Hotwire Hotel: 5* Las Vegas (Strip South) Vdara

[Cora]

Hi! I'm looking for 4 rooms right on the Las Vegas strip the nights of Friday 10/25 and Sat 10/26. I've used Priceline twice before and gotten good deals, but both times ended up with Treasure Island. This was fine with me (I like TI!), but the girls I'm taking requested staying somewhere else this year...Now I'm afraid to bid on Strip-North on Priceline, because I might get TI again, and the phrase "Las Vegas Strip Vicinity South" is kind of freaking me out, as the hotel really needs to be one of the big casinos right on the strip, not somewhere off the strip.

I looked at Hotwire, but I'm not really understanding their system too well. It looks like my best option there would be $154 for a 4* "cool hotel at a resort packed with fun" on the Strip-South. (Amenities are Free Parking, Free Internet, Resort, Casino, Fitness Center, Pool, Restaurant, Business Center and Golf Nearby, with a resort fee of "about $20 per night.") I am guessing this might be the Tropicana, which to be honest is not at the top of my list of places I'd like to stay.

Another option might be bidding on only 5* and 4.5* casinos on Priceline, if I could possibly get them for a reasonable price ($150 or less per night, ideally). Any of those would be fine I think, as long as they have casinos and are right on the strip.

Any help or ideas would be greatly appreciated!

[thereuare]

If the group wants to avoid TI, and there is no interest in the Tropicana (which i think you can certainly do much worse than this at the 4* level... would the Luxor be acceptable given it's more remote location and mixed reviews??)

As well, you mention that the hotel needs to have a Casino... so is the Vdara not acceptable? (or any other 5* hotel that does not have a casino on site?)

Based upon your criteria above i would bid 5* Strip North only (not including the Strip South zone if the Vdara and other hotels without a casino are not acceptable) although i think it will more likely run you closer to $160-$180 than the $150/nite you're trying to target)

Let us know your thoughts as to how you'd like to proceed, and if you're willing to raise your budget another $25/nite for a 5* hotel, and we'll take it from there.

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[Cora]

Thanks for the input! Yes I would really like to have a casino on-site....however I just realized that it's not the Tropicana I was trying to avoid but the Flamingo Hilton and I was getting the two mixed up. (I've heard a lot of bad reviews of the Flamingo Hilton.) So the Tropicana would probably be fine...but you are right, Luxor would really not be great, due mainly to its location, so maybe I should still stay away from bidding on 4* South Strip hotels.

I am thinking that bidding 5* North Strip is my best bet and I'm going to try that. I'll be sure to link to PRICELINE through this site and post my results!

Thanks again!

[Cora]

Giving up for today...I bid all the way up to $170 on 5* North Strip hotels today and finally decided to give up and try again tomorrow. Since Priceline Express Deals is offering $193 for a 5* North Strip hotel, I think that $170 or higher I would pay by bidding is not really a great deal! I'm also re-thinking whether we really need a casino on-site. If we are staying at a fairly central property on the strip, I think that walking next door to another casino might be ok. Soooo....my plan for tomorrow is going to be to include 5* hotels on both the North and South strip. This should hopefully result in a good hotel in a good location, maybe closer to $150-$160.

[thereuare]

Let us know if you need help with a bidding strategy, and if so, if you have revised your maximum bid or are keeping it at $150/nite.

Also, if/when using re-bid zones make sure you don't make the mistake of including Strip North Vicinity instead of the Strip North zone that are seeking.

Thanks for using the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board.

Good luck and let us know how it goes.

[Cora]

So I just noticed that Hotwire is offering a "Cool hotel at a resort packed with fun" 4* on the Strip-South for $151. Amenities are "Free Parking, Free Internet, Resort, Casino, Fitness Center, Pool, Restaurant, Business Center and Golf Nearby" with a resort fee of "about $20 per night." Does this sound like the Luxor? Definitely do not want Luxor...but the price is right. What do you think?

[Cora]

Thanks! Actually, I rebid today all the way up to $175, using North Strip, South Strip and all the appropriate re-bidding zones (and being careful to leave off North Strip Vicinity). I'm kind of surprised that even $175 wasn't accepted, when PRICELINE EXPRESS Deals is offering a 5* North Strip hotel for $193! Plus, I'm trying to purchase 4 rooms for 2 nights, so this is a reasonably decent sale for them I would think...you'd think they'd want it! But no, they are not wanting it, and I'm having a hard time bidding higher than $175, considering there will be resort fees too.

I am thinking about including the 4.5* hotels. I'm not crazy about the location of the Elara, though I have not been there so can't say for sure...it's central, but it looks like it's tucked out of the way kind of behind another hotel. I don't really like the location of Mandalay Bay either, but I have stayed there before and it was a pretty nice hotel (I thought it was nicer than TI, just a worse location), so that would be ok I guess. I wonder if I include the 4.5* hotels if I can get a rate closer to $150-$160?

Any tips would be appreciated. I'm kind of at a loss!

[Cora]

So after looking things over, I think I would be ok with either Elara or Mandalay Bay or the MGM (the 4.5* hotels). So tomorrow I'll bid 4.5* and 5* hotels North and South strip all the way up to $175, using the links here, and leaving out the North Strip Vicinity zone.

If all else fails, I should be able to get the PRICELINE EXPRESS 5* North strip hotel for $193. But that's a lot more than I wanted to pay!

Any tips on this strategy would be appreciated!

[thereuare]

Keep in mind that when you bid on PRICELINE the star rating you choose is the minimum you are willing to accept and your 4.5* bid could be upgraded to a 5* hotel (landing the Vdara or one of the other hotels in the zone without a casino)

While four hotel rooms may seem like a lot (and it may be at some hotels) the Wynn has over 2000 rooms and the Venetian and Palazzo each have over 3000... so four rooms is not a lot of inventory to any of these properties. As well, from the hotel perspective, with hotel direct rates at $250+ (or much more) for these nites, why should they sell any at $175??

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

Keep us updated on your progress and let us know if we can be of further help.

[Cora]

Keep in mind that when you bid on PRICELINE the star rating you choose is the minimum you are willing to accept and your 4.5* bid could be upgraded to a 5* hotel (landing the Vdara or one of the other hotels in the zone without a casino)

While four hotel rooms may seem like a lot (and it may be at some hotels) the Wynn has over 2000 rooms and the Venetian and Palazzo each have over 3000... so four rooms is not a lot of inventory to any of these properties. As well, from the hotel perspective, with hotel direct rates at $250+ (or much more) for these nites, why should they sell any at $175??

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

Keep us updated on your progress and let us know if we can be of further help.

Yes, that makes sense!

I've decided that a hotel without a casino is ok, especially if it's in a good location. I'm going to try to get a 4.5* or 5* in the price range I want tomorrow ($150-$175) and if I still can't make that happen, I'll start bidding on 4* South Strip hotels. I just hope I don't get Luxor, but I guess there is no way to prevent that.

Thanks for your help!

[AaronJB]

Yes, that makes sense!

I've decided that a hotel without a casino is ok, especially if it's in a good location. I'm going to try to get a 4.5* or 5* in the price range I want tomorrow ($150-$175) and if I still can't make that happen, I'll start bidding on 4* South Strip hotels. I just hope I don't get Luxor, but I guess there is no way to prevent that.

Thanks for your help!

You can make an educated guess as to which hotels are showing on HOTWIRE in an attempt to avoid the Luxor. Bidding is less expensive,but you have to be willing to accept any hotel at the star rating chosen within the zone/s chosen.

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

[Cora]

You can make an educated guess as to which hotels are showing on HOTWIRE in an attempt to avoid the Luxor. Bidding is less expensive,but you have to be willing to accept any hotel at the star rating chosen within the zone/s chosen.

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

Thanks Aaron! I wouldn't mind booking on Hotwire, and they have 2 hotels listed that would work for me, but I can't say for sure which hotels they are:

1. "Cool hotel at a resort packed with fun" The Strip - North. $148 + $25 resort fee. Amenities: Free Parking, Resort, Casino, Fitness Center, Pool, Restaurant, Business Center, Internet Access, Golf Nearby.

(My guess is that this is either Treasure Island or The Mirage)

2. "Cool hotel at a resort packed with fun" The Strip - South. $151 + $20 resort fee. Amenities: Free Parking, Free Internet, Resort, Casino, Fitness Center, Pool, Restaurant, Business Center, Golf Nearby.

(I would be ok with most of the hotels that match this, but really don't want Luxor, which it could be.)

Any thoughts on likely matches for those two? I'd take the first if I knew it wasn't TI, and I'd take the second if I knew it wasn't Luxor!

[Cora]

I just discovered more amenities by clicking on Book Now:

1. "Cool hotel at a resort packed with fun" The Strip - North. $148 + $25 resort fee.

Amenities: Free Parking, Fitness Center, Business Center, Tennis Nearby, Accessible for the Deaf, Accessible Bathroom, Resort, Pool(s), Internet Access, Spa Services, Accessible Path of Travel, Handicapped Parking, Casino,Restaurant(s), Golf Nearby, Accessible for the Blind, In-room accessibility, Roll-in Shower.

It has an 90% Hotwire recommendation and 4 out of 5 on Tripadvisor.

2. "Cool hotel at a resort packed with fun" The Strip - South. $151 + $20 resort fee.

Amenities: Free Parking, Casino, Restaurant(s), Accessible for the Deaf, Wheelchair Accessible, Roll-in Shower, Free Internet, Fitness Center, Business Center, Accessible Path of Travel, Accessible Bathroom, Resort, Pool, Golf Nearby.

It has an 80% Hotwire recommendation and 4 out of 5 on Tripadvisor.

Any guesses on these 2?

[Cora]

I just noticed that on the regular side of Hotwire (full price) they list the Tripadvisor ranking for the Luxor at 3.5 out of 5 (I also confirmed this ranking on the Tripadvisor site.) I could not find the Tropicana on the full price side of Hotwire, however when I checked the Tripadvisor site, the Tropicana is ranked 4 out of 5. Since South Strip 4* property mentioned above has Free Internet, I narrowed it down to Luxor and Tropicana (is that right?). Does the 4 out of 5 Tripadvisor ranking confirm Tropicana???

Any thoughts? I'd book it at that price if I was fairly certain it was Tropicana and not Luxor.

[Cora]

There is also a list of "Standard Rate hotels near this $151 hot Rate hotel" that include NYNY, Excalibur, MGM Grand, Monte Carlo, and Luxor. Does the fact that Luxor is included in the list mean that the hotel I'd be bidding on is NOT Luxor??? Oh gosh, this is nerve-wracking!!!

[yellowdog]

1. "Cool hotel at a resort packed with fun" The Strip - North. 4* $148 + $25 resort fee.

Both Treasure Island and The Mirage is reported with this combo. But I would like to add that Treasure Island is the most reported of the two.

2. "Cool hotel at a resort packed with fun" The Strip - South. 4* $151 + $20 resort fee.

I don't see the 4/5 TA rating on my search. It might be that the inventory has changed since your search.

Best guess would be Luxor.

Please remember to use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board and let us know how it goes or if we can be of further help with this stay.

Yellowdog.

[bbbb]

You have two things going against you here, NHRA drag racing is in town and so is The PBR at Thomas & Mack.

[Cora]

You have two things going against you here, NHRA drag racing is in town and so is The PBR at Thomas & Mack.

Wow. When I planned the dates months ago I tried to avoid a busy weekend. But I never know quite how to find out which weekends are going to be super busy in Vegas. :(

I'll let you all know the results when I finally get something.

[Cora]

Anybody have a guess as to which hotel this is:

5* Luxe hotel featuring roomy suites, The Strip - South

Resort fee: about $30 per night

Hotwire 90% recommended

Tripadvisor: 4.5 out of 5

Amenities:

Free Parking

Free Internet

Suite

Smoke Free Rooms

Fitness Center

Pool(s)

Business Center

Internet Access

Golf Nearby

Spa Services

Accessible for the Blind

Accessible for the Deaf

Accessible Path of Travel

In-room Accessibility

Accessible Bathroom

Roll-in Shower

Price is pretty good at $183/night!

Guesses???

[Cora]

Finally got my rooms booked!

I guessed that hotel above was Vdara or Four Seasons. I wanted Vdara, but I would have been ok with Four Seasons too. And....it was Vdara!

Booked 4 rooms for 2 nights 10/25-10/27 for $183/night. That's higher than I wanted to pay, but it will be fine. Looking at Vdara it really looks like a nice property, and I actually like the idea of not having a casino right there. :)

Should I post it separately on the Hotwire forum, so people there can see it?

Thanks again for all the help and input!

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

Glad to see you got this stay settled and hopefully everyone in the group is pleased with the outcome.

In the future you can post the win yourself by using the EDIT TO REPORT WIN button on the top right of the page... this will enable you to edit the topic title to reflect your win, add a reply with the details of the purchase, and will also automatically move the entire thread to the correct section of the board (if necessary). However, this button can only be used once and then it disappears, so you won't see it anymore since we have just used it to reflect you win.

Thank you for sharing your win with the board.

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

Enjoy your stay.