Priceline Hotel: bidding strategy

[DCGUY9]

Hello:

May I please have a bidding strategy for the following:

Late July for 1 night and a week later for 1 night:

4* hotel in downtown Seattle, Pike Place

We are a family of 2 adults and a 4 year old child.

Thanks so much

[thereuare]

Please only post regarding one stay per thread. We'll use this thread for your first stay... what is the actual date?

PRICELINE only guarantees double occupancy... are you ok with taking the risk that you may receive a room with only one bed? (if not HOTWIRE will allow you to search for up to quad occupancy)

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

Let us know and we'll advise accordingly.

[DCGUY9]

Thank you. Our date is July 30th.

Also, if we get a 4* hotel, hopefully we can get a rollaway for our 4 year old. If not, we'll set up some kind of arrangement for him - maybe on the floor with blankets etc...

The question is, are we even allowed to be in a priceline room with 3 people?

Thanks again!

[thereuare]

PRICELINE's official policy is (paraphrased) "the rooms is guarnateed for double occupancy, after that it's at the discretion of the hotel" so it becomes a hotel issue and not so much a PRICELINE issue.

As long as your comfortable with the possibility of the floor arrangement, or that there may be an additional charge for a rollaway, then i'd give it a try for a 4 year old (but this is my opinion and your comfort level may be different)... if my child was somewhere around 8+ then it becomes a little more difficult. I assume most desk clerks won't single out a 4 years old, but chances increase the old the kid(s) get. As well, you can play it 'smart' and have one parent and child check-in at the desk (so they see you'd rather not share a bed) and ask for a room with two beds, while the other spouse/parent is at the Starbucks down the block (i hear they have a few in Seattle :) ) or sitting comfortably in a chari elsewhere in the lobby.

If you're not comfortable with the above arrangement then HOTWIRE is always an option as they allow you to search for up to quad occupancy.

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

[DCGUY9]

Thank you so much for your reply. I definitely want to do priceline. Most 4*hotels are very accommodating.

[inspiration100]

If I were you, I would kick the bid off around $65 for a 4 star... and increase. I have rarely seen anyone win a hotel for $65, so that's a good starting point. You may get a bite around $75-$80... but in July I would expect even a little higher. There are plenty of rebid zones as well for 4 stars. Take a couple of days and work your way up slowly.

[DCGUY9]

That sounds like good advice. I am wondering if anyone knows what the 3.5* hotel in Pike Place is. When I checked this site, the only 3.5* is the Marriott. That would be fine with us! I don't want to pay more than $100 with tax by the way!

[thereuare]

The 3.5* rating is a fairly new star level for PRICELINE, only introduced about 3-4 months ago, so there may not be hotels reported to the board at this star level.

You could go to BackUpBooking.com, pull up a map of Seattle, and look at the hotels in this zone to see if any of them are currently rated 3.5 stars.

Let us know once you're read to begin bidding, your maximum bid before taxes and fees, and the minimum star rating you'd like to begin trying for and we'll suggest a strategy for you to follow.

PS- rates curerntly look high for your dates and i'm doubtful $100 'all-in' will currently be enough for a 4* property

[inspiration100]

With this economy you might be able to get something under $100, but I agree, summer in Seattle is pretty nice and probably the hardest time to get a good deal. I'd still kick her off around $70-$75 and work up in $5 incs until around $85. Are you willing to pay $100 + fees, or just $100 without fees?

Another hint would be to take a night stay at the SEATAC airport which you can get a 3* hotel for $50, even during the Summer I believe. That shoots down your 4* idea though. Those are decent hotels too, except for the airplane noise. Then the next day you could bus into Seattle for $2.50/person or drive 30 minutes. Don't ever bid in the Kent/Renton zone (unless using it for a rebid zone)... those are generally poor hotels. Most of those hotels are on West Valley Highway which is one of the straightest roads in the State. This induces lots of street racing at night and makes it a somewhat unsafe area.

Hope this helped.