Priceline Hotel: new york in september

[dechass]

Hi,

My wife and I will be staying in New York from 21st to 28th Sep 08. It is our first time in New York.

We would like to stay in the following areas, I have put them in order of preference, but this is open to change if you have any advice,

(we are both fit, and enjoying walking!)

Times Square - Theatre District

Madison Square Garden - Convention Area

Midtown West

Midtown East

Upper Midtown - Central Park South

Empire State Building

Chelsea Area

Upper West Side

Upper East Side

We would like to stay in a 4 star deluxe, and if not then a 3 star upscale.

maximum (about $200)- is that realistic?

Can you advise me on a strategy please?

when should I start bidding? I see there has not been any winning bids in that week yet?

Is there anything else you need to know?

King Regards.

Declan.

[noniesin]

Hi Declan,

I dont think you can get a 4 * star hotel in New York City for $200 unless there is a tremendous discounts on rooms.

If I can remember correctly, I paid about $160 for room in a 3* hotel (Pennsylvania Hotel) in November, 3 years ago.

Good luck!

[dechass]

hi noniesin,

there's only a few wins for august, september and october so far, but there's a 4* win for $130, only 1 night thou, also a few 3* for $140-170.

finger's crossed!!

Dec

[noniesin]

good luck!!!!

[thereuare]

We would like to stay in the following areas, I have put them in order of preference, but this is open to change if you have any advice,

Is price more important than zone? (ie- would you prefer to pay more for a hotel in your first zone preference than less for a hotel lower down in your preference list)

I do think that $200 may currently be tough for a 4* hotel for your dates above, but if you let us know if zone or price is more important we'll suggest a strategy to try. Assuming your 4* bidding is rejected, a lot can happen between now and your stay, and i think it's a bit early to compromise and lower your star rating to 3 stars. If 4* bidding is rejected you shoud find and book a cancellable back-up.. for a back-up, do you want a higher rated hotel and higher than your budget or a lower rated hotel closer to your budget?

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

[dechass]

We would like to try to stick to the budget we had in mind of $200/night, i realise this by be difficult at present.

We would also like to stay in a 4*, but are not really bothered in which zone.

Then if we do not get a 4*, we will bid for a lower rated hotel.

For a backup, we would prefer a lower rated hotel, closer to our budget.

This is my new order of preference!

10 Times Square

9 Midtown West

7 Madison Square Garden

8 Midtown East

5 Empire State Building

2 Central Park South

3 Chelsea Area

12Upper West Side

11 Upper East Side

Thanks for this. Do you need any more info, or need anything else clarified?

Dec

[thereuare]

Is price more important than zone? (ie- would you prefer to pay more for a hotel in your first zone preference than less for a hotel lower down in your preference list)

Let me try to give you an example...

If both were available, would you prefer a $200 hotel in the Times Square zone or a $160 hotel in the Madison Square Garden zone? (ie- is lowest price among the acceptable zones your goal... or are you willing to pay more for a hotel in a more prefered zone). Most prefer, and it's easier to bid for the least expensive property in any of your prefered zones, but sometimes we have a user who is willing to pay more for a specific zone.

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

[dechass]

i'd prefer to bid for the least expensive property in any of the prefered zones.

so in above example, i'd prefer to pay $160 for the Madison Square Garden zone.

thanks.

[thereuare]

At the 4* level you currently have six re-bid zones. 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.

Select 4* MTE and MTW and Times Square and CPS and ESB...

Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone1...

Bid $130, if rejected add re-bid zone2...

Bid $140, if rejected add re-bid zone3...

Bid $145, if rejected add re-bid zone4...

Bid $150, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 4* MTE and MTW and Times Square and CPS and ESB and re-bid zone5...

Bid $155, if rejected add re-bid zone1...

Bid $160, if rejected add re-bid zone2...

Bid $165, if rejected add re-bid zone3...

Bid $170, if rejected add re-bid zone4...

Bid $175, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 4* MTE and MTW and Times Square and CPS and ESB and re-bid zone6...

Bid $180, if rejected add re-bid zone1...

Bid $185, if rejected add re-bid zone2...

Bid $190, if rejected add re-bid zone3...

Bid $195, if rejected add re-bid zone4...

Bid $200

Any questions feel free to ask.

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

Good luck and let us know how it goes.

[dechass]

Hi, i'm ready to bid now, but i have a query about the strategy.

should I not be selecting Madison sq garden as well as mte, mtw, ts, cps and esb?

also can you clarify what re-bid zone1 etc are called?

regards.

Declan

[thereuare]

There are currently no hotels available at the 4* level in the MSG zone.

You should really know how to check your re-bid zones as they should be checked before every bidding cycle to reduce any chances of you ending up in an area you didn't intend.

Have you read thru Priceline Re-Bidding Explained?

Please confirm your re-bid zones with the board OR if you're confused list each PRICELINE zone in the NYC area and the highest star rating available in each zone, using the following technique from Priceline Re-Bidding Explained:

The way to check what star levels are available in each zone is to open a Priceline page, check ONLY the zone you are inquiring about, and then proceed to the next page (as if you were going to select a zone)... this will give you the available star ratings in that area. You can then hit BACK on your browser, uncheck the current box, check the next box, and repeat the process. It is important to do this before EACH attempt at adding a zone that you really don't want, as new hotels can be added and the star ratings can change at any time. (NOTE: for most users Priceline has updated their interface making the above process easier... simply check a zone and note the highest star rating available within each zone, UNcheck that zone and checkmark the next zone, repeating the process)

If you're confused by the above just post back and we'll break it down further for you.

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

[dechass]

Hi there,

i've been away researching and getting to know how re-bidding works. (for 4* at least).

Sorry for wasting your time earlier!

Now I need some advice again.

As a backup I have booked 'the pod' hotel through your Quickbook link as recommended in another post. - So my wife and I won't be on the street!

It is more than I would like to pay, (and we would like our own bathroom), so I have been bidding using the strategy you suggested, but with no success.

I believe my options are;

Bidding for a whole week means I may have to split my bid. ( I would consider 1 move, but not any more).

Another option is to drop to 3*. (which could be ok - (depending on hotel!-i can look at these more closely.))

I havent included soho in my bids, - it is our first visit to NY and we would prefer to be in midtown.

My first question is....

there are under 7 weeks left to bid, (9/21 to 9/28)- is it time to compromise my strategy, or should I keep bidding the same way?

I would really like to get somewhere quickly, but should I wait?

I know my budget may be too low, however there have been wins under my budget for 4* - but not for a whole week...

and what's anyones opinion on staying in soho for first time NY visitors?

I hope I havent went on too much!!

thanks.

[thereuare]

I think even a 3* might be tough at $200 or less for the above dates... anywhere in Manhattan.

The location of the Pod is good, but it is a shared bathroom (if that's the room class you booked thru Quickbook... we typically only recommend the rooms with private bath) and while i have heard it is maintained very well and clean, it is 'budget' accomodations. (what was your rate?)

Staying Downtown isn't bad... it's just not as convenient as midtown; but a shared bath isn't that appealing to me either, so you essentially have to make a choice as to which is more acceptable.

Given the expensive dates and your budget, i don't think it's too early to consider alternate options (split bid, lowering star rating, adding Downtown, etc).

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

[dechass]

Hi, it turns out we have booked the queen pod - it has it's own bathroom! it's $250/night, (before taxes, - btw - typically how much do taxes add?).

reviews on 'the pod' seem excellent, however I still feel this is more than I want to pay for it - (small size of rooms and noisy).

I tried bidding again with the same strategy, except I added downtown this time. - no success.

I think splitting my bid is my next option to try to stay within my budget without dropping hotel standard....

What days would you recommend splitting the bid up into? and what strategy?

I feel up to $200 Sun - Thurs and then $240 Fri/sat nite is within my budget?

(or is thurs as expensive as weekend, if so then $240 for it too! hopefully mon-wed will be low!!)

(exclude downtown at this stage, i'll include it if not successful with cps,mte,mtw,ts and esb).

Thanks again.

[thereuare]

I feel up to $200 Sun - Thurs and then $240 Fri/sat nite is within my budget?

(or is thurs as expensive as weekend, if so then $240 for it too! hopefully mon-wed will be low!!)

You have it backwards... midweek nites in NYC are typically more expensive than weekend nites.

My guess is that at this point SPLITTING YOUR PRICELINE BID isn't going to help very much as your issue isn't that a few nites of your stay are unsually high, but more likely that it's just a very expensive time of year and prices are high throughout your stay.

However, if you want to give it a try (and have the time to bid) set a maximum nightly bid for the entire stay and then try to get as many nites as you possible can rather than assuming what nites will be cheaper than others. If you make the assumption as you have, let's say that you win 2 of the 7 nites, then the remaining 5 are unusually high, you could be forced to split the bid once again and end up with three different hotels (most are usually only willing to change hotels once during a stay)

Let us know maximum bid for this stay and we'll then outline a strategy with the date iterations.

pricelne.hotwire

[dechass]

Hi,

I'd like to give it a go.

I think it might even be a good idea to be in 2 hotels for our stay.

1 downtown to explore fin district, battery park, the islands, soho, little italy, brooklyn, chinatown etc and another hotel uptown....

This changes things slightly!

More expensive sun to thursday - i'd like to bid downtown for 4* maximum nightly bid - $220,

If unsuccessful -dropping to 3* $200 (club quarters downtown - good reviews - only 3* win downtown)

would I be right in saying 3* bids will be done 24hrs after 4* bids. if so that's fine.

Is it best to try for downtown first, and then discussing stategy for remaining nights after?

Thanks again.

[thereuare]

I'm not following your post above... are you stating the specific dates that you want to be downtown? How many nites do you want to stay in the Downtown zone?

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

PS- at the 3* level dont' count on the Club Quarters being the only 3* property

[dechass]

yes I want to stay downtown from 9/21 to 9/24 and any of the 5 4* midtown zones from 9/25 to 9/28.

should we contrate on downtown dates first?

4* maximum nightly bid - $220, if unsuccessful 3* max - $200

(I realise i cant count on getting club quarters.)

Thanks

[thereuare]

When SPLITTING YOUR PRICELINE BID that's not really how i would recommend you play this as you want to try and get as much of the stay as you can first, then "fill-in" the rest.

The plan i'd recommend would be to try for a 4* in midtown up to $220, trying the following date combinations:

9/21-9/28

9/21-9/27

9/22-9/28

9/21-9/26

9/23-9/28

9/21-9/25

9/24-9/28

9/21-9/24 (if you feel desperate since this is less than half your stay)

9/25-9/28 (if you feel desperate since this is less than half your stay)

Then if the above is rejected you can:

1) try the above for a 3* hotel in midtown or...

2) try the above at the 4* level in Downtown (up to whatever limit you like)

Yes, the above is time consuming, but i think it's the better way to play it since it gives you the best chance to at least half your stay take care of.

Let us know your thoughts and we'll take it from there.

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

[dechass]

ok, i see what you mean.

can you give me a strategy for this please.

Thanks again.

[thereuare]

At the 4* level you have six re-bid zones. 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.

(NOTE: 're-bid zone1' is not the same as priceline's Zone1, 're-bid zone2' is not the same as priceline's Zone2, etc, etc)

Select 4* MTE, MTW, CPS, TS, and ESB...

Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone1...

Bid $130, if rejected add re-bid zone2...

Bid $140, if rejected add re-bid zone3...

Bid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone4...

Bid $155, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE.

Select 4* MTE, MTW, CPS, TS, and ESB and re-bid zone5...

Bid $160, if rejected add re-bid zone1...

Bid $165, if rejected add re-bid zone2...

Bid $170, if rejected add re-bid zone3...

Bid $175, if rejected add re-bid zone4...

Bid $180, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE.

Select 4* MTE, MTW, CPS, TS, and ESB and re-bid zone6...

Bid $185, if rejected add re-bid zone1...

Bid $190, if rejected add re-bid zone2...

Bid $195, if rejected add re-bid zone3...

Bid $200, if rejected add re-bid zone4...

Bid $205, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE.

Select 4* MTE, MTW, CPS, TS, and ESB and re-bid zone5 and re-bid zone6...

Bid $210, if rejected add re-bid zone1...

Bid $215, if rejected add re-bid zone2...

Bid $220, if rejected add re-bid zone3...

Bid $225, if rejected add re-bid zone4...

Bid $230.

You can leave off the last two bids if you don't want to go that high. Start with the first date in the last and run thru the strategy, then close browser and start over for the next set of dates.

9/21-9/28

9/21-9/27

9/22-9/28

9/21-9/26

9/23-9/28

9/21-9/25

9/24-9/28

Any questions freel free to ask.

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

Good luck and let us know how it goes.

[dechass]

You can leave off the last two bids if you don't want to go that high.

Hi again, update.....

i went up to the 230 for this. (I also bid $240 for the whole week).

thanks for the strategy, it took a while(you did warn me!) but it wasn't successful.

I think staying sunday to sunday has decreased the chances of splitting my bid being a success, as Thursday 25th was in all my bids.

And Thursday being midweek is usually more expensive.

I need a break from this right now! - tired....

I'll think about it tomorrow....

cheers.

Dec.

[dechass]

bid up to $300 for 4* in midtown - no good.

split my week up too.

bidding 5, 4 and 3 nights from 160 to $300

bidded 9/21 - 9/24 and 9/24 to 9/28 4* downtown $160 to $210- no good.

i've spent hours at this...

given up, - going to stay in my back up.

'the pod' - good reviews, good location.

on to Las vegas now, lets hope I have better luck.

:)