Priceline Hotel: 4* bidding help for 9/18-19th & 9/28-29th required please

[ed_the_duck]

Greetings, great site.

I've booked a trip to Las vegas in September with two stopovers in NY, I'm after a 4* hotel for 9/18-19th and 9/28-29th ideally in MTW / UM/CPS areas.

My backup hotels are Milford Plaza for 18-19th @ $239 a night and Casablanca hotel for 9/28-29th @ $339, both cancelable up to 48 hours before. Its been 10 years since I last stayed in Milford Plaza but wasnt over impressed with it originally :) just all I could find at a good price.

Budget for the first stay (18/19th) is around $250 and approx $350 for 28-29th, I know these are tough dates to win at lower prices.

Not sure If I'm looking too early but if I can have a strategy for bidding then I can keep trying up until the weekend before :)

Many Thanks

[AaronJB]

I may be wrong, but I think hotels may not have PL inventory for NYC this far in advance. Hotwire really does not seem to have anything for your first night, but for the 9/28, check out 9/29, I do see a 3* Suite in Midtown East w/amenities: Suite, Restaurant, Fitness, Internet, Kitchenette for $149. Not sure what it is and it's not a 4*, but at least it would be a suite and below your desired budget.

What *appears* to be the Hyatt on the Hudson (4*, Jersey City/Hoboken) is also appearing for the 28-29 dates for $213. However, that's certainly not much off the regular rate of $229 for those dates.

If you like the looks of the Hyatt on the Hudson, you could book that regular rate and wait to see if prices drop.

The Affinia Dumont is also $233 (non-refundable)/$259 (refundable) on Expedia for the 28th. The Affinia 50 is even better - $179 non-refundable/$199 refundable.

Not sure what to do about the earlier date, although the Vinnci Avalon (which looks pretty nice) is $262 on Expedia for a JR Suite.

Just throwing out ideas.

[thereuare]

Please use separate threads for each stay... it will it much easier to keep the advice and prices for each stay separate. Since there was nothing available for 9/18 but some suggestions above were made for 9/28, we'll use this thread for you 9/28 stay and you can feel free to start a NEW TOPIC for your 9/18 stay.

For these stays, are you able to overcome the No Smoking aspect that kept you from using priceline in the past?

[ed_the_duck]

Hi thereuare,

Yep seperating them isnt a problem, would have thought strategy would be the same just different amounts to bid depending on stay anyway :)

And yes the wife has given up smoking now ;-) makes things a lot easier hopefully

Thanks

Ed

[thereuare]

I don't see any reason for your budget to be so high.

For 9/28 you can book the Affinia Fifty for $199/nite and it's ranked 7 out of 325 in NYC. (woops, just re-read the post above and see also offered thru Expedia... please use our link for whichever you choose to book thru, but just make sure of total costs as this previous link is cancellable and has no booking fee... not sure if Expedia charges a small cancellation fee on their cancellable reservations)

Does this property work for your plans? Which airport are you flying to/from?

[ed_the_duck]

Thanks for the response,

I've had a look at that hotel and compared to the one I've booked as backup, mine is number 2 in travel advisors list and sits just off Times Square so dont really see a need to change unless I can get a 4* for less through bidding on priceline.

Its actually 2 nights I need (28th & 29th) and although the first was $199 the second was above $230.

Any thoughts on strategy for priceline

Were flying into Newark airport on both occasions.

Cheers

[thereuare]

I think it's a mistake to get caught up in #2 vs. #9 vs. #17. You should really read reviews and determine if people are overall happy with the hotel or not... i'm sure you can can find experiences at either where users are not happy.

Next, think about the cost... your current hotel is $339/nite... compare that to a hotel where the reviews are just as good which would be $215/nite... i think the majority of users would save the $100/nite.

Lastly, by your philosophy, are you sure you want to bid on Priceline? If you're current back-up hotel is ranked number two you're not likely to get the number one hotel by bidding for it... so would you only end up being dissappointed if you received a property not as highly regarded?

PS- also see our comments about wanting Hotels Near Times Square