Priceline Hotel: One night post-cruise 5/12 in San Juan

[lemord]

I have a late flight out of San Juan on our cruise debarkation day -the flight is at 8:30 pm. I was originally interested in a "day room," at a resort on the beach, to pass the day until the flight. Someone mentioned to me that they bid on a room through Priceline for a night but, instead of spending the night, they just spent the day at the resort, showered, and left for the airport at 6:30. This is a great idea since it might be less expensive than trying to reserve a room for just the day.

I would like to know if the resort list is still up to date, and which of those resorts have bidders been winning recently. Also, what would be a good bid for this date?

Thanks so much for the help!

[thereuare]

Have you tried anything for your pre-cruise stay yet?

[lemord]

No, I did not end up bidding on a pre-cruise stay. Although we have had great results with Priceline in the past, it seemed that many people were having difficulty with bidding on San Juan for this time of year. My husband and I decided that we did not want to chance ending up with a hotel that we might not be happy with. We really wanted to stay right in the old town.

However, for the last day of our vacation, we would like to stay at a resort on the beach. That seems to give us a few more options. I would be happy with any of the 4 resorts listed for San Juan. If you have any advice I would truly appreciate it.

Thanks in advance.

[thereuare]

Please follow-up your other post just stating that you decided not to take a 'chance' since you really wanted to be in Old San Juan. BTW, what rate did you get for the Wyndham Old San Juan (as i believe it's on Hotwire for your dates for about $150)?

I'll add a recommended bidding strategy to follow, but before i do, are you familiar with the area and the Resort hotels on Priceline? The two that come up the most, Wyndham Condado Plaza and Caribe Hilton, aren't 'true' beaches as their both man-made strips of beach (with the Wyndham's being very small). I consider both of them to be legitamate resorts, but if the beach is what's most important to you then you may want to better focus your attention on the Isla Verde section (which unfortunately for your needs is not a separate zone on Priceline or Hotwire).

One other thing to consider is that check-in time isn't usually until 3:00. If the hotel is busy the nite before and slow to clean rooms due to late check-outs (a possibility since there is a whole new group of people boarding the ship that you just left, not to mention if there are other ships in town boarding that day) you might not be able to check-in early in the morning. Worse case scenario is that the hotel will hold your bags until a room is available while you go enjoy the pool, beach, and amenities, but just want to make sure you understand that this is indeed a possibility (and i think this applies no matter how you book).

If you are willing to accept the above, let me know the maximim that you would want to bid and i'll post a recommended strategy.