Hotwire Hotel: 4.5* San Francisco (USE) InterContinental

[Opportun]

I tried almost every day for the last 2 weeks with prices between $80 up to $110. No success so far with all kinds of possible combination (USE+Cathedrall Hill, USE+Cathedrall Hill+Civic Center, ... and then USW+...)

Last year, at the same period, I was able to get Le Meridien for $88 per night for 6 nights.

Do I still need to be patient?

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

I think specific dates of your six nite stay are the trouble... is SPLITTING YOUR PRICELINE BID an option?

Please use these PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links to begin your travel purchases.

[Opportun]

I tried to split and raise my bid up to $130 and only rejects.

Not sure there are a lot of rooms available in USE and USW for 4* hotel.

I may have to downgrade to a 3*. I saw a 3* in Japantown on Hotwire for $83 (probably the Opal).

[thereuare]

For which subset of your dates did you try bidding?

[Colfax]

If you want a 4* in USE or USW I think it's way too early to be giving up, especially with your $130 limit and your willingness to split your bid. Your trip is more than two months away and many Union Square hotels don't give Priceline rooms this far ahead.

I'd keep trying up to $130 for 4* once a week or so. I don't think you need to bid for lower quality levels or less preferred zones before mid-May. (Unless having a confirmed reservation now is more important to you than getting a 4*.)

[Colfax]

You can buy your last four nights on HOTWIRE for under $130 now!

For 6/10-6/14 Hotwire has a 4.5* in USE for $120 (probably the brand new Intercontinental) or a 4* in USE for $117 (probably the Westin St Francis). When I add a fifth night both deals disappear.

If you purchase one of those please use BetterBidding's HOTWIRE link and let us know what you get.

[Opportun]

I tried exactly what Colfax did, spliting my trip 6/10 to 6/14 with no results.

I'm able to wait but seems that a lot of hotels (4*) don't have rooms available 6/8 to 6/10. There is a big convention that week and the previous weekend.

I may have to downgrade to a 3.5* or a 3*, booking 6/10 to 6/14 at around $120 and then, book the 2 previous nights at a higher price at the same hotel.

I'll keep you posted.

[Colfax]

If you've bid to $130 for a Priceline 4* without success why wouldn't you purchase a HOTWIRE 4.5* in the same zone for less than $130?

[Opportun]

Finally, I booked 6/10-6/14 through Hotwire (see my post) and I will wait to bid for the two first days through Priceline.

[Opportun]

I just booked a 4.5 star in Union Square East at $125 a night for 6/10 - 6/14 . I will try to get the same hotel for the 2 previous days.

4.5-star hotel in Union Square East

This upscale establishment offers thoughtful features, quality rooms and a high level of service.

Fitness Center

Pool(s)

Restaurant(s)

Business Center

High-speed Internet Access

This looks to be a great deal for WWDC 08 at Moscone Convention Center

Thanks for your help.

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

Glad to hear you were successful for this part of your stay.

The Inter-Continental San Francisco website is showing the hotel sold-out for the remaining two nites of your stay, so it may be difficult to get this hotel for those nites.

Feel free to start a NEW TOPIC if you'd like help with the remaining two nites.

Thank you for sharing your win with teh board.

Please use these PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links to begin your travel purchases.

Enjoy this leg of your stay.

[BEAV]

Forgive me if I've missed it, but I can't see where the OP confirmed the identity of the hotel purchased was indeed the new San Francisco Intercontinental. It was speculated to be the new Intercontinental before purchase was made, but never confirmed in post #10.

Reason I'm wondering is because the other 4.5 star property in the USE zone, the Palace Hotel, has identical amenities with the exception of the spa. A different poster on another thread reported recently the spa amenity comes & goes with regard to the Palace Hotel. So with that in mind, it's possible both the Palace and San Francisco Intercontinental (not to be confused with the Mark Hopkins Intercontinental in the Nob Hill zone) have identical amenities when the Palace doesn't display the spa. It would be helpful if the OP could confirm whether his/her purchase was the Palace Hotel or the new San Francisco Intercontinental.

[Opportun]

I confirm, it's the InterContinental.

Hotel - 1 room, 4 nights

Intercontinental San Francisco

888 Howard Street

San Francisco, California 94103

(888) 811-4273

Check-in date

Tue, Jun 10, 2008 Check-out date Sat, Jun 14, 2008

1 room(s) @ $125.00 per night x 4 night(s)

$500.00

Tax recovery charge and fees

Hotel subtotal $85.10

$585.10

Total $585.10

Hope it clarifies the situation.

[BEAV]

Thanks for your quick reply, Opportun. And, yes, it does clarify!

To anyone else, keep in mind it's possible there will be times the spa icon won't appear for the Palace Hotel, making it an identical match with the San Francisco Intercontinental.

[slruud]

Also, Travelzoo is offering the Intercontinental for $129/nite for various dates over the next couple of months or so.

[BEAV]

Which is one of the reasons I was interested to confirm the hotel identify of the OP's purchase. I've just purchased the Intercontinental for $162 on HOTWIRE and have submitted a double-the-difference claim against the $129 Travelzoo rate. It will bring the true price down to about $96.

[kinghuang]

Can you post where you found the $129 rate? I looked through Travelzoo but couldn't find it.

Edit: Never mind. Found it. Thanks anyways.