in search of reviews for priceline

[tonykarenc]

I am tempted to use Priceline for an upcoming flight (ny to fla).....never used priceline before.any advise?tips?warnings?

thanks

[thereuare]

You need your plans to be VERY flexible... not knowing your flight times and layover length make it a 'tough sell' for many; but if you're plans are flexible enough then it's worth a try to see if you can beat your next best alternative to make the 'unknowns' worthwhile.

You're not likely to find many reviews since most flyers do not post reviews of their flights.... what would they talk about, the meal/snack quality and the lack of legroom?

If your plans are flexible enough that you want to try priceline post the particulars of your trip (dates, departure/arrival cities, etc) and we'll try to help. Also post the best deal you can currently find, start with our Airfare Checker for an overview of prices.

[tonykarenc]

thanks for your response,

I went to Priceline.and put in my bid...got results of 94 PP R/T

I did as you suggested,and went to your site and got prices ranging from 218-287 PP R/T

Let me ask......Are prices rejected or changed after you pay on Priceline?

I dont know how they could possibly sell me tix at this rate if the lowest I can find is more than double the price?

My itinerary is as follows:

NY to Ft Lauderdale

7-28 thru Aug 4

times are flexible-although I of course prefer non stop.

thanks again

Karen

[thenewbie]

thanks for your response,

I went to Priceline.and put in my bid...got results of 94 PP R/T

What?

--------------

The cheapest retail fare currently is on Spirit Airlines, with non-stop flights (LGA-FLL) for $197 rt.

The question is, how much of a savings is the following worth:

1) The possibility of not having any non-stop flights

2) Not choosing your flight times (and wind up with an early morning or late evening flight)

3) Not earning frequent flyer miles

[LoneStar]

The reality of the situation is that the airlines have decided that they are generally not interested in selling deeper discounted fares below what they offer to the public. In other words, they don't need the priceline middleman. So unlike with hotels (and to a lesser extent car rentals), priceline is pretty worthless on airline tickets and is seldom used.

The bottomline is that it isn't worth your time trying to figure out priceline for airfare. The way to buy cheap airfares is to become familiar with airline pricing. That by itself is a very tricky subject. To start, I'd recommend watching the "flexible date" fares on Travelocity"]Travelocity for the routes you want to travel to get an idea of what's possible.

[tonykarenc]

i see what you are saying...but unfrtntly,i have timeshare,so my dates are not flexible.my times of travel are.although id RATHER choose my time & go non-stop,for a saving they are claiming to give me,id be willing to give that up.i mean-i also found 197 to be the cheapest.....& priceline is offering 94 :) ?

unless priceline is known to change the price once i buy .....do they do that?

[thenewbie]

I'll ask this again... How is Priceline offering you $94?

If you put that price in and they showed you a total including taxes, I'm assuming you likely didn't submit that price to see if it would be accepted.

Until you see a screen with an airline name and flight times, your bid has not been accepted. They are only showing you what the total would be if it gets accepted.

You need to approve the price before they check to see if it would be approved.

[tonykarenc]

O-i see now.

I put in 10.00, the next screen they showed me was

10. + 44.75 in taxes

so round trip came out to (around) 94.

i did not go any further,thinking that was the price they were offering.

now,if im understanding right-youre telling me that 94 is the price they are going to put in-and it might or might NOT get excepted?!

(im guessing it wont)

will they buy the tix if its more than im offering?

[thenewbie]

Seeing $194 as the lowest rate, I'm going to guess that the lowest Priceline will accept is in the mid 100s BEFORE taxes.