Priceline Hotel: Questions/help for Washington DC in June 2008

[Tillie]

Greetings!

Am *trying* PL for the first time, hoping to get a 4* in Arlington. I've used betterbidding.com instructions to bid and I've been declined at $70-102. Don't know how high I should go, or maybe go 3* somewhere... Close Metro access is a must as I'll be traveling with my 80 yr old mom who uses a scooter. I've seen 4* Arlington for this spring at $80-88. Should I wait until closer to the planned trip (June 5-10) and try again (back at a lower $) ? I'm trying to factor daily parking fees into the scenario (we'll be driving in). Other family members are going as well (and I'll need to book 2 rooms), so I can't really go over $120-150ish per night (especially with that darn parking $$$)

Any help/guidance will be appreciated.

[thereuare]

Close Metro access is a must...

Welcome to BetterBidding! Since your hotel can be anywhere in the shaded region of the zone, are you concerned about proximity to the Metro?

Other family members are going as well (and I'll need to book 2 rooms)

How many people in total will there be?

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

[Tillie]

Welcome to BetterBidding! Since your hotel can be anywhere in the shaded region of the zone, are you concerned about proximity to the Metro?

I think prox to the Metro is very high on the list of 'needs' (as opposed to 'desires')

How many people in total will there be?

there will be 5 adults and 1 child. Most of us wish for separate beds :)

me/mom in 1 room

my sis/her hubby/son/grandchild in 1 room

or so I hope.

[thereuare]

I think you have two issues:

1) you can't choose where in the zone you will end up, so unless the entire zone has easy access to the Metro, i think you're taking a chance by using PRICELINE

2) PRICELINE only guarantees double occupancy, after that it's at the discretion of the hotel. You could end up with 2 rooms and only one bed in each... could you make do with such a situation?

Are these risks you're willing to accept?

If so we'll try to advise as to how to best proceed with a PRICELINE bidding strategy.

If not, HOTWIRE may still be an option as they will allow you to search for up to quad occupancy per room and you may be able to correctly identify the property offered before your purchase, enabling you to research how close to a metro station it is located.

I'll add that i'm not sure if all Metro stops are 'scooter accessible'... i know i've used the escalator most times, but not sure if there are elevators (or if every location has one). You know the make-up the group best, but given the mobility issues i would perhaps consider a hotel directly in DC, even if it meant lowering my star rating, since it might make things a bit easier on your mom. (again, not knowing the extent of her mobility)

Feel free to ask questions regarding the above and/or let us know your thoughts.

[Tillie]

I think you have two issues:

1) you can't choose where in the zone you will end up, so unless the entire zone has easy access to the Metro, i think you're taking a chance by using PRICELINE

2) PRICELINE only guarantees double occupancy, after that it's at the discretion of the hotel. You could end up with 2 rooms and only one bed in each... could you make do with such a situation?

Are these risks you're willing to accept?

OK, I know I'm very new to the bidding game, but all of my searches (

Orbitz

,

Expedia

,

Travelocity

,

Hotels.com

) show the only 4* hotels in Arlington (and I realize that not everyone rates hotels the same number *s) are the Westin, Hotel Palomar and (if Crystal City is included in the zone) the Ritz Carlton. Does anyone know of more/different 4* hotels in Arlington? As best I can tell, all rooms in these have 2 beds (whether double or queen) or 1 King (a probable issue, but

maybe

workable) and are within a block of a Metro station. I've also noticed in my searching that the hotels *in* DC are overall much smaller in square footage and usually only have 1 bed (which is the reason I'm looking at Arlington)

I'll add that i'm not sure if all Metro stops are 'scooter accessible'... i know i've used the escalator most times, but not sure if there are elevators (or if every location has one). You know the make-up the group best, but given the mobility issues i would perhaps consider a hotel directly in DC, even if it meant lowering my star rating, since it might make things a bit easier on your mom. (again, not knowing the extent of her mobility)

Feel free to ask questions regarding the above and/or let us know your thoughts.

With all of my knowledge based purely on internet searches, I can only say that all of the Metros are reportedly handicapped accessible via elevators. They even have web updates for non-functioning elevators and work-arounds. She can walk for very short distances, but stairs are agony for her (bad knees).

What * hotels have you tried in DC? What is your overall impression of my (?) luck in scoring my dream room (4*, 2 beds/room, close to Metro, <$120ish)

[Tillie]

As an added note, I would have no objection to using HOTWIRE and a lower * hotel (we really only need a nice place to sleep/shower, in a safe neighborhood), if only I could be certain of said hotel's proximity to the Metro. You don't really know which hotel you're purchasing on HOTWIRE until it's a 'done deal', right?

[thereuare]

As best I can tell, all rooms in these have 2 beds

It's not a question of whether the hotel has rooms with two beds, but if they will give you a room with two beds. Your PRICELINE reservation is guaranteed to accomodate double occupancy and it is ultimately up to the hotel to assign the room, and if all they have available are rooms with one bed (or aren't willing to give you a room with two beds), they're within their right and have satisified their end of the agreement..

You don't really know which hotel you're purchasing on HOTWIRE until it's a 'done deal', right?

Correct, but the advantage for your situation is that you can take an educated guess as to the property (vs. PRICELINE where you really won't have any guess other than that the hotel is "in the zone") and you can guarantee enough sleeping accomodations for everyone in your group.

We'll help with whichever route you'd like to go, but since you're new to the "opaque game", i always try to hope for the best but prepare for the 'worst case scenario'.

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