Priceline Hotel: 3.5* San Francisco (Fishermans Wharf) Marriott Fishermans Wharf

[Atko]

3* Fisherman's Wharf

5/18-5/21 (3 nights) $82

Fitness

Pool

Restaurant

Business Center

High-speed Internet

Laundry

With as much certainty as you can, do you agree this is Holiday Inn? (I see that whilst nightly rates for other hotels in this area appear to decrease closer to the dates, this one offers the $82 rate well in advance.) I will be booking two rooms (one for me, one for my parents). I was then going to try for inter-connecting rooms if it is. We want to stay somewhere close to everything and in nice surrounds and in a nice hotel . What is your valued opinion on this hotel? I am considering Holiday Inn Express as well (for the free breakfast) - how does the Holiday Inn compare with Holiday Inn Express at Fisherman's Wharf? Sorry if it's not exactly on the same thread, but I was also considering holding out for the Hilton - would you recommend it over Holiday Inn or would I be happy with the standard of the Holiday Inn (I do ike the fact there is a Denny's attached to the Holiday Inn as it is more the budget level of dining for my parents and I.) Thanks from down-under!

[Atko]

Apologies. I'm still new. I just saw a previous topic asking about almost the same dates - and it was Holiday Inn. Does this almost guarantee it would be Holiday Inn for my dates as well? I would still value your opinion thereuare as to whether I should wait for Hilton, and as to how Holiday Inn compares with Holiday Inn Express. Want to make sure our holiday in the States is perfect.

[thereuare]

The amenities above match thos of the Holiday Inn so that that would be our best guess, but there are never any guarantees... all you can do is put together all the pieces of the puzzle and try to determine the picture that is being formed.

I don't have firsthand experience with either of these properties, but you can read the reviews of each HERE and HERE, both of which are generally good.

HOTWIRE will only show one hotel at each star leve in each zone (the least expensive) so while the Hilton may appear down the road at some point, i'm not an advocate of waiting for a specific hotel if you're happy with the current offerings and they're a good deal. The Hilton may never appear, and while you're waiting, these other offers could disappear and leave you with others hotels that you may not be as happy with (or more expensive).

Also, this is a touristy area, which is fine if you're looking to be a tourist and and do touristy things, but generally my personal preference is to stay more in the city as i'm not such a fan of touristy things (although i did love hearing the seals 'sing' at nite at the Fishermans Wharf :) )

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.

[Atko]

Thanks thereyouare. I reckon you're right and I take on board your advice about taking a deal when it's offered and possibly missing out if you wait. Our three week trip around the US in May is a once-in-lifetime holiday for my parents so I want to make every hotel we stay in a really special experience. After now carefully reading the T/A reviews for Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express, I have decided however that I'm going to hold out for a 3.5* property. I'm going to take the gamble and try for that little bit of extra luxury. I appreciate your invaluable web site and will make my bookings through your link. Thanks for your help again.

[Gallus50]

Atko - Sounds like you're making a good choice. You may want to start trying to bid on PRICELINE - for rates like those, you may just hit something at 4* or 3.5*, even though it's early yet. My buddy Colfax tells me that occupancy is down in San Francisco, so there are deals to be had. If you do bid, please read the PRICELINE FAQ on this board, and take advantage of all your free rebid opportunities. Fisherman's Wharf definitely is getting some good rates, but you might want to consider USE, USW and Embarcadero zones as well. You have oodles of rebid opportunities, so take your time and bid wisely. I think you can do well. Also ask for further advice if you need it - thereuare is a whiz with bidding strategies.

[Atko]

Thanks GALLUS50. I've just finally worked out HOTWIRE and how to pretty well confidently identify the hotels (We don't have HOTWIRE or PRICELINE in Australia). I like the fact I can predict which hotel it is before committing. PRICELINE frightens me a bit though because am I right in thinking there's no way to acurately predict which hotel you're going to get -just a star rating. If that's the case, I'd rather pay a bit more on HOTWIRE and know with a fair degree of certainty which hotel it is. I'll take your advice about the other zones. Thanks for helping!!!

[Gallus50]

You are absolutely right about the predictability factor. With the hotel list on the board and the ability to search vacation packages with matching amenities, HOTWIRE is much more predictable. I wish I had seen this board before the first two times I used Hotwire!

It's nice to find someone so clear on their needs and wants. Be patient and keep your eyes open for specials that could help you book a cancelable backup. Kimpton and Joie de Vivre are really nice chains that have hotels with character. Check out the Kimpton website. They have a promotions section and they may be running a special with buy 2 get 1 night free. With that, the cost should be good and you can totally pick the perfect hotel for you. Otherwise, keep your eyes on HOTWIRE because if can change anytime. Sometimes something good comes up just a week or two before you need it.

Whatever you do, please keep the board posted and use the HOTWIRE link. Good luck.

BTW - I just got back from Oz two weeks ago - visiting transplanted relatives in Queensland. It was hot!

[Atko]

Thanks again Gallus50 for taking the time to help. What a great board this is!

[Atko]

Looking for a 3.5* hotel in Fisherman's Wharf, 5/18 - 5/21 (2 rooms/3 adults total)

I haven't seen any of the three 3.5* Fisherman's Wharf hotels (Hilton, Hyatt, or Sheraton) come up lately in HOTWIRE for my fixed dates which are 5/18 - 5/21 (3 nights). I'm requiring 2 rooms for 3 adults in total. We leave Oz for the US in two weeks time and I'm trying to get our hotels booked before then.

I see the 3* Holiday Inn all the time for around $86, but not the 3.5* hotels - any of which I think I'd be more than happy with.

I check constantly throughout the day, and with all sorts of combinations of occupants, but with no luck. Can the gurus be of any help at all? I really only want to stay in the Fisherman's Wharf area.

I've got the hang of HOTWIRE - but I have never tried PRICELINE and am completely unfamiliar with it. I see your advice to the last poster which is on a similar subject. Do I need to venture into PRICELINE to get a 3.5*? If so, would I still be likely to get Hilton, Hyatt or Sheraton on PRICELINE - and can you suggest a stratedy. I'd only venture into the unknown of PRICELINE if I was confident I was going to wind up with one of the these three, otherwise I may eventually take the 3* Holiday Inn so I at least know what I'm getting.

All help appreciated!

[Colfax]

I'd only venture into the unknown of PRICELINE if I was confident I was going to wind up with one of the these three, otherwise I may eventually take the 3* Holiday Inn so I at least know what I'm getting.

Actually there are four reported 3.5* in FW. You can be "fairly" confident that you'd win one of those four, if anything; but nothing is guaranteed 100%. Ratings can change any time and you might be the first to report some new 3.5* hotel or a 3* that's been upgraded to 3.5*.

The Holiday Inn Fisherman's Wharf gets pretty decent reviews. It's not a bad choice. But if you could win a 3.5* on Priceline for $60's or $70's would you still prefer the Holiday Inn at $86?

I don't know why none of the 3.5* are showing on Hotwire now. They're all available.

If you decide to try PRICELINE you have three free rebids for 3.5*. Ask if you don't understand free rebidding and someone will link you to another thread.

I'll suggest $55 for a 3.5* in FW; add $5 per free rebid up to $70.

Please use the board's links when you purchase.

[Atko]

Colfax,

Sorry if my question is stupid - just when I'd got the hang of HOTWIRE, now I'm a damn newb to PRICELINE.

I bid like you suggested for a 3.5* Fisherman's Wharf hotel.

First bid $55 - rejected. I then added a zone where there were no 3.5* hotels and increased the bid to $60 - rejected. I then added another zone where there were again no 3.5* hotels and increased the bid to $65 - rejected. I then added another zone where yet again there were no 3.5* hotels and increased the bid to $70 - rejected.

Now what do I do as obviously it locks me out? Do I wait 72 hours and get another chance? If so what can I enter then seeing as I've run out of things to change?

[Atko]

Sorry I said 72 hours, I meant 24 hours.

[Gallus50]

Yes, you wait 24 hours and then you bid again. (Priceline probably sent you an email as to exactly when and what you bid. That's helpful to know when to bid again.) To help your cause, you might want to bid a tiny bit higher - say $5 more at each stage. So many 4* hotels are hitting at about $70 that I'd be surprised if you have to go higher than $75 or $80.

Priceline is a game of patience and tenacity, but the rewards can be well worth it. Just be sure to be patient and careful when you bid that you're choosing the right zones and not overbidding. Since you really only want Fisherman's Wharf, you aren't likely to make a mistake if you're careful with your rebid zones.

Don't despair if you don't hit it on Sat or Sun. I've heard managers often load their inventory into Priceline on Mondays or Tuesdays. In other words, there may be a fresh batch then.

Hang in there ....

[Colfax]

I agree with Gallus50 that you may be close to a win at $70. I suggested some lowball bids at first since you've got a month before your trip.

When your 24 hour lockout is over (that's 24 hours from your last rejected bid) I suggest repeating yesterday's strategy but bump everything $10 higher. That is start at $65 for 3.5* and go up $5 per rebid to $80.

Good luck!

[Atko]

Thanks Colfax and Galus50 for all your help again! Got the 3.5* Marriott Fishermans Wharf (2 rooms) for $85 on PRICELINE using your link, and my parents and I are thrilled. What a huge saving off the regular room rates!!

1st bid $65 for 3.5* Fishermans Wharf - rejected (Staring bid upped $10 from yesterday's attempt)

2nd bid $70 for 3.5* Fishermans Wharf and Civic Centre - rejected.

3rd bid $75 for 3.5* Fishermans Wharf and Civic Centre and Marina-Lombard Street - rejected.

Instead of getting instant responses, I started to get messages saying it was still being processed and to click the button below for the status of my request. Got just a little bit lost here because I seemed to be waiting a lot and couldn't work out whether I should try again (because it told me not to) or continue waiting, and then I had trouble checking the status (translated - I didn't know what I was bloody doing!), so I finally threw in a bid at $85, adding South San Francisco, and immediately got a result that my offer was accepted for the Marriott!

Out of interest I may well have got it for the $80 which is precisely what you suggested, but I don't mind at all - what's $5 with those sort of savings? I'm thrilled because like I said I haven't seen ANY 3.5* Fishermans Wharf hotels on HOTWIRE for a quite a while, the last being the HYATT way back on about March 27 for $125 p/n I believe from memory. As you said as well, I also ultimately got a 3.5* hotel for less than the 3* Holiday Inn on HOTWIRE.

(Just Washington DC and Las Vegas to go now.)

PS Thereuare - I'll be listening out for those 'singing' seals.

[Gallus50]

Congratulations. So nice to hear a success story, especially when we helped! SF is great. Have a lovely time.

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success... glad to see you're happy with the results and received some very nice savings!

If you ever have trouble seeing the status of your request, you can go to PRICELINE and clicking the MY PROFILE link on the top right of their home page where there will be a MY TRIPS link to view your accepted and failed bids.

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

Enjoy this leg of your stay.

[Colfax]

Congratulations on your win, Atko.

(note to mods: Atko says she won the 3.5* Marriott but subject line says 3* Holiday Inn.)

[thereuare]

(note to mods: Atko says she won the 3.5* Marriott but subject line says 3* Holiday Inn.)

FIXED... thanks!