Priceline Hotel: What are my chances in May?!? Under $100

[Tash79]

Hiya,

I am so happy to have found this website! Such a great idea.

My partner and I are heading to Vegas for my 30th birthday this coming May and after reading many posts have my heart set on the Venetian (it looks so beautiful)

My question is what are the chances of landing this hotel from 17th May till 22nd of May for under $100 per night??

Are there any big conferences on around this time to make Vegas busier?

If this isn't possible then what are some other hotels people could suggest.

I thought the new part of Treasure Island looked nice..or the Wynn seems to come up alot.

We aren't massive gamblers but will definitely have a play, we like a fun atmosphere but not a big party place, somewhere central to the strip & preferable not too many kids around either!

A good pool would be nice (I hope this is enough info for some suggestions)

Thanks in advance :)

Tash

[yellowdog]

Welcome To BetterBidding Tash79!

I have looked at the current prices for your stay. And I would say that your chance is slim. And if you use PRICELINE must you be willing to accept any of the reported 5* hotels in the North Strip zone. It's very hard to target a specific hotel.

And using PRICELINE and HOTWIRE don't give you the option (many times) to choose room location, strip view, tower room or newer section of the hotel. Sure, you can get an upgrade. But this is up to the clerk at C/I.

Reading your post gives me the feeling that HOTWIRE is the better option for you. Since the board many times can ID the listed hotels there.

I would suggest that you start looking at HOTWIRE to see what they offer for your stay.

Please post with any question.

YellowDog.

[Tash79]

Hi Yellowdog,

Thanks for your help!

Can I ask why you say the chances of getting the Venetian are slim??

Is it because of the time of year being busy or the price (or the chance of being lucky enough to win the hotel you actually want?)

Its just that I have looked through lots of past posts and noticed quite a lot of people wanted the Venetian and if they were patient and played their cards right they have it for around $100 (some as low as $85!!)

I would also be happy to get Caesars, Wynn or Treasure Island too...what would you say are the chances of getting these places for under $100???

Tash

[yellowdog]

Can I ask why you say the chances of getting the Venetian are slim??

Is it because of the time of year being busy or the price (or the chance of being lucky enough to win the hotel you actually want?)

There is a few things. And the rack rates are very high for some nights during your stay. And we typically don't see PRICELINE wins in the lower range with that kind of rack rates. And something is going on in vegas during your stay. Some hotels have extremley high rates.

Its just that I have looked through lots of past posts and noticed quite a lot of people wanted the Venetian and if they were patient and played their cards right they have it for around $100 (some as low as $85!!)

Yes, this is a common mistake many do. Wins are all date sensitive. Everything is about supply/demand. Peak/non peak seasson, winter/summer, holiday/non holiday, weekday/weekend, convension/ non convension etc etc. So, you can't look at past prices. Yesterday I saw hotels charging $600/night that can be wone for $75 some times.

I would also be happy to get Caesars, Wynn or Treasure Island too...what would you say are the chances of getting these places for under $100???

Before we go any deeper in this is there a few things the board need to know to help you so you can get a great 30th birthday :)

1. Are you willing to accept any of the reported 5* hotels in the North Strip PRICELINE zone? Including the Trump non casino hotel?

2. What is your maximum budgett/night before taxes?

YellowDog.

[yellowdog]

Tash79,

I have looked some more at Vegas for you. And your saying that Treasure Island would be ok. Treasure Island can be booked directly for $77/night + tax/deluxe room. This would be an easy and good solution for your stay.

If you decide to go for this so please use boards Treasure Island link at the support page

YellowDog.

[Tash79]

"Wins are all date sensitive"

I would be happy to stay for 3 nights in one place and 3 nights in another...(or 2 nights & 4 nights or whatever split) so long as the places aren't hugely different eg: Wynn for a few nights then head to daggy downtown to a flea infested room for the other 3. Would be quite ok with staying at Treasure Island then the Venetian for a couple of nights just to mix it up a bit.

We are coming from Australia so with the dollar being so weak against the US dollar I dont want to spend more than $100 US per night...there are so many lovely hotels in Vegas, hopefully I wont have to blow the budget to get somewhere nice...maybe hoping for the Venetian is just wishful thinking :)

[Tash79]

I am happy to go with whatever hotel I 'win' if it happens to be the Trump then so be it....BUT I have noticed that you guys are darn good at picking which place is which as long as the right questions are asked...especially seeing as the Trump does not have a Casino attached to it.

If the casino symbol does not pop up then it's pretty safe to assume you have won either the Wynn or Venetian right??

Thanks for all your help so far, you have no idea how grateful I am! (plus it's a bit exciting isn't it!)

[Tash79]

Hmm $77 dollars you say??

I'm getting $107

With a total of $654.00 for 6 nights.

Not much of a bargain! :)

Do you have any other hotels to suggest maybe?

[thereuare]

During your stay there are two moderate sized conventions... one 50K person and another 22K person, which are likely creating some demand in an otherwise soft Vegas hotel market.

i4Vegas (please use this link) has Bally's for $64/nite if that is of any interest to you.

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

[inspiration100]

As much as I'm sure the BB staff wants you to get the hotel of your choice, PRICELINE is not the way to go if you FOR SURE want the Venetian. It's alot less common than other hotels that pop up here (Planet Hollywood, Trump, and Wynn for example). If you have your heart set to stay at the Venetian (and I don't blame you, I also want to stay in this hotel on my trip in August), you would probably be safest just booking through the hotels own website and trying to find the best promotion.

Anyhow, I really hope you the best of luck in winning it... You can test your luck before hitting vegas :).

[yellowdog]

Tash79,

Ok, we know that there is a one 50K person and another 22K person convention. The case might be that block reservations are made at some hotels. That would explain the high rates.

Hmm $77 dollars you say?? I'm getting $107

I still get the $77 rate for Treasure Island :)

I would be happy to stay for 3 nights in one place and 3 nights in another...(or 2 nights & 4 nights or whatever split)

I looked at HOTWIRE today. And it looks like Trump is up for $81 (5/20-5/22). Lowest single night rate for Ventian during your stay is $260. So I doubt that you will hit at $100 even if splitting your stay.

I am happy to go with whatever hotel I 'win' if it happens to be the Trump then so be it....BUT I have noticed that you guys are darn good at picking which place is which as long as the right questions are asked...especially seeing as the Trump does not have a Casino attached to it. If the casino symbol does not pop up then it's pretty safe to assume you have won either the Wynn or Venetian right??

For the moment is this correct to assume

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

You're ok with any 5* hotel in the North Zone so give PRICELINE a try! It's free and it's fun :) The information you get from me is only what I think and guess. Since your dates are firm so roll the dice...... Your first Vegas bet!

Please use boards PRICELINE link for your adventure.

YellowDog.

[strawb]

Hi Tash

I had a similar requirement to stay in Vegas (from 18th to 21st May) and also wanted either the Venetian and Wynn but was willing to accept TI. My budget was limited as I'm from the UK (and the exchange rate is terrible at the moment) - limit was $105. I also found that the prices were very high and came to the conclusion that the conventions and perhaps the fact that the Lion King premieres on the 15th May are all contributing factors to the high rack rates.

Anyway, we decided to split our time, 2 nights in a 4* and 1 night in a 5*. A bit of inconvenience, sure - but my wife was happy to do this if we could get at least some time in a 5*. Plus these hotels are all in the same vacinity, especially Wynn & TI which are over the road from each other I believe.

We managed to get thru Priceline (using the BetterBidding link): TI for 2 nights at $83 and Wynn for 1 night at $90. The $77 deal for TI sounds like a fantastic deal and the reviews on TripAdvisor for IT are excellent.

This sounds like it might be a good strategy for you. Let us know how you get on and if you need any more info / advice.

Regards

Andrew

[dahammer]

strawb, your dates are different from the OP, so if you'd like help for your stay, please start a new thread.

[Tash79]

Hi Andrew,

I think you may be onto something here...I have decided to stay in 2 different places...3 nights in one place and 3 nights in another.

If I'm not too picky then anything I get is better than what I could afford just by booking direct!!

Tash

[thereuare]

I haven't look at your dates yet, but would you also be willing to split 4/2 or 5/1 if that's what works best for bidding purposes?

If you're ready to being and SPLITTING YOUR PRICELINE BID, let us know your maximum bid and desired star rating for the first leg of your stay? If you're looking for a 5* is the Trump an acceptable outcome? (it's in PRICELINE's strip zone but located off the strip itself)

Let us know how you'd like to proceed and we'll advise accordingly.

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

[Tash79]

I would be happy to split my 6 days 2/4 or 3/3 with a crappier hotel for the start and a nicer hotel for the end.

Dates are May 15th to May 21st 2009

Definitely using betterbidding links to bid, just tryng to suss out the best way before starting my bidds :)

[Tash79]

Yup would be happy with Trump though I hope to avoid it (and get Wynn or Venetian) by Trump not having a casino (thought I understand this isn't a guarantee by any means)

I'm hoping for a PH split in the beginning but would be fine with Ballys, Flamingo, Harrahs etc as my lower end.

[thereuare]

So for the "nicer" hotel (the latter leg of your stay) what is your maximum bid and what is the minimum star rating you're willing to accept for that leg of your stay?

Thanks for using our PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links.

[Tash79]

Umm I would like something for around $100 for the latter nicer part.

Anywhere around $60ish give or take for the early cheaper part.

I should just bid and see what happens..I'm being pedantic I know...it's just that it's my first time and I am excited (plus I'm not the best at planning things so it will be a surprise if I actually pull this off!)

edit* I would be happy with 3/4 star for the 1st part and would really love 5 star if possible for the 2nd part

[thereuare]

Best i think you can do is ~$110/nite for a 5* hotel (Wynn) for the last 2 nites of your stay... then ~$95/nite for the first 3 nites at a 4* property (Planet Hollywood). This brings you close to your original $100 limit, although slighty over, but two very nice hotels, imo.

Alternatley the above could be your 'worst case scenario' and you can try bidding on PRICELINE for each, which may result in lower prices, but as well could results in different hotels, both of which could be off-strip (Trump and Westin, respectively)

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

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

[Tash79]

Thanks so much for your help...I will let you know how I go :)

[Tash79]

From 17th May to 21st May at $82 per night

4-star hotel in Central Strip

This hotel features the following amenities:

Casino

Fitness Center

Pool(s)

Restaurant(s)

Business Center

Spa Services

Thanks!

[thereuare]

Please keep all posts for the same stay in the same thread.

This property has not yet been reported to the board. However, whenever this property does appear, if you change your HOTWIRE search parameters to 2adults/2children a hotel for just about the same price appears with the same amenities as above except also with a Golf icon, which would be a match for Treasure Island, and that would be our best guess.

It is speculated that this may be the hotel above as well, with the Golf icon "dropped" on that particular search, so if you are interested in trying to target the Treasure Island better to play it 'safer' (or as safe as one can be with an opaque purchase) and proceed with 2adults/2children when the 'full' list of amenities is shown.

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

[Tash79]

Didn't end up going to Vegas in the end :-(

Sorry I couldn't help the board with a report

[AaronJB]

Thanks for closing the thread.