mcp77 Posted September 29, 2013 Report Posted September 29, 2013 Hi there,I am new to this site. I am from the UK and found this through moneysavingexpert.com.I would like to ask for some advice on a bidding strategy for:3 Dec 2013 - 8 Dec 2013New York, around Time Sq. would be ideal, minimum 4*.1 bedroom for 2 adults and 1 baby (6 mths old)Many thanks
AaronJB Posted September 29, 2013 Report Posted September 29, 2013 Welcome to Betterbidding. :)Unfortunately, this is one of the busiest periods of the year in NYC with people coming for holiday shopping and festivities.What would be your desired budget per night for this stay?Additionally, are any other zones besides Times Square (if so, which?) acceptable? TS is almost always the most expensive zone in the city - it's also often the most crowded and hectic area.Thank you for using the board's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.
mcp77 Posted September 30, 2013 Author Report Posted September 30, 2013 Hi and thanks for your response.My budget is about $300/night including taxes (by the way how much is the tax?)In terms of areas, we would be like yo be quite central in Manhattan so:Times Sq.Midtown EastMidtown WestCentral Park SouthMadison Sq. GardenThank you
thereuare Posted September 30, 2013 Report Posted September 30, 2013 Your maximum bid price would be about $250 if you're trying to stay at $300 or less all-in.But first a quick comment regarding occupancy...PRICELINE only guarantees double occupancy, after that it's at the discretion of the hotel, and you could receive a room with only one bed, and some NYC hotels may be too small to accommodate a crib/pak n play/etc (or some hotels may not have them on hand... but more on that later). While you can call the hotel you win and request a room that can accommodate a crib, the hotel may not be able, or willing, to honor your request (especially during such a busy time of year they may not be able to move you to such a room, which may be considered an upgrade). While occupancy issues with babies is usually not as much of a problem as when the 'child' is old (such as a teenager) it's something that you need to be aware of as PRICELINE's terms are that all rooms are for double occupancy only and after that it's at the discretion of the hotel, so if you should have any occupancy issue, you wouldn't have a good argument with PRICELINE since they do stipulate rooms are for double occupancy (and you'll actually be triple occupancy when including your daughter).On the other hand, HOTWIRE ensures occupancy for everyone that you include in your search, but stipulates children as 2-17 years old. Therefore, you would be 'correct' in only searching for 2adults/0children since your child is under age 2. Once the hotel is won you can call the hotel and ensure that the room assigned has room for a crib/pak n play/etc. In this situation if you do have an occupancy issue, you could at least have a good argument with HOTWIRE and have them in assist in resolving since you did indeed search within their terms (declaring no children since your child is under the age indicated). Do note that HOTWIRE is usually a little more expensive than PRICELINE, and currently the least expensive 4* hotel offered on HOTWIRE for your dates is $276/nite in the ESB zone (not a zone you included above but one i do usually recommend as it's generally considered to be centrally located)Based upon the above, let us know how you'd like to proceed and we'll take it from there.Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
mcp77 Posted September 30, 2013 Author Report Posted September 30, 2013 Hi , I understand your point re Priceline but I still want to give it a go.Doing a little research myself I am hoping for a bid of around $230 to be successful. Is this realistic?Thanks
thereuare Posted September 30, 2013 Report Posted September 30, 2013 I understand your point re Priceline but I still want to give it a go.That's fine... we just try to explain 'what could go wrong' so that you can make a proper decision.Doing a little research myself I am hoping for a bid of around $230 to be successful. Is this realistic?You can try, but at current rates i am doubtful that this will be enough for for a 4* hotel in the zones you have listed. Maybe if you also included the ESB zone, but even that may be a bit of a stretch (although your original budget of ~$250/nite would increase your chances quite a bit, imo)Whatever strategy we suggest will start lower and increase gradually, so even if you use a $250 maximum bid, if something is available for less, we will be sure to hit it for less.Let us know which zones and maximum bid you'd like to proceed with and we'll advise accordingly.Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
mcp77 Posted September 30, 2013 Author Report Posted September 30, 2013 Hi,I think I want to stick to the zones that I mentioned previously, not ESB yet. My strong preference would be Times Sq.I'll make the max. bid at $260Thanks for your help
thereuare Posted September 30, 2013 Report Posted September 30, 2013 When bidding 4* in NYC you have TWO re-bid zones. If you're not familiar with re-bidding please read Priceline Re-Bidding Explained and feel free to ask questions and/or confirm your re-bid zones with the board before proceeding.Select 4* TS...Bid $140, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $160, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* MTE and MTW...Bid $140, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $160, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* CPS and MSG...Bid $140, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $160, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* TS and MTE...Bid $165, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $170, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $175, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* MSG and MTW...Bid $165, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $170, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $175, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* CPS and MTE...Bid $165, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $170, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $175, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* TS and MTW...Bid $180, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $185, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $190, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* MTE and MSG...Bid $180, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $185, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $190, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* CPS and MTW...Bid $180, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $185, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $190, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* MTE and MTW and TS...Bid $195, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $200, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $205, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* CPS and MSG and TS...Bid $195, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $200, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $205, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* MSG and MTW and TS...Bid $210, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $215, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $220, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* CPS and MTE and TS...Bid $210, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $215, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $220, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* MTE and MSG and TS...Bid $225, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $230, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $235, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* CPS and MTW and TS...Bid $225, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $230, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $235, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* MTE and MTW and MSG and TS...Bid $240, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $243, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $245, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* MTE and MTW and MSG and CPS...Bid $240, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $243, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $245, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* TS and CPS and MTE and MTW...Bid $248, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $250, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $253, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* TS and CPS and MTE and MSG...Bid $248, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $250, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $253, if rejected add close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 4* TS and CPS and MTE and MTW and MSG...Bid $255, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $257, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $260Any questions feel free to ask.Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.Good luck and let us know how it goes. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
mcp77 Posted September 30, 2013 Author Report Posted September 30, 2013 Thanks for this.Will give it a try
AaronJB Posted September 30, 2013 Report Posted September 30, 2013 Thank you for keeping us updated and please let us know if you have additional questions.Thank you for using the board's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.
mcp77 Posted October 1, 2013 Author Report Posted October 1, 2013 Can you please confirm that the two re-bid zones are:Long Island City and Morningside Heights.Thanks
thereuare Posted October 1, 2013 Report Posted October 1, 2013 Yes, that is correct, but always double check just before bidding to make sure that nothing has changed.Please remember to use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board for your bidding, searches, and travel purchases.Good luck and let us know how it goes. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
mcp77 Posted October 2, 2013 Author Report Posted October 2, 2013 Hi I just wanted to ask when should I start the bidding? ie. should I start now or wait until nearer the time?Also why do I need to close the browser and re-access Priceline? Can't I simply continue with the bids as you've suggested?Thanks
thereuare Posted October 2, 2013 Report Posted October 2, 2013 Please click each of these PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links, then reply to this thread and we'll continue the discussion for your trip above.Thanks. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
thereuare Posted October 2, 2013 Report Posted October 2, 2013 I just wanted to ask when should I start the bidding? ie. should I start now or wait until nearer the time?Why not now?Also why do I need to close the browser and re-access Priceline? Can't I simply continue with the bids as you've suggested?No, because you need to UNcheck previously selected zones at some point in the bidding process, and after a failed bid the previously selected zones remain checked and are grayed-out (meaning that you can't UNselect them)... by closing the browser 24 hour lock-out rules still apply, but it gives you the ability to UNcheck previously bid zones and proceed with only the zones you want on the next bid.Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.Good luck and let us know if you have any additional questions or how we can be of further help. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
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