gizzyprince Posted March 2, 2006 Report Posted March 2, 2006 first time post here all the way from bonnie scotland.now let me explain!!i have had a good look at the website and seem to understand the basics on priceline and hotwire.booked my flights online by Expedia flying to newark on 2nd sept 2006 for four nights,got not a bad deal on the flights my head is about to explode with all the hotels in my mind,would like to stay in 4 star hotel in times sqaure area or midtown west.my max price would be 200 dollars a night for the four nights.i gather that labor day is in the first monday in september,would this affect rooms in new york at this time?my worry is i leave to late and nothing at all!!! sorry for my long story,but going back to my orginal point is it to early to start bidding now.thanksgizzyprince.
blindman Posted March 2, 2006 Report Posted March 2, 2006 If your plans are firm (sounds like it to me :) ) then No it's not too early to bid.However you need to be patient and set out a good strategy with minimums and maximum bids.Bid every week or so keeping an eye on any Hotwire price variations and any reported wins.Best to book a cancellable backup JIC you can't get a PL win.I'm in UK so can't really comment on labor day affecting room availablity.Have you looked at the New Jersey hotels?
thereuare Posted March 2, 2006 Report Posted March 2, 2006 Welcome to BetterBidding!The NYC hotel market is a mix of business and pleasure travelers... usually the holiday weekends make for a BIG drop in business travelers and often the increase in leisure travelers is not enough to make up for the drop in business travelers, so <again> usually holiday weekends are not a problem in NYC (excpet for Thanksgiving).I am local to the area and while almost every "first time to NYC" thread states "i want to be in Times Square", i inevitably advise against this and suggest staying anywhere within the MTE, MTW, and UM/CPS zones. These three zones does include the Time Square area, but also the area surroudning it. I recommend this because:1) once you've seen all the lights of Times Square, you've seen it... it's not an area i recommend 'hanging out' at as it's not 'true' NYC2) it's very crowded with tourists, making it more difficult to get in/out of your hotel (especially when taking taxis)3) NYC is very compact, it is extremely easy to get from one area to another via subway/bus/taxi/mass transit... any of the above three zones should work well for the 'typical' tourist4) expanding your zones helps you get the best price via pricelineWith the above said, i may know more about NYC than you do, but you know what you want from this trip better than i do, so let us know which zones you are intersted in and we'll suggest a strategy to follow for bidding.You also may want to read thru this thread i created awhile back: PRICELINE NYC ZONE DESCRIPTIONS Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
gizzyprince Posted March 2, 2006 Author Report Posted March 2, 2006 the main reason for me wanting to be in the times square area,was the subway at 42nd street times square that covered most of the subway system.or was within walking distance to the other lines in the subway. also some of the hotels in area were rated quite good on tripadvisor,ie= sofitel,casablanca etc.i would consider mte and mtw,but again i would prefer a 4 star hotel,as it is our 10 wedding anniversary.again thanks for helpgizzyprince.
thereuare Posted March 2, 2006 Report Posted March 2, 2006 If you were to receive the Sheraton NY (in the MTW zone), you'd be about a 10 minute walk from the Times Square Station.... if you received the MTE, you'd be slightly less than a 10 minute walk to the same station. I guess the point is that "Time Square" is not a zone on Priceline (it is on Hotwire) and you can end up anywhere within the zone, so don't focus on being near one specific subway station. As well, you could easily take a subway near your hotel to the Times Square station (or similar) to help in you getting to your destination... transfers from train-to-train within the same station are free. As well, we recommend the use of an unlimited metrocard, so cost-per-ride is not likely to be a factor.So you said that MTE and MTW are fine... is UM/CPS not a consideration? Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
gizzyprince Posted March 2, 2006 Author Report Posted March 2, 2006 yes i would also consider um/cps.thanksgizzyprince.
thereuare Posted March 2, 2006 Report Posted March 2, 2006 At the 4* level 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.I would begin as follows (don't get discouraged if not successful at first as you'll notice we're well under your maximum bid and you have lots of time):Select 4* MTW...Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $125, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $130, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* MTE...Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $125, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $130, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* UM/CPS...Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $125, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $130, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* MTW and MTE...Bid $135, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $140, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $145, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* MTW and UM/CPS...Bid $135, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $140, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $145, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* MTW and MTE and UM/CPS...Bid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $155, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $160.Any questions feel free to ask.Good Luck and let us now how it goes. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
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