Priceline Hotel: 4* NYC (MTE) InterContinental The Barclay

[hocomo]

I'm going to be in NYC in November for the marathon and I'm concerned about rooms filling up as I know they do for that event. But is now too early to start bidding for a room on Priceline? Should I expect rates to be considerably higher then?

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

For a date that is expected to be peak demand it is certainly best to start your bidding as early as possible. As long as your plans are firm i would start now.

If you list the dates of your stay, which zone you are willing to consider/not consider, and the maximum you want to spend i will provide a recommended bidding strategy to follow.

PS- my wife is still deciding if she wants to run this year (she did it a few years ago and it was a great experience for her)

[hocomo]

We need a hotel for the nights of Nov 6 and 7, max of $150/night for a 4* if possible. In terms of which neighborhood, Upper Midtown/Central Park South would be our first choice, since it's close to the finish line. We'd also stay in ME, MW, UWS, UES, in no particular order, unless you have any recommendations for which is better.

Thanks for your help! This forum is really fantastic.

PS We're both *very* excited about te race - we've heard such great things about all the crowd support.

[thereuare]

I wouldn't start with UM/CPS since that zone is usually more expensive than the others and i think you'd be wasting a bid trying to lowball that area... then if you added zones to it you'd be risking an overbid in the other zones.

This is how i would proceed at the 4* level:

Select 4* and MTE...

Bid $75 if rejected add MTW

Bid $95 if rejected add UM/CPS

Bid $110 if rejected add UES

Bid $120 if rjected add UWS

Bid $130

That's how i would start. If rejected i would then wait 72 hours and proceed with a new strategy that goes up to $150 (if the above doesn't work i'll add the new strategy). The above may be too low to start, but I figure it pays to lowball the first time around in hopes that a hotel hasn't adjusted their rates upward in anticipation of selling out.

[hocomo]

Unfortunately, I wasn't successful using the strategy you suggested. If you have a strategy going up to $150, I'll be happy to try it. If that doesn't get me anything, I might just try going for a 3* instead of a 4*.

Thanks again for your help!

[DeltaPurser]

Gentlemen!

I'm looking for a room for a friend that will be running for the first time this year. As I'm researching rates I found a 4.5* hotel in the Midtown East zone on Hotwire that sells for $160. Not a bad deal, I guess. Have no clue as to what hotel it would be and don't know if this is an area you would consider... Good luck!

DeltaPurser

[thereuare]

Sorry to hear you weren't successful :)

After your 72 hour waiting period has passed, try the following (notice that you are now bidding MTW first instead of MTE):

Select 4* MTW

Bid $95 if rejected add MTE

Bid $120 if rejected add UM/CPS

Bid $130 if rejected add UES

Bid $140 if rjected add UWS

Bid $150

Good Luck and let us know how you make out.

[hocomo]

Got the Intercontinental Barclay for $150/night using your strategy (except that on my last bid when I increased to $150, it wouldn't work unless I changed another one of the criteria, so I added ME).

Thanks again for your help! I'm thrilled we'll have a cushy hotel room where we can go back and recover after the race (they even have a sauna).

[thereuare]

Sounds perfect!!

Glad this worked out well for you (especially given the sauna!!) Not really sure why MTE wasn't checked-off as according to the above it should have been used on your second bid... but all is well that ends well.

Good Luck with your training.

PS- you can carbo-load Saturday morning at nearby Ess-A-Bagel on 51st St and 3rd Ave which has some of the best bagels in NYC