kainfs Posted January 25, 2008 Report Share Posted January 25, 2008 Hi AllI've never used priceline/hotwire before so hope this forum can help me out! I looking to book a hotel for 3 nights (04/24 to 04/27). I would prefer to stay in the MTS, MTE or MTW area's ( would liketo be close to the shopping centres, Empire State etc.). However, the other zones are also acceptable apart from SoHoMy budget is approx between $150 & $165 per night, please can some advice on a strategy bid amounts etc. Ideally would like a 4* but a good 3* is ok too.If you require any further info please ask and i'll do my best to answer.Many thanks folks Link to comment
thereuare Posted January 25, 2008 Report Share Posted January 25, 2008 Welcome to BetterBidding!I think your budget may be a bit tough for this time of year, but to begin, is there a reason you're not inlcluding the Times Square and/or the UM-CPS zone? Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
kainfs Posted January 25, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2008 Not particularly. I left them out as I thought it would be way above my budget. But you never know, there may be a bargain to had in these zones if i'm lucky?I guess there is no harm in including these zonesAlso, i should be able to stretch my budget, inclusive of tax, to $185 Link to comment
thereuare Posted January 25, 2008 Report Share Posted January 25, 2008 I guess there is no harm in including these zonesIf you're willing to stay in these areas, and only didn't inlcude them because you thought they would be out of your price range, then not only is there no harm in adding them, but there is an advantage that you get MANY MORE bidding opportunities.$185 including taxes is less than $165 before taxes. What is your maximum bid before taxes and fees? Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
kainfs Posted January 25, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2008 OMG, this is starting to confuse me a little now.The original budget in my first post was inclusive of taxes. As i am not sure about how tax is calculated i was assuming it was a one off payment ..........or is a percentage of the bid price???????????HELP!!! Link to comment
kh_ Posted January 25, 2008 Report Share Posted January 25, 2008 Tax and fees will roughly work out to an extra 20% of the amount you bid. When you bid on Priceline, it will show you how much the total (including taxes and fees) comes to before you confirm your bid.If your maximum is $185 including taxes, then you shouldn't bid much above $155. Link to comment
goodeats Posted January 25, 2008 Report Share Posted January 25, 2008 Hi, I know that Local and state tax on accommodations is 13.375%. Priceline will also have their own charges, so if your bid was $185, then there's a hotel tax of $24.75 and other costs on the final bill, bringing it over $200.HTH Link to comment
kh_ Posted January 25, 2008 Report Share Posted January 25, 2008 There's also fixed accomodation taxes, and fees as you said. I just checked on priceline to confirm, and as I thought, a bid of $155 works out to almost exactly $185 Link to comment
thereuare Posted January 25, 2008 Report Share Posted January 25, 2008 NYC hotel tax is about 14% and priceline will add on a booking fee ~$6-$7/nite... the total all-in price, if your bid is accepted, will be shown on a 'confirmation' page before you enter your credit card details, so you can make sure that you won't go over your budget if your bid is to be accepted.What maximum bid amount do you want to go with? Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
kainfs Posted January 26, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2008 Cheers for the info folks.My max bid amount would be $170 Link to comment
thereuare Posted January 26, 2008 Report Share Posted January 26, 2008 One more question...Are you willing to pay more for a 4* vs. a 3* (did you want to go up to your limit for a 4* hotel before lowering your star rating to a 3*) OR are you looking for the least expensive 3* or better hotel for these dates? Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
kainfs Posted January 26, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2008 Don't really have the funds to go above my max bid but, ideally i would like to search for a 4* first and then if unsucessful i would have to lower down to a 3*.Cheers Link to comment
thereuare Posted January 27, 2008 Report Share Posted January 27, 2008 We'll star with the 4* strategy...When bidding 4* in NYC you have two re-bid zones available. If you're not familiar with re-bidding please read Priceline Re-Bidding Explained and feel free to ask questions and/or confirm your re-bid zones with the board before proceeding.Selec 4* MTE and MTW...Bid $115, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $125, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Selec 4* UM/CPS and Times Square...Bid $115, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $125, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Selec 4* MTS...Bid $115, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $125, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Selec 4* MTE and UM/CPS...Bid $130, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $135, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $140, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Selec 4* MTW and Times Square...Bid $130, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $135, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $140, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* MTS and MTE...Bid $130, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $135, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $140, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* MTE and Times Square...Bid $145, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $155, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* MTW and UM/CPS...Bid $145, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $155, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* MTW and MTW...Bid $145, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $155, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* MTE and MTW and UM/CPS and MTS and Times Square...Bid $160, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $165, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $170, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Any questions feel free to ask.Good Luck and let us know how it goes. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
kainfs Posted January 27, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2008 Thanks for the stratergy. I'll give it a try over the next few days and provide you with an update. Link to comment
kainfs Posted February 4, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 4, 2008 Been trying this strategy with no luck so far. Will persevere a while longer before deciding to include 3* in my bidding. Link to comment
thereuare Posted February 4, 2008 Report Share Posted February 4, 2008 It would appear that you could cancel, but I'm having trouble with their website right now so can't confirm the terms and condidtions... but i'd be curious as to why you saw a different set of terms and conditions previously thant we're both current seeing. As well, i forget if it was this site when i looked previously (as i do some many searches a day sometimes they blend together) as there was one site which charged $30 upon booking and that part would not be refundable (but can't recall if it was this site... i think it was, but for a different property) Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
kainfs Posted February 14, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 14, 2008 Just a quick update.I've tried for a few weeks using the stratergy given but have been unsucessful.So, tonight i tried downgrading to 3* and using the stratergy. But alas, still no luck. Will stick with it though and in the mean time i will book a back up hotel (which i should have done a long time ago :) )will keep you postedQuestion: If i was to increase my max bid to $185 do i simply add $15 to each individual bid given in the stratergy?Thanks Link to comment
thereuare Posted February 14, 2008 Report Share Posted February 14, 2008 You could actually get mor re-bids than posted above, thereby still trying the lower bid amounts first... but this will take you a bit longer to bid, but we'll type it out if you're willing to put in the time.As far as a back-up hotel, i did find thru Quickbook the Radisson Eastside for $206/nite and the Eastgate Tower (very good reviews for $236/nite (there are lower rates for this property at Quickbook, but they're not refundable, this $236 rate is). Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
kainfs Posted February 15, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 15, 2008 If you could ammend the stratergy to reflect my highest bid value of $185 then that'll be much appreciated.Cheers Link to comment
thereuare Posted February 15, 2008 Report Share Posted February 15, 2008 Selec 4* MTE and MTW...Bid $115, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $125, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Selec 4* UM/CPS and Times Square...Bid $115, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $125, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Selec 4* MTS...Bid $115, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $125, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Selec 4* MTE and UM/CPS...Bid $130, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $135, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $140, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Selec 4* MTW and Times Square...Bid $130, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $135, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $140, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* MTS and MTE...Bid $130, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $135, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $140, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* MTE and Times Square...Bid $145, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $155, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* MTW and UM/CPS...Bid $145, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $155, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* MTW and MTW...Bid $145, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $155, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* MTE and MTW and Times Square...Bid $160, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $165, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $170, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* UM/CPS and MTS and Times Square...Bid $160, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $165, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $170, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* MTE and MTW and UM/CPS and MTS and Times Square...Bid $175, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $180, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $185, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.I'd also recommend booking one of the Quickbook hotels above as a cancellable back up... NYC does get busy (and expensive) this time of year and you want to make sure you have something affordable while you continue to bid.Good Luck and keep us updated. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
kainfs Posted February 21, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 21, 2008 Managed to book the Jolly Hotel Madison Towers as a backup for $210 per night (cancellable) through Quikbook.Lets hope priceline can deliver me a gem before i depart in april. Still trying though :-) Link to comment
thereuare Posted February 21, 2008 Report Share Posted February 21, 2008 Keep us updated or if any part of your bidding parameters (zone, maximum bid, star rating, etc) changes.Good Luck. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
kainfs Posted April 16, 2008 Author Report Share Posted April 16, 2008 Quick update:Only 7 days before departure and still not secured a Pricline hotel but have now got a reservation at the Milford Plaza (through Quikbook).Looks like this is where we'll be staying if Priceline doesn't come through for me in the next few days. :)Will keep you updated if things changePS. Can anyone reccommend nice places to have breakfast around Milford Plaza hotel area. Link to comment
thereuare Posted April 17, 2008 Report Share Posted April 17, 2008 What is the rate at the Milford Plaza? (not the best of hotels) Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
kainfs Posted April 17, 2008 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2008 I'm paying $189 for the first two nights then $209 for the last night. Link to comment
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