Priceline Hotel: 4* Los Angeles (Beverly Hills-West Hollywood) InterContinental

[coast2coast21]

Bid $170 for 3* in BH-WH, got counter-offered "if you increase your bid by $25..."

Re-bid for $182 and got the 4* Intercontinental instead of the 3* Sunset Hyatt. Anybody know if there's anyway to cancel this? What kind of excuse could I come up with in order for priceline to cancel this? If I'm not going to be on Sunset, I'd rather just try to get the 2.5* Residence Inn for half of this price. I wasn't expecting to be upgraded to a 4* at all.

[headtrip]

What date did you pay for?

The distance between hotels is 3.7 miles, not that far considering that the WH - BH extends all the way to the 405 Freeway and UCLA campus. Most likely you will not get any refund from Priceline unless the weather or something you can not control prevents you from traveling to the hotel or if the hotel is overbooked. In the past, those have been the only valid reasons Priceline would accept to get a credit for the cost of the stay.

If you want to stay in a specific area like the Sunset Strip and nowhere else, Priceline is not the way to go because that Zone is pretty large. You could have also gotten a Century City 3* Hotel also which is also in that Zone.

It's the chance you take when you are bidding through an opaque service.

[coast2coast21]

^ I forgot to include the date, this is for New Years Eve.

And I understand that the hotels are only 4 miles apart. All the clubs are on Sunset, that's why I would rather walk out of the hotel and be right there on the strip, rather than worrying about drinking and driving, paying for parking, etc.

And there's only one other 3* in that zone (crowne plaza I believe?) and that one very rarely comes up from what I have read. I know all the hotels are expensive for New Years Ever, so I thought that the 4*'s would be even more than the 3* Hyatt, so I wasn't expecting an upgrade.

[thereuare]

I agree with headtrip that you're not likely to have any grounds for a refund for this stay.

While you might not have been expecting an upgrade, it's always a possibility... and a 'hard to win' nite such as New Year's Eve would probably increase the chances that 'anything could happen'.

HOTWIRE may have been a better option in this situation given your desire to be in a specific area of the zone.

It doesn't sound far so i'd just resolve to take a cab each way... can't be too much money, safer than drinking and driving, and probably a 'wash' in regard to parking costs.

[coast2coast21]

^ Yeah, I should do more research on Hotwire, I am not too familiar with it. But my priceline experiences have been fine, I don't think I need a bigger selection of hotels or anything if thats a benefit of hotwire. Price is the main thing. From what I've seen, Hotwire prices don't come close to Priceline (I could be wrong?). As long as I need a 3*, I know that more than likely I can get the Sunset Hyatt 9 times out of 10 on Priceline. If I want a 4*, I'm happy with the Hyatt Regency which I've stayed at, I'm happy with the Mondrian (which I haven't stayed at, but it's located right by the Sunset Hyatt), and I am sure I will be happy with the Intercontinental because it is right by the Hyatt Regency and I'm sure it's just as nice.

[Colfax]

I hope the Intercontinental works out for you, coast. After your night on the Strip you won't know where you're sleeping anyhow. :)

IC's best price on New Years Eve is $342. $182 is some excellent savings....admittedly not on the hotel you wanted.

The Crown Plaza and Residence Inn are across the street from each other and the same distance from Sunset as the Intercontinental---all about 4 miles.

Hotwire has the Intercontinental at $229 and the WeHo Hyatt at $325. That's a situation where a 3* Priceline bid was likely to be upgraded to 4*.

This has been an interesting thread and thanks for sharing your bid history. Happy New Years, a little early.

[Colfax]

I'm reluctant to bring this up but there's a modest Double Your Difference opportunity at the WeHo Hyatt on HOTWIRE now.

Hotwire has the Hyatt at $325. At hyatt.com you can buy the same for $285. (Remember a couple weeks ago when Hyatt's price was over $500?)

If you book the Hyatt on Hotwire for $325 you're entitled to double the difference back, or $80. That brings the Hotwire purchase down to $245. That's still $63 more than you paid for the Intercontinental though.

[thereuare]

I don't think I need a bigger selection of hotels or anything if thats a benefit of hotwire. Price is the main thing. From what I've seen, Hotwire prices don't come close to Priceline (I could be wrong?).

The benefit of HOTWIRE is that you can often identify the property beforehand... thereby 'knowing' (or having an educated guess) as to where in the zone the property will be. If you could have identified a hotel thru HOTWIRE, andi it was $20 (to pick a number) more than you though you could get it thru priceline, but it was in the part of the zone you want... then perhaps it could be worth the extra $20 to have a good chance at being in the part of the zone you want.

As well, each service uses different zone boundaries, which can sometimes help you target/avoid certain hotels.

[coast2coast21]

thereuare, are most properties on there identifiable? It seems like you guys are 90% sure as to what description belongs to which property.

And Colfax, so if this situation comes up in the future where prices are inflated because of a holiday....is it a good idea to look at Hotwire prices and compare the Hyatt price with the price of a 4* such as the IC? That way, I will have a good idea as to what the chances of me being upgraded to a 4* are when bidding (and trying to get) the 3* Hyatt...?

[thereuare]

are most properties on there identifiable? It seems like you guys are 90% sure as to what description belongs to which property.

It depends upon the area and the amenity combination... some areas we are more confident than others and have more/less information than others.

That way, I will have a good idea as to what the chances of me being upgraded to a 4* are when bidding (and trying to get) the 3* Hyatt...?

This question was addressed to Colfax and he can add his reply below, but i wanted to add my own comments... In my opinion, you can not use retail prices to determine your chances of your bid being upgraded to the next star level. Each hotel has their own philosophy for setting 'retail' rates and how much they're willing to discount inventory to the opaque suppliers. Some hotels may have a very high retail price and be willing to discount 75% of rack rate while others may have a more moderate retail rate and only be willing to discount 10%.

[coast2coast21]

^ I wasn't talking about comparing it with "retail" prices. I was talking about using Hotwire's prices. I'm sure Hotwire and Priceline are given similar "wholesale" prices by the hotels, so if Hotwire has a 4* such as the Inter-Continental for a lower price than the 3* Sunset, then I would say it's safe to assume that they are getting a better price for the 4* for that night as opposed to the 3*. And that would mean the chances of me getting a 4* while bidding for a 3* are pretty high. No?

[thereuare]

Not necessarily, and especially not in this instance since the zone boundaries of each are very different.

[Colfax]

And Colfax, so if this situation comes up in the future where prices are inflated because of a holiday....is it a good idea to look at Hotwire prices and compare the Hyatt price with the price of a 4* such as the IC? That way, I will have a good idea as to what the chances of me being upgraded to a 4* are when bidding (and trying to get) the 3* Hyatt...?

I don't want to write a rule about how to handle this next year because things are always changing. A year from now the Hyatt could have a new manager with a different Priceline philosophy and you might win the Hyatt next New Years Eve for $70 on your first bid. :)

Priceline usually has the Hyatt when Hotwire does, and for less. In exchange for the savings on Priceline you take on the risk of being upgraded to a different hotel, as you know. Or winning some other 3*, which hasn't happened much in this zone lately.

[sharpeiboy]

I stayed at the Intercontinental and it's very nice. You could easily cab from the hotel to Sunset Blvd. and back.