Priceline Hotel: Where is a good initial bid for London?

[gcap05]

Hi,

I am thinking about visiting London either in December 2004 or January 2005. I'd like to stay at a 5* hotel located in Mayfair / SOHO area as provided by Priceline.com. What could be a good initial bid for such a hotel?

I specified $75 and priceline said I had almost no chance of getting a room "based on recent records".

I specified $100 and priceline said I had less chance of getting it.

I then specified $120 and there was no "warning" light from priceline.

Does it mean that I have a good chance of getting a room at a 5* hotel in Mayfair/SOHO for $120???

And also, does anyone know the hotels that fall into the 5* category in that area that priceline talks to?

Thanks!!

gcap05

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

The 5* hotels that have been reported in this zone would be found in our PRICELINE HOTEL LIST.

Bidding strategies are very date specific (just as rates will be different for different dates within the same month, so it is with Priceline as well), so there's no suggested bidding amount that can be suggested for a given month. Once you select your dates we can research it and suggest a strategy for those specific dates.

Generally speaking you should ignore the warning messages that 'your bid is too low' as they're meanngless.

[gcap05]

Thanks for the quick response!

My stay could be one of the following:

1. 12/9th, 4 nights [or]

2. 01/6th, 4 nights

Any good strategies around these dates??

And also...

If my bid is rejected, can I immediately rebid with a lower star rating or will I need to hold for 72 hours before trying with the new criterion?

Generally speaking, will there be a fee for every bid? I read elsewhere in this board that there are more opportunities to rebid "for free" if it's a 5* hotel. Not sure what this means, and if it's applicable to the 4* category.

Thanks!

[gcap05]

Got one more question: Does it help to bid closer to my arrival date or as early as possible?

The reason why I think bidding closer to or on the arrival date could be advantageous is because the hotel may simply accept a bid in order to fill up vacant rooms.

Thanks!

[thereuare]

SHOULD I BID EARLY or CLOSE TO ARRIVAL DATE

[WillTravel]

No matter what or when, I don't think a $75 bid for a 5* hotel in Mayfair/Soho is possible. I wouldn't pay attention to the warning messages, but based on many posts I have read I think that $120 is probably not going to be enough.

With a 5* hotel bid, you have more opportunities to rebid, because there are so many zones that do not offer 5* hotels.

With a 4* hotel bid, you have only one opportunity to rebid, because there is only one zone that does not offer 4* hotels.

You can try a 5* hotel bid first, and then switch to 4* hotel bids if you like.

[gcap05]

Thanks for all the advice!