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Priceline Hotel: San Francisco stay Dec. 25-28


WillTravel
By WillTravel,
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I know that nebulous posts are hard to answer, but I'll try to give an idea of what I am looking for.

First of all, last time I was in San Francisco, in 2008, I stayed at the Whitcomb (free stay). In this case, I was just there overnight, so it worked out perfectly to get in and out of the airport by BART.

So far as I can see, the BART is definitely the most convenient option for getting to/from the airport. In this case I will be arriving fairly late, and probably catching the first BART in the morning (although in this case I have a 3-night stay). So even though the Whitcomb neighborhood is not at all great, I don't mind too much as I just get out of there quickly via BART.

To make a long story short, getting a nice hotel that is right by a BART stop would be ideal. Of course I am cheap as always, but I could even be tempted by a 4* at the right price. The Whitcomb is available for $58/night with EasyClickTravel, so while I might consider going higher than that for a 4* hotel, I probably would not want to bid more than $45 for an uncertain result.

Here are the criteria I am keeping in mind:

* Be near BART, if possible.

* Be at least a 2.5* hotel, maybe at least 3*. I don't think I want a hotel worse than the Whitcomb, if that helps. A small room is fine, though.

* A nice neighborhood is important if I'm not very close to the BART. (I know there are buses and MUNI also.) I definitely don't want to be stuck in the Tenderloin and have to walk several blocks through it (I have done this in the past, whether or not it's a good idea, but I don't want it to be necessary.)

In the back of my mind I am thinking that if I can't be sure of a nice, well-located hotel with bidding, I might just stay in a well-located hostel. Not sure if I would follow through with that, though.

If I bid the Civic Center zone, at 2.5*, what is likely to be the worst result I could get, given my above criteria? I know the Whitcomb comes up a lot, but obviously can't be guaranteed. I also know that new hotels can be added at any time.

For the other zones, I guess I have been too long away from San Francisco, because I don't have a clear idea of what to favour.

If you have gotten this far, any advice is welcome.

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WillTravel - That time of year is typically a very slow travel period, so you should be able to get a good deal. If you want control, HOTWIRE rates are already pretty good for those dates. Using the hotel list here and vacation package feature, you should be able to figure what hotel you'll be getting. You may pay a bit more, but you'll be able to pinpoint exactly where you'll be.

Alternatively, if you want to PRICELINE, you should be able to get a great price. Since HOTWIRE prices are already reasonable. you could underbid them by 20-30% - maybe more - and see what you get. USE and Embarcadero are both relatively close to BART. In USW, you may be close, but you could be far away on Nob Hill. SOMA's a mixed bag, FW is far and Civic Center is usually close, but my least favorite section of SF. I'd start lowballing 4* hotels and see what you can get. (Treat yourself - It might only cost an extra $12.)

I agree that BART is a good way to get around, especially from SFO. Good luck and let us know what else you need.

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I'll leave the rest up to the locals on the board, but since i did read thru your post :) i'll add that HOTWIRE has what appears to be the King George for $53/nite and the reviews are decent, but not sure if this would be better/worse than the Whitcomb.

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

Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases

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To make a long story short, getting a nice hotel that is right by a BART stop would be ideal. Of course I am cheap as always, but I could even be tempted by a 4* at the right price. The Whitcomb is available for $58/night with EasyClickTravel, so while I might consider going higher than that for a 4* hotel, I probably would not want to bid more than $45 for an uncertain result.

I like the Whitcomb myself but I'm reluctant to recommend it to others because people have different tastes and many just don't like the Whitcomb's location. Since you've stayed at the Whitcomb before you know what it is and I don't need to go into the hotel's pros and cons.

I can't say if you should stay at the Whitcomb for $58 or pay more for a nicer hotel. But if you decide you want the Whitcomb I'd purchase it through Hotwire or EasyClickTravel, or some other channel where you know what you're buying in advance, as opposed to bidding for it on Priceline. Priceline's Civic Center extends all the way north to California Street and if you win the Opal or Holiday Inn Golden Gateway or a hotel in Japantown then you've got quite a hike to BART.

If you opt for a higher grade hotel I'll suggest bidding for a 4* in SOMA-Moscone zone on PRICELINE. Other than the Intercontinental any hotel you win will be within a block of Market Street. And the Intercontinental hardly ever comes up on Priceline. Or look for Parc 55 or Hyatt Regency on Hotwire...both hotels also near BART.

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I stayed in the Whitcomb once when it was still the Ramada - the rooms can be quite petite.

The Whitcomb has some very small rooms but I've never been given one on a PRICELINE or HOTWIRE stay. The Whitcomb calls its small rooms "Petite Doubles" and they sell them as such for $79---less than the hotel's standard sized rooms. Unless something has changed I don't think the Whitcomb uses those Petite Doubles as "Priceline rooms".

One thing I like about the Whitcomb is that I consistently get a decent sized room there, larger than some of the "Priceline rooms" at higher rated hotels like the Westin St Francis or Nikko.

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Colfax - They must like you better than me at the Whitcomb. Or else you wore your REALLY good shoes ...

I actually blew it the one time I stayed there. The room was being paid for by the company with which I was interviewing. The hotel asked if I wanted a suite and like a fool, I said no! "I'm by myself, I don't need a big room." And I didn't get one. I got a slightly oversized walk-in closet .... Probably one of those "Petite Doubles" you mentioned.

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If you opt for a higher grade hotel I'll suggest bidding for a 4* in SOMA-Moscone zone on PRICELINE. Other than the Intercontinental any hotel you win will be within a block of Market Street. And the Intercontinental hardly ever comes up on Priceline. Or look for Parc 55 or Hyatt Regency on Hotwire...both hotels also near BART.

If I get the Intercontinental, I'll suffer through the experience somehow, I'm sure :).

I think you pretty well captured what I was debating - which is that bidding 2.5 in the Civic Center zone is not really worth it to me if I don't get the Whitcomb.

Gallus50, I'll consider the King George, but I think it's probably a step down from what I'm looking for.

In my case, I got a free stay with the old Wyndham Best Rate Guarantee program (back when Whitcomb was still considered a Ramada for booking purposes), and even with that, my room was not what I would consider small. It was a bit on the old side.

Are there any zones where bidding 3* or 3.5* is very likely to land a pleasant and convenient neighborhood and a reasonable-quality hotel? (Forget BART for a moment and just focus on general convenience.)

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Are there any zones where bidding 3* or 3.5* is very likely to land a pleasant and convenient neighborhood and a reasonable-quality hotel? (Forget BART for a moment and just focus on general convenience.)

Rates are very low for your dates.

You can book any of these on Expedia:

Parc55 $99

Marriott $99

Hilton SF $97

Harbor Court $104

Executive Hotel Vintage Court $109 (includes evening wine reception and continental breakfast)

I haven't checked what's on Hotwire but you can already see you've got a lot of good options.

As your dates get closer I expect to see more specials on Travelzoo, Hotwire Travel Ticker, and etc. for less than $99...maybe some of the Kimpton or Joie de Vivre boutiques.

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Are there any zones where bidding 3* or 3.5* is very likely to land a pleasant and convenient neighborhood and a reasonable-quality hotel? (Forget BART for a moment and just focus on general convenience.)

I didn't really answer your question before, WillTravel.

"Pleasant" and "convenient" are subjective. If you were comfortable with the Whitcomb's SOMA location and you don't require two beds or a large room then I think you'll probably find any Priceline 3* or higher that comes up in USE, USW, SOMA, or Embarcadero to be of "reasonable" quality.

The 3* Harbor Court is a Kimpton and it gets good reviews. It's across the street from the Embarcadero, near public transport and the Ferry Building. If that hotel/location is of interest you might try bidding $50-60 for a 3* in Financial District-Embarcadero. The Harbor Court is the only known 3* in the zone (but there could be others).

Personally I'm not keen on the 3* Courtyard's location, so I don't bid 3* in SOMA-Moscone. But I'm comfortable bidding 3* in USE, USW, and Embarcadero zones and taking whatever comes up. The 4* Hilton Financial District is also "off the beaten track" for me, but others seem to like it.

Do you want to book something this far ahead? Or just gathering info now for a later decision?

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  • 1 month later...

Just for an update, I have been trying 4* bids.

At $60 for USW-Nob Hill, I got a counteroffer to add $17 more.

I tried various rebidding options, up to $64, and each time kept getting the $17 more.

I really didn't want to go higher than that, so I did not proceed past $64.

But at least I have an idea of the price range for this zone.

I have not gotten counteroffers from any other downtown SF zones.

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Further update - For a 3.5* hotel in Fisherman's Wharf, I got a counteroffer to add $14 more, when I bid $48. I did not succeed at $53.

I am still getting the same counteroffers for USW and failing at $64.

I was nervous not having a cancellable backup, so I booked the Hotel Triton (a Kimpton Hotel) through a TravelZoo special. It's $89/night, so definitely more than I need to pay through PRICELINE, but it does have an ideal location, and looks like an intriguing place. But I can cancel up to the day before, and that's the important thing.

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The Triton is a PRICELINE 3*. Any interest in bidding for a Downtown 3.5* or 3*, WillTravel? You can probably win something for less than the $64 you've already tried for a 4*. Might or might not be Triton.

Or if you prefer a 4*...at $64 I think you're probably within $5 of a 4* win, based on the $17 counteroffer to your $60. Maybe within $1 or $2.

Also your $53 could be enough for a 3* in Fisherman's Wharf if it's not enough for a 3.5*.

Good luck!

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  • 2 weeks later...

So I have made a decision. I had three $50 Best Price Guarantee coupons from Expedia. I used one coupon per night, and booked the Galleria Park, which is offering a nightly rate of $79 on Expedia. Although it's a prepaid rate, it's also refundable up until the day before. With taxes and fees, I ended up spending $38.88/night.

I used the Expedia link on this board.

With Expedia, I could have booked the Parc 55 for a rate of $94/night (plus taxes and fees), and applied the coupon, and this would have been cheaper than Priceline for a 4* hotel. I also could also have gotten the Intercontinental Mark Hopkins for $99/night (plus taxes and fees) - $50. But I decided that I would try a "boutique hotel" for once. I'm not worried about small rooms, and the hotel seems pretty good based on reviews.

I'd consider cancelling if something significantly better and/or cheaper came up, which doesn't seem likely, so I think this will work pretty well for me.

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