Priceline Hotel: 4* Newark (Jersey City) Westin

[grego]

Since this site is new to me and so is the planned trip into NY before we board the ship in Red Hook this October. Anyway, thanks for all the information on this hotel. We have a reservation at the Candlewood Suites for about 150 a night and were told by others on the Cruise Critic site that we should now try Priceline and bid on a 4* at a lower price and we might end up at the Hyatt. So, I guess we'll try that using whatever suggestions for bidding I can get from this site.

I might add that the reason we are looking in Jersey City for a hotel is that we are driving in from MI and we don't want the bother of trying to park on the island or even driving there, otherwise we would be searching for hotels there.

Anyway, thanks for the informative reviews.

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

What are the actual nite(s) of your stay? How high are you willing to bid for a 4* hotel?

Note that there is a new Westin in this zone as well, would this also be an acceptable outcome?

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

Let us know the above and we'll advise accordingly.

[grego]

We need help in getting us on the right strategy for our upcoming trip in October. Our plan is to drive to NJ and stay in the Jersey City area for two nights before driving over to Red Hook to board the cruise ship.

Currently we have made reservations at the Candlewood Suites in Jersey City for about $139 per night and were told on the Cruise Critic web site that now we should use Priceline to capture a 4* hotel. We really like the Hyatt hotel there because of it's proximity to PATH and it would appear that it's the only 4* hotel in that area with Priceline.

Would we be certain that if we put in a bid for a 4* in Jersey City and have it accepted, that it would definately be the Hyatt? If so, what would be the bidding strategy for this hotel? I've seen some very low prices on this site at different times of the year so should I start at that level and keep rebidding?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Greg

[thereuare]

Please keep all posts for the same stay in the same thread.

We really like the Hyatt hotel there because of it's proximity to PATH and it would appear that it's the only 4* hotel in that area with Priceline.

Would we be certain that if we put in a bid for a 4* in Jersey City and have it accepted, that it would definately be the Hyatt?

No, you're not guaranteed the Hyatt, and as per the Priceline Hotel List that is no longer the only 4* hotel in this zone (the new Westin property has opened about 3 months ago). As well, the W in Hoboken is now a possibility at the 4* level in this zone, but has not yet been reported to the board (so unknown if they're participating at this point or if they will in the future). Forunately all three of these properties offer excellent access to the PATH station (although each is closest to a different station) and easy access to Manhattan. I know this area very well and these are the only 4* hotels i know of as possiblities, but there could always be others so you're never guarnateed a specific property.

To move forward you'll need to let us know the info requested above:

What are the actual nite(s) of your stay? How high are you willing to bid for a 4* hotel?

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

[grego]

We are driving to New York (Brooklyn) from Detroit to catch a Princess - New England/Canada cruise which leaves on the 17th of October. Our plan is to arrive a couple of days early on the 15th and stay in a hotel for two nights before driving over to Red Hook with the day before left to tour New York City.

Advice given to us is to stay in New Jersey since we are driving and leave the car there and use public transportation to see the city. As a back-up, I have a cancellable reservation at the Candlewood in Jersey City for $139/nt and was also told to now go on priceline and bid on a 4* hotel for the same amount.

I have seen lower prices for both of the 4* hotels in Jersey City and would think that I should start a lot lower than $139. We originally looked at the Hyatt and liked that because it was next door to PATH and had great views of NY. Now I see that Westin is also listed as a 4* with Priceline and appears to have close access to another PATH station and good views as well. I guess it would be nice to know if when we bid on Priceline and got a hotel that we wouldn't be disappointed with either one - any comments on that?

Secondly, what would be your suggestions for the bidding process? We want the Jersey City location, so that part is easy, but what price should we start at? Is it reasonable to start around $70 since we have time before we leave, or what would you recommend?

Thirdly, after we get this room are there any suggestions on how to approach seeing NY in one day given that we might want to end up some near MT for dinner that evening (Friday)?

Thanks in advance,

Greg

[grego]

Thanks for combining the two treads. I thought the first one was never really entered so I had started another topic.

The nights of stay are October 15 and October 16 checking out the 17th. Do you have a suggestion as to where to start the bid for these 4*?

[grego]

Initial bid on Priceline for a 4* for those dates at $70 was not accepted. (Yes, I used the link on this site for PRICELINE)

I guess I have to wait 24hrs unless I change an option, which isn't an option, or try HOTWIRE. Any other suggestions besides raising the price and then to what?

[thereuare]

Most of the rooms at the Westin will not have city views, but both it and the Hyatt should be fine for your needs... both are very nice hotels, with the Westin being only ~3 months old.

Not sure how high you're willing to bid but i suspect you'll be successful between $85-$95/nite, if you're willing to bid this high (or up to $100) you do have re-bid zones available (Priceline Re-Bidding Explained)... if you're new to re-bidding please read the following link ask questions and/or confirm your re-bid zones with the board before bidding.

When bidding 4* in Jersey City you have SIX re-bid zones avaialble. 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* Jersey City...

Bid $75, if rjeected add re-bid zone...

Bid $80, if rjeected add re-bid zone...

Bid $85, if rjeected add re-bid zone...

Bid $90, if rjeected add re-bid zone...

Bid $93, if rjeected add re-bid zone...

Bid $95, if rjeected add re-bid zone...

Bid $98.

Any questionls 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.

[grego]

Success!!

Went back to PRICELINE using the link on this site and quoted Jersey City only, 4* hotel, at a price of $85.00 and got it. It ended up being the Westin on Washington Blvd. Again this was for October 15 and 16 of 2009.

The strange thing is that I did this within hours of the first negotiation and the only thing I changed was the bid price by $10. I was thinking that this would be rejected and I would go back and add West Orange which doesn't have 4*, but I didn't have to change the zone to re-bid. I thought that odd.

Thanks to your advice and support.

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

The fact that you were able to bid again without changning anything was a fluke, and it does happen occaisionally, but probably less than 2% of the time, ususally you will receive a message indicating that it's a "duplicate bid".

I think you did quite well for this area and time of year, and it should work out quite well for your needs.

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

Enjoy your stay.

[grego]

Thanks again for your help. It was fun.

If you could provide a couple of suggestions as to how to "attack" our one day opportunity to see NY we would appreciate it. We know we should take PATH to the city, but is it better to belly up to one of the HOHO tours or pick out a few areas and use the public transportation. My guess is that all those living in or near the NY area have opportunites from time to time to entertain family or guests and have to do a one-day crash tour and we are wondering how you might do that.

[thereuare]

You can do a Hop On Hop Off Bus but in cities with good mass transit (such as NYC) and unlimited day passes available, i prefer to do a little research first and put together my own tour of the city... in NYC you'll travel underground which is much faster than above ground, and it gets you elbow-to-elbow with the locals, as opposed to being on a bus with a bunch of other tourists.

Do you know what type of things you want to do? It may be cold/windy, but i would recommend going to The Top of the Rock or the top of the Empire State Building for a birdseye view of the city.

If the weather is nice you can also walk the Brooklyn Bridge (take subway to Brooklyn and walk back to Manhattan taking in the skyline as you go), Chinatown, Little Italy, ferry to Staten Island and back (passes by the Statue of Liberty and nice skyline view on the way back), eat pizza, etc. etc.

[grego]

You can do a Hop On Hop Off Bus but in cities with good mass transit (such as NYC) and unlimited day passes available, i prefer to do a little research first and put together my own tour of the city... in NYC you'll travel underground which is much faster than above ground, and it gets you elbow-to-elbow with the locals, as opposed to being on a bus with a bunch of other tourists.

Do you know what type of things you want to do? It may be cold/windy, but i would recommend going to The Top of the Rock or the top of the Empire State Building for a birdseye view of the city.

If the weather is nice you can also walk the Brooklyn Bridge (take subway to Brooklyn and walk back to Manhattan taking in the skyline as you go), Chinatown, Little Italy, ferry to Staten Island and back (passes by the Statue of Liberty and nice skyline view on the way back), eat pizza, etc. etc.

Thanks. That's what I thought. Study, pick and choose and plan our own tour.