Priceline Hotel: Paris - 6/14 - 6/20

[Seattle]

[Edited] Whoops - should have mentioned that it's 6/14 - 6/20 2007 that I'm looking for.

Hi Everyone....and especially ThereuAre whom I've had the pleasure of meeting once in person. Sorry to see your alma mater lose to Ohio State but who knows yet how things will turn out. If Florida wins a close one and you blow USC out of the water, you could certainly share the national title!

Anyway, we're going to be in Paris this June from the 14th - 20th. We have a back-up apartment ready to go but it's in the 17th district so I think I'd like to take a shot at Priceline (or even Hotwire) and getting something closer to the Eiffel Tower, Champs etc. 4* or 4* Superior would be ideal. For something 'close-in', I'd go as high as $150 US. I also noted WillTravel's mention that the

Looking for advice on two fronts:

1. No. of Travelers/Rooms - We'll be traveling as a family and have two kids, age 12 and 9. Is it possible to all be in one room when bidding via either Priceline or Hotwire or will we need a second room?

2. Bidding strategy for Priceline.

thx

Seattle

[WillTravel]

I wouldn't use Priceline, because the risk of getting a double-occupancy only room is very high.

So I would use Hotwire. Also consider Mercure, Novotel and other Accor chain hotels. On request, most Novotel hotels allow two free children under 16. With Mercure, the policy seems to vary more. If you get a prepaid deal, the prices can rival Priceline.

There's an Accor link on this site, so I'd start by looking there, and if necessary contacting the hotel(s) to get clarity on the two free kids issue. This will also give you a baseline price so you can know if Hotwire is actually going to save you money.

http://www.betterbidding.com/index.php?aut...ge=support&

Holiday Inn also can have good deals for a family with children, as does Best Western.

I would definitely consider trying for a hotel with air conditioning, although that unfortunately reduces the possible hotels significantly. But in June you might want it quite a bit.

[thereuare]

Good to see you aroud.

I'm not worried about National Titles at this point... would just be happy to see a win on 1/2 :)

I have a similar situation as we're heading to Paris in a few months and have a young one (only 2 years old) in tow and the occupancy level is definately a concern when in Europe. Fortunatley ours is young enough to still sleep in a crib and/or a 'makeshift' bed on the floor... don't think i would feel comfortable trying for one room with two kids your children's ages. I still vividly remember the room my wife (girlfriend at the time) and I were given at a Thistle property in London... it only had one double bed which barely held the two of us uncomfortably and not much else space in the room. We did change the following day to a 'regular' sized room, but that first nite they weren't able to accomodate a change and it would have been a difficult trip if we had to remain in that room for the remainder of our stay, and likely impossible if we had to accomodate more than the two of us in such a room.

I'd first give HOTWIRE a search... checking for both double, triple (where maybe you could get away with one room), and quad occupancy. Unfortunatley, many hotels 'diappear' in Paris when searching for more than double occupancy. If you can reasonably identify the hotel via hotwire, and thru additional research it seems like quad occupancy would be accomodated, than it may worth a shot. Ideally you can find a hotel when searching for quad occupancy that doesn't raise their rates from double occupancy, but i think this is rare and it's a 'find' just to see a hotel appear when searching for quad occupancy... and one room in Europe via priceline is a bit too risky imo.

Let us know what type of prices you find via HOTWIRE and, since reading the above, your thoughts about using priceline. If you still want to try priceline (let us know for one room or two) and exactly which zones you're willing to accept. (keep in mind that even with two room they may not be connecting, so you may have to split with your wife or be comfortable with the kids sleeping in their own room together)

[Seattle]

Gentleman,

as always, your sage advice is greatly appreciated.

I'll do a little more research in the direction you've provided and report back to the board on our next move.

WillTravel - thanks very much for the AC advice. Being a wimpy NW, any and all humidity is a struggle (laughing). However, I made it through a 16 day visit to Japan in the middle of summer so I expect we'll survive.

btw - After Paris, we're on to Rome, Venice, Athens and then a week sailing on a sailboat in the Greek Islands. Should be an interesting trip w/ the two kids in tow but we're looking forward to it.

Best to both of you.

[WillTravel]

Gentleman

Lady in this case - :).

Your trip plan sounds great.

I'm a wimpy Pacific Northwest person too. Last summer during our "heat wave" (I think it reached 85 or so in Vancouver), I tended to avoid going home until late due to the "extreme" heat.

[Seattle]

Ha, ha....I'll remember that it's "Lady" nex time! Thanks again for your help.

btw - I'm originally from Vancouver, BC...and Vancouver Island for that matter. Lived on Kits Beach during Expo (right out of college) and later lived in Burnaby and Ft. Langley. Been in Seattle now for 15 years.

-thx!