Priceline Hotel: Billerica, MA (Greater Boston)

[ctkeeper]

Dear all,

 

I was wondering if you could point me in the right direction to come up with a better bidding process. Sorry if this is an old question I have read other posts, but none seem to cover exactly what I am asking for Billerica.

 

It seems lately that the Hotwire and Priceline Express options are very close to the amounts that I can find accepted by Priceline Name Your Own Price.

 

Travel from home to work in Billerica, MA often. I work close to Route 3 exit 27.

 

Would prefer to stay close to Billerica, but can handle 30 minute (or less commute to work from Hotel).

 

Prefer 3 star or better (but can do 2.5 Star if needed for budget).

 

Stay 1-4 days 2-3 weeks a month. Monday - Thursday

 

Budget is limited, Would like to keep it at below $70 (total cost with taxes) if possible. Can go a little higher for stays of 1 or 2 nights.

 

I have had very little luck securing hotels in or near Billerica with Name Your Own Price.

 

I know Mon-Thu is the high point for business travel, but I am not sure if individual days or blocks of two days have any advantage.

 

it seems I find the best prices via Name your Own Price,  at the last minute or more than 6 weeks out.

 

Just wondering on best bid strategy (based on historic accepted amounts  for this area) and when to bid. Wasn't sure if any chains set winning values for the greater boston region (e.g. the other Boston Area wins would help) or if my Region has something that makes it more difficult (lower hotel density).

 

Need Free Parking and Free Internet prefer hotels with free Breakfast.

 

 

How should my Name Your Own Price, fit in with the other options as most weeks that I travel, I need to be in the area anyway.

 

I have been surprised by the size of some of the areas in the Express a few times and occasionally via Hotwire and ended up traveling more than 30 minutes (about ~50 with traffic) and would like to avoid this in the future as well.

 

Appreciate the help.

 

Kind regards,

 

CtKeeper

 

[thereuare]

Welcome (officially) to BetterBidding!

 

From your post it sounds like you have already had some PRICELINE and/or HOTWIRE purchases in the 9+ months since joining the board?  If so, please begin to share your wins so that others can benefit from the information, just as you are hoping to gain insight by those who have posted before you.

 

There is no 'one size fits all days' when it comes to bidding on PRICELINE, since an event in the area can cause a sharp rise in hotel rates for those specific dates OR a lack of events/business travel (ie- near holidays) could cause prices to be substantially lower.  Do you already know the dates of your next stay in this area?

 

If you're finding these 'outer city' zones to be too geographically large for your needs then i would sooner stick with PRICELINE EXPRESS and/or HOTWIRE where you may (with our help) be able to determine the likely name of the hotel currently being offered, which in turn will then let you know if the location will be good for your needs or not.  Even if this route costs an extra $10-$20/nite over bidding (where you have no control over where within the zone your hotel will be located) i assume from your post that this would be worth the time savings of a longer daily commute?  As well, we usually have a Priceline Coupon and/or Hotwire Coupon to offer which can bring the cost of a PRICELINE EXPRESS Deal or HotRate hotel close to what you may be able to achieve thru bidding.

 

Lastly, i'm sure you've been finding the Name Your Own Price bidding page more difficult to find lately as priceline continues to move/hide it, so note (and bookmark) this page that we have set-up which will give you quick and easy access to the bidding form: BiddingForHotelRooms.com

 

Let us know when you have firm dates for your next trip to this area and we will research rates and suggest a strategy to follow (which includes weighing Name Your Own Price vs. PRICELINE EXPRESS vs. HOTWIRE)