Hotwire Hotel: please help looking for hotel in downtown, seattle

[lilcutekoala]

I'm looking for a hotel in downtown, Seattle and have been using priceline (for the first time) for the past couple days.

I have not made a successful bid yet. I am planning to stay in Seattle on Aug 13th-15th and am looking for a place hopefully with parking. I'm looking for a 3 or 4* place and am on a tight budget.

Could someone help me out?

[lilcutekoala]

Failed attempts on Priceline:

4* ranging from $80-125 in downtown

3* ranging from $75-120

Date: Aug 13th-15th

Budget: $130/night in downtown, looking for 3* or 4*

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

...am looking for a place hopefully with parking

Do you mean free parking?? If so i'm doubtful that is going to happen as i think all Downtown hotels charge for parking and you'll need to factor this into your budget (although if you're willing to park at a private lot on your own you can probably do better than what the hotel charges) Can you still keep your maximum bids as stated above?

What is the purpose of this stay (sightseeing?)... do you need to stay in the Downtown area?

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

[lilcutekoala]

I'm going to Seattle for sightseeing for the first time. A lot of my friends are saying that I will not need a car especially if I'm just touring the city and staying mostly in downtown. My max bid is still at $130 and I still prefer a 3 or 4* hotel. I would like to find a hotel in downtown only, if possible. I did my round of bidding today:

$80-130 for 4* at increments of 10, and $75-118 for 3* and had a counterbid at 115 asking for 22 more but I did not follow through with that offer but instead started to raise the bid to 116 and 118 but still with no success.

How should I bid the next time?

[thereuare]

Did you want to try for a 4* first up to $130... or are you looking for the least expensive 3* or better property?

Let us know and we'll advise accordingly.

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

[lilcutekoala]

i'm willing to look for the least expensive and it doesnt matter if it's 3* or 4*. Ideally I'm shooting for ~$110 and $130 would be my max bid.

[thereuare]

At the 3* level you have five 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 3* Downtown...

Bid $70, if rejected add re-bid zone1...

Bid $75, if rejected add re-bid zone2...

Bid $80, if rejected add re-bid zone3...

Bid $85, if rejected close browser and use or link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Downtown and re-bid zone4...

Bid $90, if rejected add re-bid zone1...

Bid $95, if rejected add re-bid zone2...

Bid $100, if rejected add re-bid zone3...

Bid $105, if rejected close browser and use or link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Downtown and re-bid zone5...

Bid $110, if rejected add re-bid zone1...

Bid $115, if rejected add re-bid zone2...

Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone3...

Bid $125, if rejected add re-bid zone4...

Bid $130

Any quesitons 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.

[lilcutekoala]

I'd like to confirm my re-bid zones before bidding. I tried bidding today after 24 hours after my FIRST bid yesterday but it seems like I'm still locked out. Should I try again tonight? but they might lock me out for another 24 hour period.

Re-bid zone 1: Bothell

Re-bid zone 2: Everett

Re-bid zone 3: Lake Union

Re-bid zone 4: Lynnwood

Re-bid zone 5: North Everett

[thereuare]

Yes, you have your re-bid zones correct. (but always doublcheck them again just before bidding)

You should be ok bidding again now if it's after your last rejected bid from yesterday. Occaisionally a duplicate bid will re-set the clock, but this is more the exception than the rule.

Please remember to start your bids with the PRICELINE links on the board.

Good luck and let us know how it goes.

[tilepusher]

If you want to secure your hotel room now, and you are willing to take the least expensive 3 or 4* hotel room that's currently in Priceline's inventory, then thereuare's bidding strategy will definitely do the job. But I would be hesitant to bid more than $100 for a 3* hotel; if I had to go over $100, I would want to hold out for a 4*. Of course, there is a downside to holding out; you'd almost certainly have to go through several more bidding sessions, and you might have to wait until a few days before your trip to get a room (there's a chance that you could get shut out completely, but that's very unlikely, I think). On the other hand, given current hotel rates, I think a better deal will come up if you're willing to wait for it (rates could change in a hurry, though, so there's no guarantee). I hope I'm not making a mistake by giving this advice, but given what you've told us about your previous bids, I have a feeling that you might end up at the Holiday Inn for $125/night. That would be okay, but not what I would consider a great deal.

If you do decide to take my advice, just note that in order to bid for a 4* hotel in DT Seattle after trying for a 3*, you'll have to add a rebid zone on your first bid for a 4* or Priceline will lock you out. But you can simply add one of the three additional rebid zones you have for a 4* bid. So the process would go something like this:

Bid for a 3* as above but stop at $100, say.

If rejected, exit and start a new bid for 4* DT + one of the additional rebid zones at $105.

If rejected, add a rebid zone and bid $110.

If rejected, add a rebid zone and bid $115.

...etc., until you reach your limit.