Priceline Hotel: Newbie

[bb32]

Hi Im totally new to all of this and am in the need for some help

Me and my Gf are planning a trip to Disneyworld and are looking for a good hotel nothing special.

Looking for a 2 to 2.5 stars hotel under 35 dollars.

Dates are May 15-27

I got a few from hotwire of $26, $29, $34 did not attempt any bids on priceline (don't know how to use it)

I never been to Disneyworld before so don't know if walking to the park is in the picture so we need to have a shuttle service. Not sure if we will rent a car.

Any help would be great and very much appreciated. Im new to everything so don't be afraid to be basic. :)

[yellowdog]

bb32 - Welcome to BetterBidding!

If you don't rent a car you'll need a place with a shuttle if you go with HOTWIRE or PRICELINE

I would not gamble with priceline for 2* or 2.5* hotels. There are good places and some real dumps within this rating.

I don't have so much time today, but stop by tomorrow for more info.

Henrik.

[yellowdog]

bb32,

I have looked around at HOTWIRE for your dates. There is some nice places within your budget in diffrent zones. But you have to decide if you're going to rent a car or not, since walking to the parks (any) is no option.

Are you only going to Disney? No Universal, Busch Gardens, Sea World etc?? Are you ready to look in/book your resarvation know?

YellowDog.

[bb32]

Hey thanks for the replies,

If the hotel offers a shuttle i'm assuming that i won't rent a car. We are planning to go to Universal and Seaworld probably using the shuttle as well. Not entirely ready to book the trip now though just kind of wanted to see the prices. Since it is just me and my gf the hotel does not need to be anything great just basically acceptable, hopefully with comp breakfast. Just need a good price.

Again thanks for any help at all. I know everyone is busy so i'm very appreciative for your help.

[yellowdog]

bb32,

the opaque side don't work like regular hotel business. HOTWIRE rates and inventory change all the time. The board will be happy to help you with your needs. But theres is no point in spending time to track and ID hotels if you're not ready book. The hotel and price you see today can be gone tomorrow.

Your stay is on the longer side so my advice is to look into this pretty "fast". If one or two nights gets sold out during your stay, you might be forced to split your stay. And you don't want to do this if not renting a car.

And it's not likley to find a 2*/2.5* with comp breakfast + shuttles to all the parks. Not all 3* got shuttles all the parks. But there is other options for going to the parks.

You should really think about renting a car to get most out of your stay. Sometimes can you score really cheap rentals at HOTWIRE. Talk to your GF and get back with your thoughts.

Henrik.

[bb32]

Thanks for the reply,

By the end of this week I will be ready to book it. As long as the hotel has a shuttle to Disneyworld that would be fine, because we can rent a car during the last half of the trip to go to the other parks. Im under 25 so renting a car for the entire trip would cost more than the hotel, so trying to limit length for the car.

Basically we just need a hotel that is cheap and shuttle to Disneyworld. We are both college students and living in Hawaii so the cheaper the better for the hotel. Something acceptable and less than $400 is my goal

[bb32]

Bump

Please just need a push in the right direction. 2 to 2.5 stars around $400ish very simple hotel

What price should i bid?

[thereuare]

Basically we just need a hotel that is cheap and shuttle to Disneyworld.

You can't guarantee a hotel witha shuttle to Disney when using PRICELINE (or HOTWIRE)

However, with HOTWIRE you can often take a reasoable guess as to the property beforehand, and then research to see if that property has a shuttle (still no guarantees though, as it assumes that your guess in regards to the hotel's ID is correct). While HOTWIRE may cost a little more than PRICELINE, given the added expense if you win a PRICELINE hotel without a shuttle, HOTWIRE may at least be something to consider if you think you can ID the property.

Given the above, do you want to move forward with PRICELINE or HOTWIRE?

[mrxow]

If you only use the Kissimmee zone, chances are the hotel will be along the main drag there. We went there around 2001 and used priceline. The hotel we got was on the main drag very close to DWorld. It has since changed names, but is still a brand that probably participates with PL. edit- I looked at the zones, not sure if they are the same, but our hotel was in the disney word vicinity zone, not Kissimmee. Kissimmee is further away, though probably the bus route runs there should you end up there. The disney vicinity zone is pretty big, so you might not necessarily end up along that Irlo Bronson highway where the bus runs, I suppose. But if you do, you can keep the bus in mind.

Anyhow, there is a local bus route that runs along the main strip there and drives straight into disney world. So you can get in and out very inexpensively if you land a hotel along that road, which is highly likely. It is good to be closer to the park, of course, as you don't have to sit through a lot of stops then. I think we were the last stop before the bus headed into the park, so it was very convenient. They may also offer a week pass. It is a large road and you had to take a bit of a walk to get out the the bus stop, and on the way back you got dropped off on the other side of the highway, so it was not as convenient as a shuttle that picks you up at the front desk, but it wasn't horrible, either.

We were just in Kissimmee a couple of months ago and were at a place not far from where we were 7 years ago. It was a timeshare and did not offer a free shuttle to Univeral. There was a company that serviced the resort though. It assume they probably work with lots of places. For a fee, they take you to the park and pick you up. The cost of the shuttle wasn't a whole lot more than the cost to park your car at the parks. It was certainly less then the cost of: car rental, insurance, under 25 fee and parking at the park.

Public transport options to Universal from Kissimmee are not good. If you are going to be staying that long and plan to go to all the different parts of Orlando and won't have a car, it might make sense to stay part of the time closer to disney world area where you are more likely to have shuttles available to Disney world and spend part of your trip more north where you will have better access to Universal and Sea World. Then you just have to get yourself from one hotel to the other at some point during the trip and you might have fewer and shorter and cheaper trips to the parks when you go.

Also, if you go to Universal, definitely buy your tickets beforehand. The ones I got on their site for a week long two park pass, if it is still offered, were barely more than a one day pass at the ticket booth. Lots of people were buying their tickets at the booth and paying through the nose.