soxrule Posted October 18, 2008 Report Share Posted October 18, 2008 I've never bid using Priceline before. I need one night in San Juan on 1/10/09 and would like to stay at the Marriott Stellaris. From reading many posts, I gather I do not have a choice in the hotel, but are there any tips to narrow my chances for getting the Marriott? How can I be sure I will get a resort on the ocean? Can I request a 4 star resort oceanfront in San Juan? I see from your San Juan 4 star lists that there are only four 4 star resorts. So I should have a 25% chance of getting the Marriott Stellaris, correct? I know it's only one night, but can I go wrong with any of the 4 four resorts available in San Juan? Sorry if this doesn't make sense. I'm used to researching variuos resorts and chossing the one I want. I think it's strange to be bidding on an unkown and it's binding. Thank you. Link to comment
thereuare Posted October 18, 2008 Report Share Posted October 18, 2008 Welcome to BetterBidding!You're correct that you can't choose the specific hotel, and with PRICELINE there is no way to target a specific property.How can I be sure I will get a resort on the ocean? Can I request a 4 star resort oceanfront in San Juan?You can't request a resort on the ocean... you can only select the star class (Resort is a class of its own rated higher than 4 stars) and not make any conditions in regards to the hotel being on the ocean. For example, the Caribe Hilton (which is a great property, imo) isn't located on the beach... they do have a small man-made beach, but it's not the "real" beach of Isla Verde which is what i think of when i think of a beach. If there are certain things you need from this stay you may want to consider HOTWIRE which also doesn't show you the name of the property before your purchase, but does let you know the amenities offered by the hotel which you can often use to take an eduated guess as to the hotel being offered.I see from your San Juan 4 star lists that there are only four 4 star resorts. So I should have a 25% chance of getting the Marriott Stellaris, correct?Not really... first the hotel list is only hotels which have been reported to the board, there could be others and you can be the first to report a new hotel, OR you could be the first to report a hotel previously reported at a lower star level but recently upgraded to the Resort class. As well, not all hotels discount their rates as much as others and therefore the hotels which discounts more aggresively tend to be won more frequently... the Caribe Hilton and the Marriott are won fairly often... the El San Juan doesn't come up much at all.Please use these PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links to begin your travel purchases.If you'd like to proceed let us know your maximum bid and we'll suggest a strategy for you to follow. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
soxrule Posted October 19, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 19, 2008 Hi, Thanks for the quick response. On Priceline, when I select 4 star and put in a bid for $80, the bid is accepted with $22 in taxes the total comes to $102. Would the hotel end up being less than a 4 star because of the low bid? Again, this is for one night 1/10/09 before a cruise. My max bid would be $150...still would save over $150 to $200 for the night. Link to comment
thereuare Posted October 20, 2008 Report Share Posted October 20, 2008 If you select 4 stars then the hotel you receive will not be rated lower than 4* (by PRICELINE standards and determination)Note that when you select a star level it is the minimum star rating you're willing to accept, so you could be upgraded to a higher rated hotel (ie- Resort) on a 4* bid.Alos, note that a 4* hotel in San Juan was just reported to the board tonite and ended up being the La Concha Renaissance which gets good reviews.Did you want to try for a 4* hotel with a maximum bid for $150?Please use these PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links to begin your travel purchases. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
soxrule Posted October 21, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 21, 2008 Yes, i would like to place a bid for a 4 star resort in San Juan. If I want two rooms, do I do anything different? Thanks! Link to comment
thereuare Posted October 21, 2008 Report Share Posted October 21, 2008 No need to do anything different bidding for two rooms... just make sure you select TWO ROOMS from the drop down menu and remember that your bid is per room, so if you are bidding $90 you enter $90 (and not $180)At the 4* level you hav FOUR re-bid zones available. 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)Start with our link to PRICELINESelect 4* San Juan...Bid $90, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $100, if rejected add re-bid zone2...Bid $105, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINESelect 4* San Juan and re-bid zone3...Bid $110, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $115, if rejected add re-bid zone2...Bid $120, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINESelect 4* San Juan and re-bid zone4...Bid $125, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $130, if rejected add re-bid zone2...Bid $135, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINESelect 4* San Juan and re-bid zone3...Bid $140, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $145, if rejected add re-bid zone2...Bid $150Any 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. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
soxrule Posted October 27, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 27, 2008 I just bid $80 for a resort in San Juan for one night 1/10/09. My bid was accepted and with the $22 taxes comes to $103. I think I should accept it, but am just wondering what the catch is. It just seems too good to be true. Thahks! Link to comment
thereuare Posted October 27, 2008 Report Share Posted October 27, 2008 Did a page come back with the wording that you actually have received a win... or are you perhaps looking at the page in which PRICELINE is asking you to confirm the details of your bid (before it's actually submitted)? Is the name of the hotel shown?Does the bottom of the page have a button "Buy My Hotel Room Now" (or you do previously remember clicking such a button)Note that once you clck the "Buy My Hotel Room Now" button, IF your bid is accepted, you don't have a choice in taking it or not... the hotel name is shown and you then have a confirmed, non-cancellable, reservation for that nite.Please use these PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links to begin your travel purchases. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
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