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Priceline Hotel: 4* Indianapolis (Downtown) Westin


Senoreit
By Senoreit,
in

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Hello,

I just stumbled upon this site, I commend thereuare for setting it up and I've found all the posts very helpful. I sincerenly apologize if this his been covered in the past (I did search and couldn't find any relevent thread) or if it is an unreasonable question. I was just wondering how people generally determine what their initial lowball bid on priceline is going to be... I obviously don't want to start with a bid that is unnecessarily high for fear that I might end up paying more than I need to, but I also don't want to exhaust all my available rebid opportunities with bids that are absurdly low. I've never tried to bid on a hotel on priceline before, so I don't know how big of a discount to expect from the generally quoted prices on other sites and thus have no idea where to start my bidding.

In my specific case, I'm looking to stay in Indianapolis city center for two nights, Nov. 28th and 29th. I'm thinking about a 4* hotel although that's not set in stone. Searches on Orbitz, Expedia, and Yahoo have revealed that the going rate is $150-$200/night, and hotwire is quoting me $101/night. I would greatly appreciate suggestions for an opening bid on priceline, but as I said, for future reference I am also interested in general rules people go by when determining what their opening bid should be in a given situation.

Thanks much in advance!

-Brian

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Welcome to BetterBidding!

Usually you try to see approximately what others have paid in the past, but in your instance, we don't have any reported wins from the Downtown area (which is what i assumed you meant by 'city center') so we have to look at some of the surrounding areas and what Hotwire is offering. Then i would consider how close to check-in you are and how many Re-Bids are available.

In your instance, going for 4* in the Downtown area, you have 6 re-bid zones (since as i write this none of the other zones offer 4* bidding) for a total of 7 bids every 72 hours.

This is how i would proceed:

Select 4* Downtown and bid $50, if rejected a re-bid zone and...

Bid $55, if rejected a re-bid zone and...

Bid $60, if rejected a re-bid zone and...

Bid $65, if rejected a re-bid zone and...

Bid $70, if rejected a re-bid zone and...

Bid $75, if rejected a re-bid zone and...

Bid $80, if rejected a re-bid zone.

If all of the above is rejected, you can wait 72 hours and start the process over, but start with $60 instead of $50 (which would bring your highest bid up to $90), if that is rejected you can then bid again after another 72 hours and start with $70 instead of $60 (which would bring your highest bid up to $100). If that is rejected, hopefully the $101 room will still be available thru Hotwire and you can just take that.

A lot has to do with your own personality though, and whether you can deal with possibly not having a 'confirmed' hotel up until a few days before arrival. If not, maybe you'd want to try the first strategy given and if rejected, start again in 72 hours with the $70 bid (skipping the $60-$90 bidding cycle). To alleviate this 'pressure', we recommend booking a cancellable back-up in the meantimeso that you at least know you'll have a place to sleep if you're not successful with Priceline or Hotwire. I assume you'll be trying this tonite, so if so i would give it shot and then if not successful book some sort of cancellable back-up.

Feel free to ask any questions you may have regarding the above strategy (especially re-bidding) and if you give it a try, let us know how it goes (then the next user will at least have a better idea of what a likely successful bid would be... this site is only 8 months old so we're still growing and building the database :) )

.... and that's how we do it :)

I'll be moving this thread to the Indiana>>Priceline section of the board once i know you're seen it.

In regards to how to determine for the future, the best advice is to just post here before you bid (in the appropriate state category) and somebody will likely be happy to help. The board is comprised of a fairly friendly bunch from all of the country (umm, the world for that matter) and together we help each other out with areas that we know something about. After a while you learn the 'intricacies' of certain zones and can offer assitance when others are bidding that area. Soon you'll be helping others here as well!

Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases

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Successfully used Priceline for the first time. It was nervewracking and exhilarating all at once!

Hotwire was quoting $101/night for 4* on my desired dates. I started my Priceline bidding at $50, and, using my free rebids, increased in $5 increments all the way up to $80 but was rejected. I waited three days and started my bidding at $70, increased in $5 increments until I was finally accepted at $90. However, this reservation is for the Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving, so I think under low-demand circumstances this hotel could be gotten for much cheaper, especially if you're staying midweek. I've read newsgroup postings where people have said they have the Indianapolis Westin for $50/night, and talked about the overall going rate for 4* in downtown Indianapolis being $50-$65/night on Priceline. Anyway, I will post my details for any future post-Thanksgiving travelers: :)

Congratulations, you got your price of $90 for a 4-star hotel room

Downtown Indianapolis

50 South Capitol Avenue

Indianapolis, Indiana 46204

317-262-8100

Check-In Date: Fri, Nov 28, 2003

Check-In Time: After 03:00 PM

Check-Out Date: Sun, Nov 30, 2003

Check-Out Time: 12:00 PM

Your Offer Price: $90.00

Number of Rooms: 1

Number of Nights: 2

Subtotal: $180.00

Taxes and

Service Fees: $30.17

Total Charges: $210.17

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Glad to see you were successful!

The nerveracking and exhiliration will settle down after a few more bids, but i still get butterflies in my stomach as i wait for an answer.

Rates seem to jump for Saturday nite of your stay, so this is probably indeed a slightly higher demand time. At least you know this is 'what it takes' and didn't overbid (since you were rejected moments earlier at $85).

Enjoy your stay and thanks for following up with yoru results. Feel free to add a review of your experience in the HOTEL REVIEWS section when you return.

Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases

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