Priceline Hotel: 2* Miami (Airport MIA) Holiday Inn

[ufauxreal]

We will probably be flying into Ft. Lauderdale one day prior to a cruise that leaves from Miami. We plan to rent a car for one day. Staying at a beachfront property is not essential as we won't have time to enjoy the beach. Where should we begin to look for a hotel, between Ft. Laud. and Miami? We're probably looking for a 3* or a 2.5* property... someplace safe and near some restaurants. We will be in South Beach for a week after the cruise, so some place different would be good.

Also... does anyone know if we would be able to return a rental car at the pier in Miami?

Thanks!

JB

[thereuare]

I would stay in Downtown Miami as:

-i prefer to stay as close to the pier as possible... leaves less possibility of hassles the next day (ie- car trouble, traffic, forget something at hotel and need to return, etc)

-downtown miami offers some excellent value in the Priceline system (not as good as it was a few years ago when it was one of the best areas within priceline, but still very good)

Most choose to go to Bayside to eat; it's close to all the reported downtown hotels and has many restaurants to choose from.

I don't believe the Miami pier has a rental car return counter anymore, you'll have to find a downtown location to return the car (Hertz may offer a shuttle to the pier after you return your car, but i'd call them to double check). Parking may also be expensive in the downtown area. I know car rentals are very inexpensive in the Florida area, but you may want to consider taking a taxi or shuttle from Ft. Lauderdale Airport to Miami and not dealing with the car parking and rental return.

If you want to bid for the Downtown area let us know and we'll suggest a strategy to follow if you'd like.

[10centsadance]

UFAUXREAL-be careful with a 2.5 star hotel in Miami. Do some research before bidding. I have read about some dreadful hotels there--bugs and crime.

[ufauxreal]

Thanks to both of you for your responses. I didn't want to bid until we had our air reservations firmly in place, which we now do. We'll be landing at FLL at 6PM on 1/9. We will be renting a car for one day. So.. we need a hotel for the one pre-cruise night (cruise out of Miami). Since we won't have much time at this end of the trip, we're not particularly fussy about accomodations. However, we definitely want to avoid the 'amenities' :) that 10centsadance mentioned.

I checked on Hotwire for a lot of the zones along the way from FLL to Miami. The rates seemed really high to me... most hovering just below or even well above $100.

What do you suggest we do? Any strategies?

Thanks!

JB

P.S What about the Airport zone? I found a Fairfield Inn at Airport South for $89/night includes breakfast. They do charge for parking, but only $6.

[thereuare]

The rates above sound like Ft. Lauderdale... have you decided that is where you want to stay?

I suggest Miami as it almost always offers better hotel value than Ft. Lauderdale. As well, i would consider not renting a car and taking a cab or shared ride from FLL to Downtown Miami... no worries about parking costs or the hassle of driving. What was it that led you to decide to stay in Ft. Lauderdale over Miamia?

[ufauxreal]

Hi again...

OK, maybe I didn't 'splain very well. We are flying into FLL (because the fares there are significantly cheaper.. and we got a non-stop.. a big deal from CT). We don't want/need to stay in Ft. Lauderdale. I just got maps from the AAA... whew... Miami is confusing!

That Fairfield Inn at the MIA airport zone is looking better and better. I figure it should be easy to find.. just follow directions to the airport! Are there shuttles from FLL into Miami? Or cabs? I'm thinking that would be way more $$ than the car. Enterprise has an office that services the piers, and I think Hertz does as well.

Hope this is not too off topic for a priceline discussion.

JB

[thereuare]

Hope this is not too off topic for a priceline discussion.

You much have us confused with some place else :)

My guess is that you can do better than $89/nite for a Fairfield Inn.

HERE you can get the La Quinta Inn Airport for $69 and the REVIEW is good (and better than THESE for the Fairfield Inn Airport South (assuming this is the Fairfiled you're considering). Of course if you end up booking the Fairfield please use our affiliate LINK :) .

With all the aobve said, i would still try the Downtown zone in Miami before i stayed at the airport... it's closer to the port as the airport is still a good 25 minutes away from the pier. As well, there is nothing around the airport area. If you'd like to try for the Downtown area let us know and we'll supply a bidding stategy to try. Parking is expensive downtown which leads to....

A taxi from FLL to Downtown Miami will cost about $65 or so. Florida Limo offers private and shared ride services from FLL to points in Miami... double check their site but i think a shared ride is about $35 for 2 poeple and about the same price as a taxi for a private sedan.

Let us know what you think of all of the above.

[ufauxreal]

Thank you so much for all the trouble you've gone through. Well, the reviews for the Fairfield Inn didn't sound too promising (and yes, that is the one I was thinking of.) I checked rates at the Florida Limo you gave me a link for, and came up with from $44 to $50 for a 'shared ride', depending on which hotel in DT.

OK... so what bidding strategy do you suggest. Like I said before, our main concern is that the place be safe and clean. Would we be able to walk someplace on a Sun. nite for dinner?

One of the reasons I liked the idea of renting a car is that we would then be able to use it on Monday before we have to board the ship. But I understand that a car in downtown Miami is not a great idea (if it's anything like Manhattan.. it's a definite liability). I was not that concerned with the distance from the hotel to the ship if we had the car... we have all day Monday to get to the port.

What to do... what to do... :)

JB

[thereuare]

At the 3* level in Downtown Miami you have 2 re-bid zones...

Select 3* Downtown and....

Bid $46, if rejected add re-bid zone and....

Bid $50, if rejected add re-bid zone and....

Bid $54.

Most in this area go to Bayside for dinner... a free ride on the PeopleMover (i took it but some have safety concerns at nite) or a less than $5 cab ride. In the morning you can walk 1 1/2 blocks to a bakery for breakfast or a few blocks further there is a Starbucks and some other small stores (including an drug store to pick up anything you forgot).

When i cruise i try to be on the ship as early as i can.... nothing like being on board before it gets crowded and get accustomed to the 'lay of the land'. When we embarked from Miami we woke up late, had breakfast, picked up some last minute items we forgot, hopped in a cab at 12:30 and were on the ship by 1:30 (but we don't really care where we cruise to.... we mostly enjoy being on the ship itself).

[Scorp]

Hi ufauxreal, Just an additional note... if you are still interested in pursuing a car rental, here is some contact information for the car rental companies that service the Port of Miami.

Port of Miami Car Rentals

Hertz's web site does not allow rental returns to the Port itself, but I checked and they do say they provide a shuttle service to the Port from one of the Downtown locations, which is close to the pier. So you can drop it off at the Hertz Local Edition location (354 SE 1st) and they will shuttle you over to the Pier.

I would phone and confirm with the local office if I were you, but that looks like a good possibility. Also I know I just booked a car rental for friends doing a one-way rental from FLL to Orlando and there were no extra fees for the one-way rental.

[ufauxreal]

Just got the Holiday Inn at the MIA airport for $35. The website says free parking, plus free shuttle to pier (I'll have to check into that).

Bidding as follows:

All free re-bids in MIA Airport zone:

3* $48 rejected

2.5* $40 rejected

2* $35 accepted.

Hotel got mixed reviews at trip advisor. Rate on the Holiday Inn website (with AAA discount) is $99.95.

This will work out fine for the short time we will be at the hotel.

[thereuare]

Glad you got this settled and can now focus on your cruise.

Thanks for sharing the win and adding this property to our lists (we don't see much 2* bidding in this zone).

Enjoy your stay, please post a REVIEW upon your return (... and if you have a digital camera some pics at RealHotelPhotos.com :) ).

Enjoy your stay.