Priceline Hotel: 4* Miami (South Beach) Hotel Victor

[Miami]

Hello all,

This is such a useful website and I wat to thank everyone for helping me out.

I am staying in Miami with my girlfriend from Feb 14 to 19th, 2009 and we were hoping to stay in a 4* (or very good 3.5*) on the beach either in South beach or Miami Beach.

I was hoping to gain insight as to what exact bidding strategy I should use.

Thanks in advance!

[Miami]

So far I attempted this:

$70 for 4* South beach

$75 for 4* South beach + Miami beach

$65 for 3.5* and 4* South beach + Miami beach

I will now wait for 24 hrs until they let me rebid.

Any advice out there???

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

Rates are high for these dates... what is your maximum bid at each star level? Is SPLITTING YOUR PRICELINE BID an option?

Also, you don't appear to be maximimzing your bidding opportuntities, are you familiar with re-bidding? (see Priceline Re-Bidding Explained)

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

[Miami]

Hi,

I haven't tried split bidding because I'm reluctant to take the chance I might have to switch hotels but I might try this strategy if my luck doesn't change. I have tried rebidding as follows:

4* South Beach $90

4* South Beach + Miami beach $100

4* + 3.5* South Beach and Miami beach $110

Later tried again:

4* South Beach $125

4* South beach + Miami beach $135

4* + 3.5* South beach + Miami beach $125

I'm really hoping to get a 4* for under $150 at this point. Hotwire is listing a 4* for $168 with no amenities listed and 4/5 on tripadvisor with 140+ reviews. Does anyone know what hotel this might be?

Thanks in advance.

[thereuare]

Your strategy above is not utilizing your re-bid zones... have you read Priceline Re-Bidding Explained?

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

[Miami]

Thanks!

I tried adding zones without 4* hotels:

Aventura

North Miami

Dadeland

1 more (forget which)

I bid $140, $150, then $160 and now I might try doing the same thing for 3.5*. At this point is it best to go with the $168 4* listed on Hotwire?

[Miami]

and yes, i have been using this site's link for bidding :)

[thereuare]

Is the HOTWIRE hotel in the Central South Beach zone? I'm currently seeing a 4* hotel in this zone but for $168/nite but it showns 3 amenity icons: Boutique, Restaurant, Hi-Speed Internet and has the same Tripadvisor rating info you listed above.

This property has not yet been identified, but the Sagamre, The Hotel, and Hotel Astor are at least a few which meet the Tripadvisor information.

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

Let us know what you decide and how it goes or if we can be of further help.

[Miami]

Yes, sorry, that is the listing I see on Hotwire. I'm caught deciding between going for that offer or bidding for a 3.5*. South Beach 3.5* hotels are not very well reviewed on tripadvisor unfortunately.

[thereuare]

This property has not yet been identified, but the Tripadvisor imformation suggests the Sagamore, Hotel Astor, or The Hotel to be among the likely possibilities.

Let us know if you go for the above or how you'd like to proceed.

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

[Miami]

Would anyone be able to identify this 3* hotel which is listed on Hotwire for $126 for the dates above? Thanks in advance!

3-star hotel in South Beach - Oceanfront Collins

Traveler rating

3.0 out of 5 Based on 160+ customer reviews (Last reviewed January 2009)

Boutique Hotel

Beachfront

Fitness Center

Pool(s)

Restaurant(s)

Business Center

High-speed Internet Access

Tennis Nearby

[thereuare]

The amenities above match the Richmond Hotel... the TA rating is off by just a few reviews so that raise a slight red flag regarding this ID, but this would be our best guess.

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

[Miami]

Thanks. In addition to the number of tripadvisor reviews, there is also a discrepancy in the amenities listed. I don't believe the richmond has a fitness center. Any other ideas?

[Miami]

OK! So I decided that since rates seem to be MUCH cheaper for Monday through Thursday, I would split my bid into 14th-16th, and 16th-19th.

I won my bid as follows:

Hotel Victor

1144 Ocean Drive

Miami Beach, FL 33139

305-428-1234

Room Cost (avg. per room, per night): $170.00 (USD) Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights: 3 Room Subtotal: $510.00 (USD) Taxes and Fees: $82.65 (USD) Total Room Cost: $592.65 (USD)

Now I need to figure out my Saturday and Sunday nights and I will be set!

I'm pretty happy with Hotel Victor for $170 on weeknights given it's location and tripadvisor reviews.

I may just go 3.5* or even 3* for those nights since I know I've got a nice hotel coming later during my stay...

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

Glad to see you were <partially> successful (so far) by SPLITTING YOUR PRICELINE BID and hare happy with the results for this leg of your stay.

We have moved the post regarding your first 2 nite stay here so that each will be available to those scanning the topic titles of the board and so that each appears in the Priceline and Hotwire Calendar of Wins:

Renaissance Eden Roc Miami Beach.

Thank you for sharing your win with the board and using our PRICLINE link to begin your bidding.

Enjoy this part of your trip.