Priceline Hotel: 3* New York City (Midtown West) Courtyard By Marriott New York Manhattan/Central Park

[geissap]

So I'm trying to get a good deal for a hotel from 6/5 to 6/8. I'd like under $200 but location is kind of important as we go for broadway shows almost purely. We will see 4 to 5 shows in those 4 days. We also play the rush and lotto game so were in and out of times square all day long. I have to have quick access to a subway. Are MTE, Times Square, CPS, ESB and CHE recommended for that situation? 

 

MTE comes up with indoor swimming pool and business amenities at 184 night...thoughts? That's the cheapest as of now?

 

Thoughts I'm kinda lost...I've never bid for anything before on Priceline. And yes I read my messages and saw that we should use the links on here. ;)

[AaronJB]

Welcome to Betterbidding. :)
 

Personally, I like MTE as a convenient (and yet less hectic and expensive) option versus Times Square. CPS, MTW and ESB are also fine, although there are couple of "issue" hotels at the 4* level - in CPS, the Hudson has extremely small rooms and MTE's 4* OneUN is at the far E border of the zone.

 

The 4* Express Deal has not yet been ID'd/reported to the board, but I'd guess the Kimberly or OneUN. I'm seeing a guest rating of 8+, so the Kimberly would appear more likely of the two.

 

In terms of bidding vs Express Deals:

 

Bidding: cheapest, but if you select a particular star rating and particular zone(s), you have to be willing to stay at ANY hotel at that star rating in that zone (or zones.)

 

Express Deals: somewhat more expensive, but the amenities can help narrow down the possibilities at least moderately.

 

Hot.wire: Sometimes more expensive tha PRICELINE EXPRESS Deals (sometimes not), but easier to narrow down.

 

There are lists of the hotels reported to the board on each service under each state sub-forum.

 

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

[geissap]

Thanks for the information. I'm glad you talked about possible hotels that would be far from a subway. That's what scares me the most about Chelsea and/or ESB. They are BIG areas...are there 4* that are far from subway hops in those two areas.

 

Also I see so little talked about when it comes to Central Park South...but from what I can tell it's pretty hard to be far away from a subway hop inside of CPS no?

 

I guess I failed to mentioned Midtown West as well...any 4* to stay away from there?

[thereuare]

That's what scares me the most about Chelsea and/or ESB. They are BIG areas...are there 4* that are far from subway hops in those two areas.

These zones may be larger than some of the other NYC zones, but geographically they really aren't that big. In the Chelsea zone you can be up to 10 minutes from a subway if you land in the far west side of the zone... ESB i know of no issues as most 4* 'known' hotels are well located. In ESB if the hotel is an easy walk to Grand Central you could walk to Times Square (or take the 7 train or Shuttle across town if didn't want to walk or bad weather (there is also the M42 bus)... if you end up in the southern part of ESB you could walk to Broadway and take the N/R train to Times Square)

 

Also I see so little talked about when it comes to Central Park South...but from what I can tell it's pretty hard to be far away from a subway hop inside of CPS no?

CPS is centrally located but has the Hudson Hotel which has notoriously small rooms... many avoid this zone for this reason, and other than the Hudson, it's usually a very expensive zone so that when bidding multiple zones, some other zone accepts the bid before this one.

 

I guess I failed to mentioned Midtown West as well...any 4* to stay away from there?

I know of no 'known' issues with MTW.

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

Let us know how you'd like to proceed and we'll advise accordingly.

[geissap]

Wow. Ok you just nailed everything I wanted to hear. All those areas sound fine but chelsea...I think i'll avoid that 10 minute walk with the other variety I have. 

 

One more question...

 

Is it better to start bidding a week out or should i bid like a day before? 

 

Midtown West...all it has for amenities listed is a gym and guest rating of 8.0. Any guesses? $193 a night so $184ish with the 5%...

[thereuare]

All those areas sound fine but chelsea...

Not sure which zones you want to include/exclude... please confirm the zones you're willing to accept by including them in your post (and use the same zone names that PRICELINE uses in order to avoid any confusion)

 

Is it better to start bidding a week out or should i bid like a day before?

Nobody can say if rates will come down, or move higher, over the next few days... but i certainly think you're close enough to start bidding now. I definitely don't recommend waiting until the day before since if you try to bid too low and run out of bids, then you're stuck with not many options (and what options you do have are usually much more expensive then if you could continue bidding)

Midtown West...all it has for amenities listed is a gym and guest rating of 8.0. Any guesses? $193 a night so $184ish with the 5%...

This one is 3* rated? Can never have too much confidence with only one amenity showing, but the Ameritania Hotel has previously been seen with a solo Fitness amenity so that would be my best guess for this one.

Let us know if you take the PRICELINE EXPRESS property, or if you want to move forward by bidding, let us know the zones you're willing to accept, desired star rating, and maximum budget... we will suggest a strategy for you to follow.

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

[geissap]

TS, CPS, Midtown east and west, and ESB all sound fine.

 

What do you mean run out of bids? How does one run out of bids?

[thereuare]

PRICELINE does not allow you to make duplicate bids (based upon star rating, zone and dates) within a 24 hours period. There are strategies that you can use to maximize the number of bids you can make within a 24 hour period, but the number of bids that you can make in a 24 hour period is a finite number. See Priceline Re-Bidding Explained for more information, as well as the 'Bid Early or Close to Check-in' link in our PRICELINE FAQ for more on the 'when to bid' discussion.

Also, note that while most hotels in the MTE zone are well located, a few can be up to a 10 minute walk (and one up to 15 minutes)

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

Let us know once you're ready to move forward, as well as your desired star rating and maximum bid, and we'll advise accordingly.

[geissap]

CPS 3* $205 free wifi pool restaurant business center and fitness. Guest rating of 7.0. Any guesses?

Under $200 a night would like 4* and it sounds like esb, CPS, ts and mtw are where I want to be...

[thereuare]

Why don't we start with the PRICELINE bidding since the PRICELINE EXPRESS property (which will take some time to research) is currently lower than your target star rating and a little over your budget, and may not be the property offered if/when your PRICELINE bidding fails and you are ready to consider a lower star rating at a higher price.

Assuming you are OK with the previously discussed small rooms at the Hudson, when bidding 4* in NYC you have ONE re-bid zone. 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 and MTW...

Bid $160, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $170, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...

Select 4* ESB and CPS...

Bid $160, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $170, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...

Select 4* TS and ESB...

Bid $175, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $180, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...

Select 4* MTW and CPS...

Bid $175, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $180, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...

Select 4* TS and CPS...

Bid $185, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $190, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...

Select 4* MTW and ESB...

Bid $185, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $190, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...

Select 4* TS, MTW, ESB...

Bid $193, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $195, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...

Select 4* TS, MTW, CPS...

Bid $193, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $195, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...

Select 4* TS, MTW, ESB, CPS...

Bid $198, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $200

Any 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.

[geissap]

So this is showing a 3.5* Times Square District with the following amentities

 

Free Internet, Boutique, Indoor Pool, Fitness Center, Pool, Business Center, Self Service Laundry, Spa Services

 

4.0/5 on TripAdvisor and 80% recommended for $202

 

I don't see anything on the list here with a pool that is 3.5* in Times Square...is the a new hotel not on the list maybe?

 

 

[thereuare]

Please keep all posts for the same stay in the same thread.

Have you yet tried the 4* bidding strategy suggested?

For this HOTWIRE property, I believe there are more amenities then what you have posted above as HOTWIRE has a new interface that does not show the complete set of amenities unless you click thru a few extra links.

If you repeat your search using our BiddingHelper.com tool... use the HOTWIRE EASY VIEW tab and then click the GREEN BUTTON next to this listing, do you see more amenities then what you have listed above?

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

[geissap]

I have went through about half the bidding strategy you presented, but my wife actually just broke her tailbone...so now being in times square for us has become more of a big deal. So I'm kind of still holding out to see if rates drop in times square still. The less subway the better...

 

Here is how that TS 3.5* comes out using the BiddingHelper.com...any ideas?

FULL AMENITIES: Free Internet, Boutique Hotel, Indoor pool(s), Fitness Center, Pool(s), Business Center, Self service laundry, Spa Services, Accessible path of travel, In-room accessibility, Wheelchair accessible, Accessible bathroom, Roll-in shower

 

What the heck is a roll-in shower?

[thereuare]

Sorry to hear of your wife's injury.

The Room Mate Grace would be my best guess for the HOTWIRE offer above.

If you don't take the HOTWIRE offer above, you can sign up for HOTWIRE and PRICELINE EXPRESS alerts using our new site RateDrop, so that if any 4* (or 3.5* if you indicate) hotels that drop to your desired price point you'll receive an emailing alerting you to the fact that something has hit your 'buy range'.

To picture a roll-in shower think of a handicapped accessible room where there is no 'wall' to get into the tub, somebody in a wheelchair could roll-in to the shower area to bathe. This amenity does not necessarily mean that you will get an 'accessible' room, but is indicating that such rooms are available.

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

Let us know what you decide and how it goes or if we can be of further help.

[geissap]

Waiting until last minute definitely paid off i couldn't get anything for $190 in MTW or TS three days ago.

[AaronJB]

Congrats on your success. :)

 

Definitely a nice win for this Courtyard property during a busy period in NYC.

 

Thank you for sharing your win and please use the site's PRICELINE or HOTWIRE links to start your purchases and searches.

 

Enjoy your stay.