Priceline Hotel: London Bidding Advice?

[lwitchel]

Given my tendency to overstrategize travel to the point where the hourly cost of my dithering is astronomical, I thought I'd ask you guys what you thought :)

I've stayed in Kensington most of my trips to London but there's almost nothing in Kensington I do. When I go to London, I live at Covent Garden and at this point I'm getting kind of tired of spending an hour a day on the tube or not being able to get back to the hotel room for a break. So I was trying for a room in Mayfair Soho (dates are May 31-June 4 and June 7-10) or at least within walking distance of Covent Garden. (I'm a good walker)

Lastminute.com has the Kingsway Hall Hotel as a "top secret" special (I'm positive about the ID) for

[lookup]

What i get from your post is that the Mayfair Soho ZONE would work best for you - and what i would do is generate patience!!! ( you have so much time ) avoid Thistle Marble Arch and adjust expectations to expect to pay about $90. - $ 100. US If i understood you correctly that would be my game plan.

I am flying into London tonight - very excited, dinner at Covent Garden on Monday - someone else paying!

[dahammer]

book a cancellable backup which will allow you to dither until someone with more experience can suggest a strategy :)

[lookup]

i have booked through PRICELINE about 11 times now and found that staying focused on the zone and knowing what the going rate from the BETTER BIDDING message boards were was the best stratagy....i see BETTER BIDDERS complicating the matter, jumping zones and price points too early at times. That is where my advice comes from. I have had 100% success in my bids. A newbie though i may be.

[lwitchel]

Thanks for the advice. Patience would work if the Thistle Charing Cross would come up for under $90. If it's going to be $100 and up, there's enough lost (no health club, no internet access, both of which are worth $$ to me on a long trip) that it may be worth coughing up the money to be happier on a trip. And $139/night in London is still a good deal.

The real question to me is whether to go back to staying in Kensington and save the dough!

[GM Mike]

I give you permission to find a dirt cheap priceline deal in Kensington for May 31 - June 4 and to go ahead and splurge and directly purchase the exact hotel you want for June 7 - 10.

(Does that help? :) )

[WillTravel]

You're going to be working, right? If so, you can justify the extra expense of having a hotel that is extremely convenient, and which will allow you to maximize your working hours.

On the other hand, what would you spend the money on if you go for the cheaper option?

[blindman]

Bloomsbury 4* $101 Counteroffer on bid of $50 - My guess is the Thistle Marble Arch. This is a long walk, but possible.

Could be the Novotel, does this alter your perception?

Kensington 4* $68 Counteroffer on bid of $50 - not sure what this is; if it is Holiday Inn Kensington Forum (which is coming up again) I really like the place and it has all the facilities I want, but it means a 20-25 minute subway ride.

Not sure how often you ride on the tube, but at times it stops\there are closures and other things that make the journey longer than it should be....

IMHO

Just this once, forgo PL bids and spend the money on convenience...

[lwitchel]

Sigh. This is what I get for dithering. I decided it was an excellent deal and went back on Tuesday morning to book it after arranging tickets at Covent Garden.

Gone.

Sigh. I found the hotel at bookings.org for