Priceline Hotel: 4* St Louis (Downtown) Marriott Union Station

[zynnhoj]

Hi, i'm looking for a place to stay downtown st. louis april 1/09. i'd like 4* because it appears you can secure 4* lodging fairly cheap.

I've never used priceline before. how low should i start bidding? it also appears to be a plethora of rebid zones to use since there are no other 4*? because of this, how large should each increment be?

when i do get a room, will there be extra charges for parking, or resort charges, or anything that i should be aware of?

also, i'm curious what order i should go in - if it matters at all? it gives me 9 choices of zones, with #1 being downtown.

so, 1, 1-2, 1-3, 1-4.. 1-9

then 1-2-3, 1-2-4.. 1-2-9

then 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-5.. 1-2-3-9 ?

any help will be appreciated. i've tried to read as many FAQs and help threads as i could, but i may have missed something - there is so much info!

[zynnhoj]

so i came accross RE-Bidding.com and notice there is over 250 combinations to rebid at for a 4* downtown st.louis hotel. if i had the time i'm sure i could start at $1 and keep rebidding, incrementing $0.25 each time to find the lowest price for the day.. heh.

has PRICELINE ever accepted a bid when it first tells you its impossible to get such a low bid accepted?

does the strategy change at all if you are looking for 2 rooms?

[travelma]

Well, I think you have to be reasonable. The hotels pretty much have a fixed bottom line price as far as I understand...so starting a bid at a $1.00 would be a pretty useless effort. You can generally get a 4* downtown for $45...but that's as low as I've ever seen. The 3.5* properties are nice and comparable to the 4*'s...but don't go any lower, there are some real stinkers at 3*. Parking is always a fee...usually anywhere from $10 - $14.

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

If you let us know your maximum bid we will suggest a strategy for you to follow.

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

[zynnhoj]

$60

does strategy change if bidding for > 1 room?

[thereuare]

At the 4* level you have EIGHT 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.

Select 4* Downtown...

Bid $40, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $45, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $48, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $50, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $52, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $54, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $56, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $58, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $60

Any 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.

[zynnhoj]

first of all, thank you for all your help thereuare.

I used the PRICELINE link at the end of your message.

i secured St. Louis Union Station Marriott (4* downtown st louis) for a bid of $52 ($67.51 after taxes and fees)

i bid $40, $45, $48, $50, all were rejected before the $52 bid was accepted.

2009/04/01 - 2009/04/02

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

Glad to see you're happy with the results and got a great deal on this property.

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

Enjoy your stay.