Priceline Hotel: 3* NYC (MTW) Millenium Broadway

[evaaseow]

I am new to priceline.com it was recommended by a friend. I have tried MS/ME/MW and Soho as possible areas of staying with a max of $175 in all those areas, 3*+ and it has been rejected. I have read over some threads mentioning split bidding and rebidding. I would like to not do split bidding as I will have no car there so I do not want to have to check out and carry all my belongings until it it time to check into the next hotel. I am not 100% sure what rebidding is and if anyone cares to explain it would be greatly appreciated. Is this time of year more expensive than usual for hotels? What is a rate that I should expect to pay?

Any and all advice would be great as this is my first time in NYC not staying with relatives.

[thereuare]

Re-bidding is explained here: Priceline Re-Bidding Explained

As far as not having a car, most visitors to NYC don't have/rent a car, but we all have access to cars... called taxis :) While not wanting to change hotels is a personal choice and a valid decision, it shouldn't be because you don't have a car, it should be because you don't want to change hotels during midstay. If you did choose SPLITTING YOUR PRICELINE BID, the 'new' hotel will hold your bags for you until check-in time.

As this stay is only three days away, do you have a back-up hotel... if so, where and how much? What is your best option if you don't have success with the opaque suppliers (priceline and/or HOTWIRE).

Is there a reason you're not including the UM/CPS zone?

[evaaseow]

Unfortunately there is no backup plan besides giving in and paying the amounts the hotels are asking for. As for choosing everything Midtown, it was a suggestion by a friend to stay midtown for the ease of walking as well as safety reasons and since I have never been to NYC I can only believe in what he says. But if you recommend other areas which result into savings i'll take that into consideration as well.

I did not know that hotels held bags good to know, that solves that issue.

[thereuare]

Well UM/CPS (upper-midtown/central park south) is still considered a midtown location :)

First thing i would do is use our BetterChecker tool to find the best deal you can outside of the opaque providers. Then you will know the "price to beat". I'm guessing you're going to have to increase your budget to about $250+ or so... or lower your star rating.

Let us know what you find and/or your thoughts on the above... we'll then be able to advise of a strategy to follow which makes sure you don't overbid.

[evaaseow]

So I used BetterChecker and found that prices are much higher than I thought they would be.

Midtown Central 2.5* was $259

Central Park Area 2.5* was $262

Midtown Central 3* was $309

Midtown South 2.5* was $283

Midtown East 3* was $342

With these prices in mind what would I need to bid on the opaque providers for a 3* or 4* hotel?

And I am now open to split bidding as well.

[thereuare]

I assume those prices above are from HOTWIRE? If so, hotwire is an opaque provider as the name of the hotel is not shown prior to your purchase. Non-opaque providers are the hotel websites themselves, as well as online agencies (such as Expedia, Orbitz, etc), where i suspect you'll see even higher prices.

As per above:

I'm guessing you're going to have to increase your budget to about $250+ or so... or lower your star rating.

If you let us know your maximum bid we can suggest a strategy to follow.

[evaaseow]

Do bids get accepted more often at a lower price as the date you wish to book draws near?

[thereuare]

See the related "bid early or close to arrival" link in our PRICELINE FAQ.

[evaaseow]

Here is the plan that I have in mind :

We arrive Thursday night so we were hoping to get a cheaper hotel near JFK (BTW, is the area of Jamaica safe for tourists?) allowing us to save some money for the next couple of days.

As for Friday and Saturday we were hoping to spend at most $200, but first and foremost we want to be in areas that are safe so are willing to pay more. What are your suggestions?

[dahammer]

We arrive Thursday night so we were hoping to get a cheaper hotel near JFK (BTW, is the area of Jamaica safe for tourists?)

You should be safe, once ensconced in your hotel room. But, there is really nothing to do in and around the JFK airport hotels, it is an industrial area bounded by the airport and the Belt Parkway. There is nothing tourist about this area. The only reason to stay here is if you had a late arriving flight, an early departing flight the following morning, or if you had business in the immediate area. Although you are close to Dom Pepe's in Ozone Park (frequented by a certain Don), maybe 10 minutes away by car, dining options are limited to pizza and chinese delivery or going to one of the airport hotels with an attached restaurant such as the Ramada, Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn., etc.

is staying in Jersey City an option?

[evaaseow]

Yes we arriving rather late on Thursday that is why we thought it might be a good idea to stay in the JFK area to save some money for when we do stay in the city. Would you not recommend doing that?

[evaaseow]

Does anyone have any experience with 2.5* hotels via Priceline.com?

[dahammer]

Thereuare will comment further, but if you are arriving late Thursday and your first night is limited to resting up for the balance of your trip, your plan to stay in the JFK area is fine. Part of your Friday morning will be taken up with a commute into the city, you can leave your bags with the bellman at your NYC hotel and take off.

BTW, Hotwire has a 2.5* in the JFK area with a Shuttle, Fitness, and Laundry icons for $117. In the past, these icons were associated with the Club Quarters hotel, but this property is now a Marriott Fairfield Inn, and no one has yet to report a win here. There is a 2* with Shuttle, Complimentary Breakfast, Fitness, HS Internet for $93, this should be the Best Western. A few recent negative reviews on this property, but I stayed here about two years ago and it was fine. The rooms are tiny small and someone posted that there was a problem with the shuttle, but my stay was uneventful. You might want to try bidding on Priceline first.

[dahammer]

here is a list of reported wins in the JFK area:

2.5* Clarion

2.5* Courtyard by Marriott

2.5* Doubletree Club (now the Fairfield Inn, but without any reported wins)

2.5* Ramada Plaza Hotel

The Holiday Inn is also 2.5*

at the 3* level, there are 2 rebid zones available, so you might just want to start there around $95. "A" represents the JFK area, "B&C" represent two rebid zones. Good Luck!

A

A+B

A+C

A+B+C

[evaaseow]

Thanks for the info Dahammer!

I will try to win via priceline but at least now I have a small backup for our arriving night of rest.

Now the big problem is Friday/Saturday and finding something of good value. I'm figuring of a budget of $600 for the 3 nights i'm staying so if I take the $93 that leaves me with $507 for the other 2 nights, will I find any luck via priceline for that budget? If so, at what * lvl?

[dahammer]

HOTWIRE has a 3.5* in the Theater District/Times Square with Fitness, Restaurant, Business Center, and HS Internet icons for $249. This is possibly the Milleninum Broadway. Again, you could probably do a little better on Priceline. You will need to understand Priceline Rebidding Explained and report back with the zones that you are willing to stay in as well as your maximum budget per night.

[thereuare]

The HOTWIRE offerings could disappear at any time, so i think you should begin moving forward on this asap. Keep in mind that there will be taxes and fees added on to both Priceline and HOTWIRE purchases, so even if successful in JFK for $95 and then NYC for $250... this will still run you more than $600 total.

As well, i would only stay in JFK if your plane gets in late in the evening/nite. You ask if it's a "safe" area, but chances are you won't be leaving your hotel at all... there's virtually nothing to do around there.

Since you're splittling your bid, you need to have a gameplan in plase should you have success with one part of your stay and then not the next. If the above HOTWIRE rates (which i point above out will cost you more than your current $600 limit) is acceptable then let us know and we'll advise as to how to best proceed. If not acceptable, then i think you need to figure out what you will do if you only find success for one part of your stay.

[evaaseow]

It would be great to know what I should do if I were to persue the HOTWIRE hotel, seems like i'm having no luck getting anything on Priceline and since I am leaving in a couple of days my options are growing small. So what do I need to know on booking this 3.5* hotel from HOTWIRE?

[evaaseow]

Ok, I got a win :)

I did the rebid technique and finally got a 2 night stay @ a 3* hotel called Millennium Broadway Hotel for $200/night.

Is this a good deal?

[thereuare]

Since you know the price of the HOTWIRE hotel for the last two nites of your stay you need to make sure you can get a hotel for the first nite and still be within your budget.

Are you looking for a 3* or a 2.5* hotel for this first nite of your stay? (sounds like price is the most important aspect... but not sure just how long you'll actually be staying in the hotel and using the room to know if you'd actually prefer trying for a 3*)

[evaaseow]

Ok, I got a win :)

I did the rebid technique and finally got a 2 night stay @ a 3* hotel called Millennium Broadway Hotel for $200/night.

Is this a good deal?

So any thoughts on this win from priceline? Does anyone have any experience with this hotel?