Priceline Hotel: 3* San Diego (Rancho Bernardo) Holiday Inn

[DaLuc]

Hi,

I am trying to find an inexpensive place to stay for two people on 9/4-9/10 in or near Del Mar race track. I have family in Vista, friends in Mission Valley area of San Diego, and I'm currently working at Del Mar race track, so any place between Vista and San Diego is really ok.

PRICELINE -- Would I be able to get a 3 star room for $50 or less do you think?

HOTWIRE -- any idea on this hotel?

3-star hotel in Mira Mesa $54/night

Comp breakfast

Laundry

Business Center

Kitchenette

Fitness Center

Pool

Trip Advisor 4/5 w/40+ reviews

I thought it was Staybridge Suites Mira Mesa but that is Trip Advisor 4.5/5 w?54 reviews......

Also, I will have a car so really need to not pay for parking at a hotel!

Thanks for your help!!

[thereuare]

The Tripadvisor information given by HOTWIRE is not dynamically updated, it's possible that the above is the Staybridge Suites but the user review rating has increased from 4.5 to 4.0 since it was last updated by HOTWIRE.

To bid on PRICELINE, which zones, by PRICELINE name, are you willing to accept?

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

[DaLuc]

Hotwire -- Hmm, if that's Staybridge then that would be pretty cool. Seems like a decent rate for a place that gets such good reviews.

Priceline -- However, if I could get a room even cheaper I'd be thrilled.

Zones I would accept:

2. Del Mar

3. Downtown San Diego and Harbor Island

5. Escondido-Vista

8. Mission Valley

10. North County Coastal

11. Point Loma-Shelter Island-Old Town

12. Rancho Bernardo

13. San Diego Coastal

15. Sorrento Mesa

Do you think it's posible to get a hotel for under $50/night w/o any additional parking in these areas?

Thanks!

[thereuare]

Hotwire -- Hmm, if that's Staybridge then that would be pretty cool. Seems like a decent rate for a place that gets such good reviews.

You could see if this property appears for you the first (or last) nite of your stay and then again for the balance. If so, you could purchase the first (or last) nite to 'look behind the curtain' to learn the hotel name. If you're happy with the results go ahead and purchase the additional nites, if not, make alternate plans for the balance of your stay.

Do you think it's posible to get a hotel for under $50/night w/o any additional parking in these areas?

There is no way to bid on a hotel 'including parking' and i don't know the going parking rate for hotels in the zones above. If you're concerned about parking/total cost then it would be better to go with HOTWIRE where you can take an educated guess as to the hotel you may likely receive, resarch the parking charge there, and determine if the total cost is acceptable or not.

Let us know how you'd like to proceed and we'll advise accordingly.

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

[Colfax]

My suggestion is to bid on PRICELINE for a 3* in the Sorrento Mesa zone.

Sorrento Mesa is closer to Del Mar than several of the other zones you mentioned and all the Sorrento Mesa hotels have free parking, at last reports. Some have free breakfast as well.

Your six night stay might be an issue and ultimately you might have to break this into two pieces to get accepted.

As a starting point though I'd bid from $40 to $50 for a 3* in Sorrento Mesa, for all six nights. Someone can provide a more detailed bidding strategy if you want.

Please use this PRICELINE link when you bid.

[DaLuc]

Hi,

That's a great idea about the HOTWIRE test.... I will talk to my mom and see what she thinks.

I do think however that I might try for Priceline. I'm guessing with what my budget is that I won't be finding many hotels to accept it that would be in an area that charges parking (based on looking at recent wins courtesy of your maps section.)

How should I proceed to bid? I'd like at least a 3* (could possibly go to 2* if the price was low enough) and I don't want to spend more than $50/night.

Thanks!!!

[thereuare]

That's a maximum bid of $50 (not including parking, taxes, or fees)?? Did you want to check with your mom on the HOTWIRE offer first before bidding?

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

[DaLuc]

Colfax -- I'm thinking that my bid would most likely be accepted somewhere where they don't charge parking as well. I could just narrow my search down to those areas, couldn't I? I would guess parking is more of a "city" type charge, so I could avoid those areas.

Theauear --

Any bidding suggestions? Yes, I would like to keep the room rate per night (I ignore taxes, too hard for my not-math-oriented brain to calculate!) at $50 or below. I figure that I can get that hotwire room nearby for $54 if Priceline doesn't come up with anything for me at $50 or under.

You helped me with a Chicago room for a trip recently, and there I was concerned with location more than price. Here I'm trying to save some dough so a cheap room (but one that's still in a safe area and is clean!) is my main objective and driving to work is no issue.

The drive time isn't an issue for me to Del Mar, hence all my zones of acceptance, because I've been working at Del Mar for 5 weeks now and staying with friends in Mission Valley and Vista alternately. I just can't have my mother come stay with me at their house so I need to find her a place to sleep! :)

Thanks for the input!!

[thereuare]

At the 3* level you have THREE re-bid zones. 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.

There is no 3* bidding offered in Escondido so we won't include that in your bidding.

Select 3* Del Mar, Downtown, Mission Valley, North County Coastal...

Bid $30, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Point Loma, Rancho Bernardo, Coastal, Sorrento Mesa...

Bid $30, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Point Loma, Downtown, Mission Valley, North County Coastal...

Bid $32, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Del Mar, Rancho Bernardo, Coastal, Sorrento Mesa...

Bid $32, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Del Mar, Rancho Bernardo, Mission Valley, North County Coastal...

Bid $34, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Point Loma, Downtown, Coastal, Sorrento Mesa...

Bid $34, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Del Mar, Downtown, Coastal, North County Coastal...

Bid $36, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Point Loma, Rancho Bernardo, Mission Valley, Sorrento Mesa...

Bid $36, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Del Mar, Downtown, Mission Valley, Sorrento Mesa...

Bid $38, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Point Loma, Rancho Bernardo, Coastal, North County Coastal...

Bid $38, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Del Mar, Downtown, Mission Valley, North County Coastal, Point Loma...

Bid $40, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Del Mar, Downtown, Mission Valley, North County Coastal, Rancho Bernardo...

Bid $40, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Del Mar, Downtown, Mission Valley, North County Coastal, Sorrento Mesa...

Bid $40, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Point Loma, Rancho Bernardo, Sorrento Mesa, Del Mar, Downtown...

Bid $42, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Point Loma, Rancho Bernardo, Sorrento Mesa, Del Mar, Mission Valley...

Bid $42, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Point Loma, Rancho Bernardo, Sorrento Mesa, Del Mar, North County Coastal...

Bid $42, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 3* Point Loma, Rancho Bernardo, Sorrento Mesa, Del Mar, Downtown, Mission Valley, North County Coastal...

Bid $44, if rejected add re-bid zone1...

Bid $46, if rejected add re-bid zone2...

Bid $48, if rejected add re-bid zone3...

Bid $50.

Any questions 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.

[DaLuc]

After folowing your instructions up to this point:

Select 3* Point Loma, Rancho Bernardo, Coastal, North County Coastal...

Bid $38, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Price lines says:

If you are willing to raise your price by $11, you can try the same request again right now.

Should I? Does this usually work? Haven't tried it before....

Thanks!!!

[thereuare]

You can bid $49 if you just want to 'get it done' but if you follow the above i believe you'l likely win for less.

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

[Colfax]

DaLuc,

In your first post you said you wanted a hotel with free parking. Now you're bidding in zones where some hotels charge $20/night or more to park. Have you changed your mind about paying to park?

If you want free parking I'll again suggest bidding to your limit for a 3* in just the Sorrento Mesa zone, where none of the hotels charge. If you don't win anything in Sorrento Mesa then start looking at other zones.

[DaLuc]

Hi there,

Thereuare,

Thanks for the clarification on the increase your bid. I did assume it was a way to "get it done" and did not go thru with it.

Colfax,

From what I've seen none of the hotels that charge parking would accept a bid as low as I'm offering (based on looking at past Priceline wins, etc). Am I wrong about that? Am I crazy to bid in areas that might charge parking instead of starting with a very limited area (Sorrento Mesa)?

Also, my needs have changed and now I need a room for two people for only Sept 8-10, two nights only. I assume that doesn't change the bid strategy.

Will keep you updated as I go along.

Thanks!!

[thereuare]

If you change your dates you should re-start the bidding strategy from the lowest amount once again since changing your dates can sometimes also change your rates. If you're dropping the most expensive dates in the previous date range, it can lower the bid amount needed to win a hotel. However, i'm not really sure what you've already done (how far you went in the previous strategy) and/or which zone(s) you're current considering.

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

[DaLuc]

Hi,

In my first bidding attempt I went up to $38 following your formula as listed above. That's when i was offered to re-bid at $$ higher and I declined. It takes some time to keep closing out the browser and bidding!!

For now I am going to try to just get a hotel room somewhere in San Diego for under $50. I really do think that the hotels that would accept that bid won't be charging parking from what I've seen.

So should I just follow your formula that you already set out? I can't imagine it would be much different for the two nights instead of five. And I'm glad that those nights are middle of the week because I do assume they'll be cheaper than Labor Day would have.

Thanks!

[thereuare]

For now I am going to try to just get a hotel room somewhere in San Diego for under $50.... So should I just follow your formula that you already set out?

If all those zones are still acceptable then yes i would follw the previous strategy, but start with $30 again (not where you left off)

It takes some time to keep closing out the browser and bidding!!

You can save time by using our PRICELINE search box on the top right corner of the board. When you close a browser just return here and click the GO button once again... all your destination, check-in date, check-out dates, etc will remain and should load automatically :)

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

[DaLuc]

I finally got around to bidding again!!

At $40 and $42 levels I was offered to raise my bid by $12 to try again but I declined.

Won at $44 after following your plan and arriving here: Select 3* Point Loma, Rancho Bernardo, Sorrento Mesa, Del Mar, Downtown, Mission Valley, North County Coastal... Bid $44

Holiday Inn Rancho Bernardo

9/08-9/10 for one room

Your Offer Price Per Room, Per Night: $44.00

Subtotal: $88.00

Taxes & Fees: $19.36

Total Charges*: $107.36

Was offered to extend the stay for more nights at the same price as well, which I didn't need.

While it's not the poshest hotel it will certainly do for the price. Complimentary parking, too, which I was a bit worried about. Oh, and complimentary internet too, which is a very nice perk.

Thanks SO MUCH for all your help!!!

Oh, and I had originally thought I had to close the entire browser, not just the one window with Priceline, so it was much faster to leave betterbidding up on one window and then just keep re-opening PRICELINE from there. Thanks for clarifying that! Also, can you really tell if we go to priceline by clicking through betterbidding?

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

Glad to hear this works well for your plans and you're happy with the deal you received.

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

Enjoy your stay.