Priceline Hotel: Help with Bidding Strategy 4* Boston 4/29 - 5/2

[voyager]

Hi all - newbie here....

I am looking for a great deal at the Westin. I have stayed at the Copley Place Westin in the past and loved it.

My #1 choice is Westin at Copley Place, however, on the BB Priceline hotels list it looks like there are quite a few options for 4* hotels in that area. Is there a particular price point that I am most likely to win the Westin and not the others?

It also appears on the BB Priceline hotels list that the Westin is the only 4* hotel in the Waterfront area. Is this still the case?

Many thanks,

v

[AaronJB]

Welcome to the site. :)

One of the most frequent questions on the site is, "How do I get Hotel ________ ?"

Unfortunately, there is no way to get a specific hotel via PRICELINE. If you attempted to bid more to try to get a certain hotel, you will more than likely end up overbidding for a hotel that you could have paid less for.

PRICELINE is about getting *a* hotel cheap, and you have to be willing to accept what you get - you could very well wind up at any of the other properties besides the Westin.

The Westin Waterfront is the only *reported* 4* in that area; there could possibly be others.

It is somewhat easier on HOTWIRE to try to pinpoint a particular property, but that is also not 100% guaranteed.

I'm not seeing availability at the Westin Copley for these dates; while that doesn't guarantee that there isn't PRICELINE availability, it makes it unlikely.

Prices also seem quite high on these dates - something may be going on in the city (convention?)

[voyager]

Hello - New to this forum and I would like assistance in finding a great deal on a 4* hotel in Boston.

Prefer Back Bay/Copley Square or Financial District.

Right now prices on Hotwire are outrageous. The best deal is a 4.5* in Financial District for $239/nt. With pool and spa amenities it leads me to believe it may be the Intercontinental (which I would love) or the Langham (also good).

Please assist with bidding strategy - either for this hotel or any 4* in my desired areas. Ideally I'd like to stay in the low $100 range but as prices have gone up quite a bit in just the past few days, I fear I may be too late for a good deal.

Many thanks!

v

[AaronJB]

Merged your two threads, since they're regarding the same stay.

Given HOTWIRE prices of $239+, getting a PRICELINE rate of in the neighborhood of $100 is extremely unlikely.

The best deal that I can find outside of HOTWIRE is the 5* Liberty Hotel on Orbitz.com, which is $335 for the first two nights, 3rd night free = $223.33 per night. Use coupon code FABSAVE10 and you get an additional 10% off each night = $201.

Based upon the rates I'm seeing for these dates, I would recommend a starting bid for a 4* of $125 and if not accepted, moving up by $5's. You may have to head up to $150, given the rates on these dates.

Please use the site's PRICELINE, HOTWIRE or Orbitz.com links.

[voyager]

Thanks so much - I'll give it a try. Mid $100's would be okay too if I can get it.

As for the strategy - I am still fuzzy on it. I select my top choice area and if that bid is not accpeted then I add my second choice area as well while increasing price $5?

And thanks for the Liberty Hotel tip! I will definitely try that one if I cannot get a better deal through bidding - I will be sure to use your links and report back either way.

[AaronJB]

In this case, you're looking for two main areas; I'd bid $125 for both areas. If that's not accepted, $130 24 hours later, etc.

However, if you want to use a "re-bidding" strategy (using other zones that do not have 4*'s to get extra bidding chances on 4*'s), that is explained best in this thread: Priceline Re-Bidding Explained

[thereuare]

If you post your maximum bid at the 4* level we'll detail a bidding strategy for you to follow, one which starts low and gradually increases in the same bidding cycle, making sure you don't overbid.

Thanks for using our PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links to begin your travel purchases.

[voyager]

No luck today -

Bid $125 for 4*+ in Financial District - rejected

Bid $150 for 4*+ in Financial District + Waterfront - rejected

Bid $155 for 4*+ in Financial District + Waterfront + Copley Square/Theatre District - rejected

I would say my maximum price would be $180-$190. If it goes over that I would consider using the coupon for the Liberty Hotel, since it's a really nice hotel, and I would be paying an average of $223/night even with the savings.

[AaronJB]

The Liberty deal on Orbitz.com would appear to be refundable (aside from the $25 cancel fee). Additionally, the FABSAVE10 coupon code would bring the price down 10% to about $201. You could definitely bid up to $180-190, but if the Liberty is refundable and works out to about $201 with the FABSAVE10 coupon, you could take that and that would allow you the flexibility to cancel if a better deal came along closer to your dates (which seems a bit unlikely, given current rates, but you never know) - if nothing better came along, at least you'd be booked in a very nice hotel.

links: Orbitz.com, PRICELINE, HOTWIRE

[voyager]

That's true - I LOVE the look and feel of that hotel, and I only have until the 9th until that deal expires. Great idea - I didn't realize I could cancel through Orbitz. That makes all the difference. I am going to go ahead and book that. The rates keep getting higher and availability keeps getting tighter.

[AaronJB]

Glad you could take advantage of the deal - thank you for using the site's Orbitz.com link and be sure to use the FABSAVE10 coupon code to get 10% off.

[thereuare]

If you still want to bid on PRICELINE you do have re-bid zones available... is there a reason you're not using them? If you were willing to go up to $180-$190 at this point in time, using re-bid zones, and the three zones you're willing to accept, you could reach your maximum bid all one one bidding cycle... or did you only want to bid up to $155 at this point in time?

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

[voyager]

I would really like to try to get a deal of around $150 - $170. I am going to keep re-bidding because I can always cancel the current reservation I have if necessary.