Priceline Hotel: MTW MTE CPS 10/11/03 $111 reject

[Lady Reeler]

I started bidding at $90, then $95, then $111 for Oct. 11th. After waiting a long time, I was rejected all three times. I have another bid but I dont want to go much higher.

PS. Where can I find the bidding help form?

[thereuare]

We're not that formal with a bidding help form, is there a specific question you have, are you looking for a strategy to try in 72 hours, need a recommendation for your last bid?

Just include whatever information you think is necessary and ask away... we'll try to help. :)

[Lady Reeler]

I want a 4* hotel in the Midtown area on Oct. 11th for around $100 or so. I have already bid $90 in MTE MTW rejected, then $95 rejected. Then I read where someone got the Mariot Marqui (sp) for $111 so I upped my bid to $111 and still got rejected. What do I do now? I could try $120 but I thought I would do better than that.

[thereuare]

Since your stay is over a month away, why not try waiting a few days or a week and start the bidding process over again (not a bad idea booking a cancellable back-up in the meantime). If Priceline won't accept a bid at the maximum you want to spend, there's not much you can do unless you want to 1) raise your maximum, or 2) lower your star level. I don't think either of these are necessary at this point given that your stay is over 4 weeks away, but at least start to consider your options should time become of the essence (of course, booking conventionally is a 3rd option).

I checked Hotwire and there wasn't anything in the sub-$110 range for your date, but there were some decent properties in the $140's, but since this too is more than you'd like to spend, i would just make a cancellable back-up and try again in a few days.

[WillTravel]

October 11 is a Saturday, and I think I have read that Saturday night check-ins can be more difficult to get on Priceline (at least for some areas and some star levels). It's also possible inventory has not been released yet.

[Welldone Rumproast]

Checking the Javits Center site, the 115th Audio Engineering Society convention is going on from October 10-13.

The site didn't list the number of delegates, however, I looked at their hotel reservations page and two of their main hotels (NY Hilton and Marriott Marquis) are no longer available. While this is not proof positive, it may well be *one* contributing factor to the tight room supply you are encountering. As WillTravel and others have pointed out, inventory may be entered into Priceline's "bucket" once the hotels close convention booking and release rooms that are blocked as of today.

BTW I saw that Bruce Springsteen is receiving an award at a banquet at the Marriott Marquis on the Saturday date, so if The Boss is putting in an apperance, it must be a big event :)

[cmf]

If its any comfort, I have been trying in 3 areas of NYC for several weeks. All bids have been rejected. My date is also a Saturday night, one night only. I tried another bidding session last night and all bids were once again rejected. I thought Sept. would open up Oct. bids, but so far no luck for me.

Here was my bidding attempt:

Checking In Oct. 18th - Out Oct. 19th

MTE 5* $138

MTW 5* $145 (there is no 5* here, so it was a free bid for MTE)

Both of these adding 4* $122

CPS $123

Since all bids were rejected I decided to stop and try again later this week. I saw that someone got the Marriott Marquis in MTW for $122 in Oct. so I expected that my $122 bid would bring results. It didn't. I am beginning to think that one nighters are difficult to come by in NY on Priceline. :)

[Lady Reeler]

I didnt realize it at the time, but Oct. 11th and 12th is the Colubus Day weekend. I guess that makes it more difficult too, right?

[thereuare]

My guess is that Columbus Day increases demand somewhat in NYC, but isn't that much of a factor. To test this theory i checked the rate for the Hyatt for your date, one week before, and one week after... all showed the same rate, so i don't think demand increases that much due to this holiday (other holidays are different and do play a significant factor).

As WDR's research indicated above, the convention in town has sold out the Hilton, which is a hotel frequently received via Priceline, so i think that plays a significant factor. Rates of $120 and under in the UM/CPS aren't that common (although not unheard of), but i think the $120 rates we saw this past summer is seasonal and it will take bids closer to $140 to get acceptances during the fall. (i hope i'm wrong)

This far out, i would book a cancellable back-up and continue to bid this, but as i said above, at least start thinking now what you will do if still unsuccessful 2 weeks before check-in.... raise bid, lower star rating, book thru other means?

Probably not an option, but i'll mention it anyway in case it is, but SqueegeeKid mentioned the other day about $35 bids accepted at the Jersey City Hyatt, which is a new hotel and right on the river. There is a ferry nearby that takes you to the city (i think it's about $5 each way), so it's certainly a 'do-able' place to stay, although certainly less convenient than staying in the city itself.

[Lady Reeler]

I started off with 4* $95 MTW and was rejected.

Added MTE MTS at $111 and dropped to 3*, still rejected.