Hotwire Hotel: 2.5* London (Kensington-Chelsea-Knightsbridge) Express Holiday Inn EC

[lakrv]

Hello, I am new to this forum and this is my first post. First of all, I have been browsing this forum for sometime and am grateful for all the valuable information available here. Thank you!

I am thinking about travelling to London in May; I have been looking for hotel deals for a 9 night stay, 5/22-5/31. Based on prior posts on this forum and reviews on tripadvisor, I was looking at the following in hotwire:

2.5* London (Kensington-Chelsea-Knightsbridge) which I believe is "express by Holiday Inn - Earl's court". The best rate I have found for these dates so far is $ 59 ($46 if my dates changed to 5/25-5/30), which I am kicking myself for not taking. The hotwire rate has been creeping up slowly the past couple of days and is around $65 now.

Alternatively, I have also been looking at vacation packages (air+hotel) for the airline + hotel of my choice (NWA+Holiday Inn Exp - Earl's ct). The package price is comparable to what I would pay if I bought the airline ticket separately and booked my hotel via hotwire. I thought this was a better option as there was no guesswork as to the hotel I would be awarded. Again, with my waiting, the price has gone up since yesterday.

Question: Does the price on hotwire only move in one direction (up) or does it ever drop? I prefer to say at this hotel because of its relative price advantage and reviews. I am wondering if I would ever see the $59 per night price again.

thanks

[yellowdog]

Welcome to BetterBidding :)

I took a look for your dates. And I agree with you. This is a match for Holiday Inn Express Earls Court.

Question: Does the price on hotwire only move in one direction (up) or does it ever drop? I prefer to say at this hotel because of its relative price advantage and reviews. I am wondering if I would ever see the $59 per night price again.

There is no easy or general answer to that question. But please read this link:Should i Bid Early or Close to Arrival Date But i have to say that this looks like a good price and the TA rating is great. And the $5 up/down depending on when you search is normal for HOTWIRE. Do a seach with a diffrent browser and see if you get a diffrent price again.

Just post if you have further questions.

Please use the site's HOTWIRE link to start your purchase, and let us know how it goes.

Yellowdog.

[Romelle]

If you split your dates and look at two separate bookings via Hotwire, does at least part of the dates show up at the original better rate? Or work them down one by one and see if there is a single day that is spiking on you?

I agree with yellowdog's suggestion on trying a different browser too. There is some evidence that Hotwire is able to target price like that.

And I add my welcome to yellowdog's. I'm sure you will continue to find this board of great use in your travels.

Romelle

[lakrv]

I tried splitting my dates a few days ago and the rates seem to spike around certain dates (May 22nd), but was lower between 5/25-5/30. The average was still lower around $59.

Hotwire rates today when dates are split:

5/22-5/25 = $136

5/25-5/30 drops to $49

5/30-5/31 = $126

Rate for 5/22 -5/31 without date split

$65

The rates seem to change slightly each time I check, so I will decide soon.

Thanks again!

[lakrv]

For some reason, each time I posted my response, I got an error message. I tried to post my reply three times thinking it didn't post...sorry, I see my response posted multiple times. Still new and learning! My apologies.

[yellowdog]

No problem, I have edit your thread. Just post if you need any further help.

The rates seem to change slightly each time I check, so I will decide soon.

The $5 up/down depending on when you search is normal for HOTWIRE. Do a seach with a diffrent browser and see if you get a diffrent price again.

Yellowdog.

[blindman]

There's a Gig on at Earls court from 21-23 May inc which may affect the rate.

Also May 25th is a Bank holiday here so rates may be lower.

The next gig is on the 27th.

Good advice about splitting the dates and also about changing browsers\computers

[lakrv]

I just made my hotel reservation using the site's HOTWIRE link:

As expected (thanks to this site), I was awarded the following hotel:

Express By Holiday Inn London - Earl's Court

5/24/09 - 5/30/09

Hotel rate per night - Hotwire Rate per night:$49.00

Nights:6

SubTotal: $294.00

Tax recovery charges and fees:$56.89

Total price: $350.89

1 room, 2 adults

I will be travelling alone, but I left it as '2 adults" as the rate was the same; hope there will be no extra charge.

Amenities: Complimentary Breakfast, High-speed Internet Access

I decided to alter my schedule a bit to get this low rate. The rates are higher after the 30th and before the 24th.

The priceline air+hotel vacation package was slightly cheaper (just about $15) but I decided to book my ticket directly through the airline to get the miles.

Thanks again to this website and everyone who responded to my post!

[blindman]

Congratulations on your success. Excellent price! The web-site rate is $110 per night

Thank you for using the HOTWIRE link.

Have a look at the Wikki if you've not been here before to get some (hopefully) useful tips

[Romelle]

Nicely done! I didn't think one could do that well in London. And the Holiday Inn Express is a safe bet. I haven't stayed with them in London but have elsewhere, and I think you've be happy with the whole deal. The rooms are basic, but have everything one needs for a comfortable stay.

Regarding an extra charge because you are traveling alone but booked for '2 adults' - I've done that before and it has never been an issue. All I do when registering is NOT volunteer anything. If (and only if) I'm asked for the other name, I just say it is just me. The conversation has never gone beyond that.

Actually, you are saving them a breakfast, so if you even get into any discussion, ask for a reduction for the saved meal! You won't get it, but it will give them something else to discuss and that will indeed be the end of the conversation.

Romelle

[lakrv]

Thanks Romelle, for the additional information. I am really happy with the price. However, you will find on this forum that the lowest price for these dates were around $46, which I missed by procrastinating a bit. The hotel had good reviews on TripAdvisor, so I am glad I finally went ahead. This is my first trip to London, so I am a bit anxious, but I hope to make the most of it.

[Romelle]

London is wonderful, amazing, and I'm sure you will have a great time. For getting your body moved around, the Underground or "Tube" is can't be beat. Check into the offerings for "all you can ride". It's been a while since I've been there, so don't have current details, but some people swear by an "Oyster Card". The beauty of any of the "all you can ride" deals is you don't have to fumble with unfamiliar change and queue up to buy tickets all the time. And when you inevitably take some train in the wrong direction, you just step off and get on the right one without buying yet another ticket.

"Pub grub" is fun and good, people tend to walk on the sidewalks as they drive (the opposite side from the US), the British Museum is FREE!, bus tours on those double deckers are an effective/inexpensive way to cover a lot of ground, I highly recommend an armload of guide books from your local library, and I really highly recommend the Lonely Planet London guide book for taking with you (great maps and directions and details).

Oh yes, pick your lunch places by choosing the ones with the longest line.

Romelle

[thereuare]

bus tours on those double deckers are an effective/inexpensive way to cover a lot of ground

For anyone who enjoys these tours, in any city, check out Hop On Hop Off Loop Bus Tours

Oh yes, pick your lunch places by choosing the ones with the longest line.

Coming from the US, expect the price tag of most things to have the same numbers as things here in the States... but unfortunately the numbers there are in GBP and not US dollars, meaning everything will cost you about 50% more than you're acustomed to, including meals :)

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

[lakrv]

Once again, thanks for all the tips. Currently, I am battling with the decision of getting an oyster pass pay as you go or a London pass with travel card for the week I am there. I wonder if there is too much analysis over which one is better and if I should just get the London Pass, as it covers both travel as well as entry to major attractions. If anyone here has some insight, I would greatly appreciate suggestions.

[WillTravel]

Many major attractions in London are free. There are few offerings that the London Pass has that you would probably want to visit, so I doubt it is worthwhile.

I would just get a 7-day paper TravelCard if there for a week.

[thereuare]

You need to determine (generally) which attractions you think you'll be attending and weight the costs of the 'package' vs. 'pay as you go'.

One other thing to keep in mind which is a factor is that some tours allow those with packages or pre-purchased tickets to skip the line queue (i remeber this specifically at a castle new London Bridge... not sure if same policy is currently in effect or not but was a few years back when we visited)

You can research prices for many attractions HERE.

[Woofer]

The consensus on Tripadvisor's London forum is that the London Pass is not worth the money. I suggest you search on that forum for that phrase to see what people say (someone has done a breakdown of what everything costs, and what is free, etc.). I have gone over to the Oyster Card because it is less fussy than a papercard. I find that some days I just don't ride the tube/bus enough to hit the daily limit price, and other I get more than my money's worth out of it, so Oyster ends up being cheaper than a paper travelcard most of the time for me.

I almost pulled the trigger on what is likely that HIExpress for our May trip, but opted instead to use Marriott points. I will see if any deals are available there when we are back in July. You did well to get it for the price you got. London hotels can be pricey (I recently paid $175 for a fairly low level hotel--on business, so no Hotwire needed, and that was advertised as a bargain).

[lakrv]

After much googling and researching, I did end up buying the 6+1 day Londonpass (without travel). Most people advised against it, but as a first time visitor, I decided not to worry about losing some of the dollars and go ahead anyway. I am interested in getting into some of the attractions listed anyway and I didn't want to wait in line. Plus, the entry fees seemed to add up to more than what they were charging for the pass. Whether or not I get to go to all of those places remains to be seen. "London walks" seems to have good reviews, so I may do one or more of their tours (I am thinking of taking the one to Oxford). May be I am being overambitious, but that is the plan for now. Hopefully, I will catch a couple of theatre shows as well while I am there.

I am planning to buy an oyster pass upon arrival - from what I have understood so far, I can get 7 day unlimited travel loaded on to it.