope for the best then.

We are looking to go to Seattle for the Canadian July 1st long weekend.

We have often ended up at Hilton Bellevue in previous years and liked it, but I have not seen any wins for that property lately. So perhaps it is time for us to try something new. If we win at a reasonable price that is.

I started bidding on PRICELINE last night and will post in the forum once we are successful or decide to do something else.

[AaronJB]

What would be your desired budget per night/star rating, and which zone/s would be acceptable? Additionally, exactly which date/s are you staying?

Thank you for keeping us updated and please let us know if you have questions.

Thank you for using the board's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[pengworm]

This is the very same question I wanted to ask except I have three children. The first and only other time we used priceline our youngest was an infant and our other children were young so it wasn't much of a big deal to me. There were plenty of times we had all piled in one king bed at home and even in a queen once and we were able to make it work. I figured if worse came to worse we could always bring a small air mattress.

Now I've got reservations for two different hotels for an upcoming trip. The first hotel is Four Points Sheraton by the Airport for Sunday July 28th-Tuesday July 30th. Our trip ended up being extended so I had to get another room and couldn't get more nights at the same hotel for a price I was willing to pay.

So tonight I ended up bidding on priceline and getting the Le Bourget in Bloomington for July 30th-Aug 1st. I was thinking that whatever the bed situation might be that we would make it work. I figure the only options we'd end up with would be two doubles, one king, or one queen. Again I just planned to use a small air mattress if needed.

However I got to thinking (or should I say worrying) that we just plain wouldn't be allowed to stay with that many people. I guess I could just check in with the family in the car which is what I usually do for the sake of convenience. However this just sort of feels dishonest to me.

Does anyone have any advice for me? My family has been going through a very difficult time and this will be our first trip in a very long time. I used Priceline to save money so we'd have more to spend on activities for the kids. I wasn't trying to cheat anyone or anything but now I feel like maybe that's what I've done. Should I be worried that we may not be allowed to stay? My kids are now 11,6, and 4 if that makes any difference.

Thanks in advance to everyone who might offer some advice. This website is amazing and very helpful for people like me who don't have tons of money these days.

[thereuare]

pengworm,

Please start by reading your messages, then post any questions you have in regards to your specific stay in a reply to your Priceline Hotel thread and we will respond accordingly there.

Thanks.

[AaronJB]

Does anyone have any advice for me?

Overall, PRICELINE guarantees double occupancy/1 bed. That is a variable, as it is more of an issue in some areas (such as NYC) than others and can depend on the hotel, the day and even who you talk to. In Minneapolis, you will likely have less of an issue than say, NYC. However, a party of five is somewhat more of a risk (as many hotels have an occupancy max at 4 per room), I would suggest not having everyone at the desk at check-in.

Additionally, did you win the Four Points stay via PRICELINE? If so, please provide the details of that win as a separate thread.

Thank you for your compliments on Betterbidding. :)

Thank you for using the board's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[skaught]

I have been using Priceline for the past decade several times a year. My two kids are 11 and 9 now, and we've never once had a problem. Most of our bookings are in Orlando, so I imagine they're very use to kids. But I've used it also in California (Beverly Hills), South Beach (Miami), and other states.

Scott

[Otter7]

This topic addresses a reason I have had for not using Priceline recently. We used to use Priceline when our only child was an infant, but now we have two children, one 7 years and one 1 year old. We travel to the Cancun area often and given our experience with establishments in Mexico being very inflexible in order to squeeze every last dime out of us, we just decided not to risk it.

Now we are looking at going to Hawaii. The prices there sure make us want to use Priceline, but we won't save enough money to make it worth it if we get to our destination and the hotel tacks on who knows what to our bill.

So the question is, has anyone used Priceline for accommodations in Hawaii and had one or two kids with them? Did it work out?

Is there any advice we can get on using Priceline for a family of four in Hawaii?

[AaronJB]

I think it's really a matter of hotel and could be a matter of who you talk to. HOTWIRE is a better choice when it comes to a party of four, as you can indicate the amount of people in the party, which should result in some form of bedding for the entire party.

Thank you for using the board's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[megan02rsx]

I have been turned away with a family of 4! So they can do it. The hotel was horrible and treated price line customers badly. Others have reviewed the days inn Buena park, ca badly for being told they could not stay because the hotel only had 1 bed and they would not let more than 2 stay. I had to call priceline who called the hotel and it was a big mess. I was able to get my $ back but only with a big fight. Every other time I've used priceline. I have not had issues.

[cesco.g]

Caveat for families travelling to Las Vegas: Casino hotels often gauge families, by adding extra person charges for more than 2 guests per room.

 

Personally I stay away from Priceline / prefer Hotwire, when travelling with family.

[AaronJB]

Hotels in most major cities, including Las Vegas, do often charge extra person fees for beyond two adults regardless of how you book. Sometimes children do not result in an extra person fee, but it varies by hotel and location.

 

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases... or thru our sister site MAPS and HOTELS.com for your regular rate purchases.