Priceline Hotel: NYC after Christmas

[Meredith Girl]

I've never used Priceline before, always somewhat scared of ending up with a crap hotel, but after spending some time looking around this site, you have given me hope. :)

My situation is this: For Christmas, Dad's present will be tickets to see 'The Last Emperor' at the Met, and there are performances available on Dec. 26th, 29th, and Jan. 2nd. Firstly, for cost-effectiveness, which would be the best date to choose? (Ticket prices won't change, I'm talking about hotel rates.) I would want a couple of days (maybe 3?) surrounding the performance to do other touristy things, but I have no idea if it makes a real difference which days we go.

Secondly, I'm pretty ok with all the zones, since it doesn't really matter if you're in Midtown or the Upper West Side because transportation is a no-brainer. I do, however, get the feeling that I would need to request a 3* or 4* hotel to feel safe... so what's a reasonable bid? I definitely don't think I'd be able to spend more than $150/night. Something like $100 or less would be ideal, but I might be crazy to want a decent room at that rate. Any thoughts?

[dahammer]

Welcome! I think that $100 will be difficult, but $150 will be more realistic. I would suggest that you use one of the tools shown above called BetterChecker to get a feel for conventional rates. You should see these go down for dates around January 2 and beyond. Let us know your dates of travel and your maximum bid before taxes and fees and we can suggest a bidding strategy. Also include the Priceline zones that you are comfortable with.

[Meredith Girl]

Ok, so checked with the family and seems the dates to choose from are the 29th or the 2nd. So I am looking for either of these dates: the 28th-31st, or the 1st-4th.

I used Better Checker and I got exactly what I thought I'd see; anywhere from $250-$650 for 3* and 4* hotels for the first set of dates, and significantly less for the second set. My maximum bid remains $150. $100 or less seems feasible for the 1st-4th.

Priceline zones I'm comfortable with: Downtown-SoHo-Financial District, Midtown East, Midtown South, Midtown West, Upper East Side, Upper Midtown-Central Park South, and Upper West Side. Basically, all of Manhattan. The commute from Long Island and the airport areas would be too far, I think, for the short time that we are there.

Thanks for your help!