Priceline Hotel: 3* Seattle (Downtown) Holiday Inn

[IanYVR]

First bid 4* downtown Seattle from $60 to $94 without success then decided to try what I thought would be a too low 3* bid at $55 and got the Holiday Inn. Unfortunately this is about the only 3* hotel I didn't want to get as it is less than central, being just over 1 km north of the main downtown area, and not a great walk given the proliferation of surface parking and the area being in transition (I'd rather avoid urban driving when on vacation!) Hotwire would put the Holiday Inn in another zone (Seattle Center - Space Needle) but Priceline includes much of this area in their "Seattle Downtown" zone.

Still it looks like $55 is a pretty good rate, judging by posts here and Hotwire quotes for the same dates. I might try Priceline (4* only!) or Hotwire again closer to the trip to see about getting a better location for the last two nights of the stay, and writing off two nights at the Holiday Inn. This is my first less than good result with the opaque services, but not too bad.

Hotel Name: Holiday Inn Seattle

211 Dexter Avenue North

Seattle, Washington 98109

206-728-8123

Check-In Date: Friday, February 15, 2008

Check-Out Date: Monday, February 18, 2008

Your Offer Price Per Room, Per Night: $55.00

Subtotal: $165.00

Taxes & Service Fees: $33.03

Total Charges*: $198.03

[WillTravel]

I know what you mean about the area, but if you haven't been here for a year or so, you will find the area is becoming more upscale, at least several blocks away.

For example, the Belltown area has some new condos and some interesting-looking cafes, and a few blocks away there is a new Pan Pacific and a Whole Foods market.

You are about one block from a bus stop which will give you a 4-minute bus ride into very central downtown Seattle, and the walk is not so bad anyway.

[thereuare]

Thank you for sharing your results with the board.

Sorry you're not happy with the outcome, but WillTravel's comments suggest that maybe you should at least give it a try. Before writing off the last two nite of your stay maybe check-in and make a last minute bid only for the other nites if you're not satisfied with the accomodations?

When given a result that you're not happy with, i usually suggest taking some of the money saved and spending it on something 'nice' for yourself during the trip... a bottle of wine that you wouldn't usually order with dinner, a nicer than usual restaurant, etc, etc. Anything that would add to the memory of your trip, give you a little extra time out of the hotel, and take some of thoughts away from your accomodations.

Hopefully your stay will go better than expected.

[IanYVR]

Yes, I imagine the Holiday Inn will work out quite well. It's also not far from the brand new streetcar line for a more novel way to get downtown.

Still might see if there are any last-minute 4-star steals.