Priceline Hotel: Bid help - Las Vegas Strip, Dec 7-11

[SanDiego]

Hello,

I am a first-time Priceline user and would like to try it out. Could you please suggest bidding tips for

* Las Vegas Strip area

* Preferably 5*, but 4* is also OK

* December 7 - 11 (4 nights)

* 4 adults + 2 kids (2 rooms)

From what I've read here so far, the only 5* at Priceline is The Venetian and I should be hitting for at least $99 per room (gets to around $120 with taxes). Right?!

Should I be splitting the bids for the 3 week nights (Wed, Thu, Fri) from the Saturday night?

Is there a best/optimal timeframe for bidding - say, 2 weeks before the trip or the earlier the better?

How about 4* alternatives?

Thanks a lot!

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

December is a slow time in Vegas (except when days the rodeo is in town) so you may not need to split your bid, but we'll cross that bridge when we get there... few questions first:

Priceline only guarantees double occupancy per room, after that it is at the discretion of the hotel. It is possible that you could receive a room with only one bed, and if the hotel does know that you're looking for more than double occupancy, they can charge you an additional fee (as it is common in vegas for hotels to charge for additional guests (more than two) in a room). I think the 'risk' of getting a room with only one bed in Vegas is low, but it is still a risk that you should be aware of and need to decide if you're willing to take (note that the Venetian typically only gives rooms with one bed to 'opaque purchasers', but all rooms there have a pull-out sofa which i assumem would be 'ok' for the kids to sleep on).

Second, what is your maximum bid? (before taxes and fees)

Let us know the above and we'll suggest a strategy for you to try for your stay.

[SanDiego]

Thanks a lot for the quick response!

It's good to know that December is the slow month, but I guess we may be hitting on the rodeo week as the regular prices posted on the hotel webs seem quite higher on this particular week?!

About the beds - we only need one of the rooms to have 2 beds (for two grandma's). We'll take a baby's crib in a bag from home and the 2-year old should be fine anywhere. The big questions are

- how to make sure we get at least one of the rooms with 2 queen-size beds?

- if we don't need an extra bed from the hotel, should we expect any problems at the registration desk when checking in with 4 adults, 2-year old and a 2-month baby?

>> What is your maximum bid? (before taxes and fees)

I am ready to spend $100-110.

Update:

1. My wife tried out Priceline yesterday with a bid of $80 on 5* Strip hotel (just for a try).

-- What is the minimum timeout time now before making a second bid on the same conditions?

2. We may be reconsidering the duration of our stay from 4 to 3 nights, especially if this way we can avoid the split between week and weekend night bids.

Please follow up on the original questions when you get a chance...

[bbbb]

Its been a long time since the Venetian has come up for less then $99. Any bid for Vegas 5* less then $99 is a wasted bid. You can bid again right away after you learn the ropes. Read here http://www.betterbidding.com/index.php?showtopic=16&st=0

After you have read this if you have any questions please ask before bidding.

[SanDiego]

Thanks, great advices there!

Now the following questions remain open:

About the beds - we only need one of the rooms to have 2 beds (for two grandma's). We'll take a baby's crib in a bag from home and the 2-year old should be fine anywhere. The big questions are

- how to make sure we get at least one of the rooms with 2 queen-size beds?

- if we don't need an extra bed from the hotel, should we expect any problems at the registration desk when checking in with 4 adults, 2-year old and a 2-month baby?

Is there a best/optimal timeframe for bidding - say, 2 weeks before the trip or the earlier the better? So if we can't get The Venetian at $99 today, what are the odds we can pick up such a deal tomorrow or a few days from now (as the trip date approaches)?

[thereuare]

how to make sure we get at least one of the rooms with 2 queen-size beds?

Book direct... it is the only way to guarantee that you get the bedding preferences you want... and even then i've seen instances where users check-in late at nite and there just aren't rooms available with the configuration booked.

Why take unnecessary chances when checking-in... just have you or your wife go to the desk while the others are 'some place else' in the lobby (or have the gradma's watch the kids while you and your wife go to the check-in counter together). Most of the time it's not a problem, but why take a chance you don't have to?

If you're willing to accept Priceline's terms and conditions let us know and we'll suggest a strategy to follow.

[SanDiego]

>> If you're willing to accept Priceline's terms and conditions let us know and we'll suggest a strategy to follow.

Yeah, it sounds like these risks are very reasonable, so could you please suggest any bidding strategy?

[thereuare]

I took a closer look at the rodeo this year is December 2-11 which explains the high rates you're seeing... the Venetian only has 'reasonable' rates for one nite of your stay, while all of the other nites are at or above $400/nite, so it doesn't look as if the Venetian will be in the cards for you (pun intended :) )

We can suggest a strategy for a 4* property, but for which dates did you decide you are going to try for this stay?

[SanDiego]

I will be there December 7 - 10 (three nights). Too bad it coincides with the rodeo week.

[thereuare]

I think you can do better if traveling 12/8-12/11.... is that an option for you? ( ask since your original plans spanned the entire 4 nites)

If not, are you still willing to split the stay for a 3 nites (2 nites/1 nite)?

[SanDiego]

Splitting is an option, though an undesirable one. I was considering splitting the Wed-Fri from the Saturday night. Now that Saturday night is cancelled from the trip, I am hoping to go without a split.

I also briefly considered moving the trip to the following week, but it seems quite inconvenient, so we'll stick to 12/7 - 12/10.

[thereuare]

Mid-week = Sun-Thur nites

Weekend = Friday and Saturday nites

I think you can do better if traveling 12/8-12/11.... is that an option for you?

[SanDiego]

>> I think you can do better if traveling 12/8-12/11.... is that an option for you?

Yes, I can do that.

[thereuare]

I don't think that Priceline will necessarily be your best bet for this stay... especially with quite a few choices where you can pick your hotel at all about the same price.

Hotwire has a 3.5* hotel for $102/nite in the North Strip zone which is believed to be Ballys... a solid hotel just shy of a 4* rating.

Also available:

Aladdin at $122/nite

Luxor at $103/nite

Monte Carlo at $117/nite.

The last three above are all cancellable up until 72 hours before your check-in date. The last three also have no booking fee, so are within your budget and a tad cheaper than the same priced hotels would be thru Priceline or Hotwire.

Of the list, i think that the Monte Carlo offers the best value as it has a great strip location. My least favorite of the bunch is the Luxor as the location is not that great and it will take awhile to see other parts of the strip.

Let us know your thoughts regarding the above and what you decide to do. Any questions feel free to ask.

[headtrip]

My advice is not to stay at the Luxor...the pyramid shape is unique, but there are really bad noise problems that I encountered during my 2 different stays there. The worst was the water pipes knocking so loudly that it would not allow me to sleep at night. 2nd, the open Atrium bounces the sound all around outside the room causing an accustical nightmare from people walking and talking far below. I would never stay there again, even if it was being given away.

[SanDiego]

Thank you guys for the help and feedback. After a lot of thinking, we chose to go to the Luxor, Dec. 10-13 (3 nights) for an average of $78.50 per room per night. The Saturday night is still very expensive, but the next two days are very cheap and compensate (we could not defer an extra one day). The reservation was done through the link above and we can only hope to not have the noise issues described above.

By the way, is there a special place to look for a minivan rental? We need it for a week and currently have a reservation for $265 (from/to San Diego, CA).

[thereuare]

Glad you were able to get your plans settled and that we were able to help.

For Car Rentals i woudl start with our Car Rental Checker tool :)

[sage]

For more info on the Luxor accommodations, look at TripAdvisor.com for reviews from folks who have stayed in the variety of rooms available at Luxor. There are Tower rooms that have advantages over the Pyramid rooms, if you don't mind staying further from the casino.

For car rental, check out Fox (foxrentacar.com). Around your timeframe San Diego has Sienna vans or Grand Cherokee SUVs for <$190/wk ($210 total). They also have SUV hybrids at some locations (maybe not SAN).

[ufauxreal]

After a lot of thinking, we chose to go to the Luxor, Dec. 10-13 (3 nights) for an average of $78.50 per room per night. The Saturday night is still very expensive, but the next two days are very cheap and compensate (we could not defer an extra one day). The reservation was done through the link above and we can only hope to not have the noise issues described above.

I stayed at the Luxor about two years ago and don't recall a noise issue. I know we were on a higher floor in the pyramid. One thing I did notice was in the casino area, it was not as 'smoky' as a lot of the other casinos. I think it's because the interior is a huge atrium so the smoke rises and dissipates.

JB