Priceline Hotel: Roma vs. Barcelona

[Brazilian_soul]

Hi, I'm planning to visit Barcelona and Rome in mid May.

Excluding airplane time, I will have 8 full days. How whould I split those days between those 2 cities?

(i) Barcelona (4 days); Rome (4 days)

(ii) Barcelona (3 days); Rome (5 days)

(iii) Barcelona (5 days); Rome (3 days)

For those who know both cities, I would appreciate to hear some advice on that matter.

Thanks in advance!

[ggllk]

Hello!

I am from southern France and I have been to both cities. I would definitely recommend to spend more time in Roma than Barcelona. Roma / Vatican City is a city with a very rich history, which means plenty of monuments to visit and plenty of pictures to take. Of course, you could get bored because most of the point of interest are religion-related but each of them is unique. More generally speaking, it is a beautiful city where you will enjoy every second you spend.

There has been a lot of hype around Barcelona the last decade. Their government made extensive efforts to make the city attractive for tourists; mainly thanks to cheap airport taxes and affordable housing. However, I barely see what is so interesting about this city. You get to see the Sagrada Familia, the Rambla -which should not take you more than a couple of hours- and maybe a few Gaudi buildings. Besides that, well, there isn't much. However, it can be a great place for young adults wanting to party and have fun during summer. I fear mid-May is a bit too early for that.

Hope this will help.

Enjoy your vacation!

[Romelle]

I concur with ggllk. 3 for Barcelona and 5 for Rome. I've been to both. Rome definitely has more scope, no matter what your interests, although Barcelona is well worth a stop too.

But get some guide books and do some reading. The more you research, the more you will get out of your trip. To get started, try your public library for guide books and videos (Rick Steves has some good ones).

The guide books usually have a reading list, including both history and fiction. And/or do a search of the city name at the library. Historical novels can give you a great "feel" for a place. Food, customs, descriptions of areas. When you arrive, you will feel like you are visiting an old friend.

Romelle

[Brazilian_soul]

Hi All,

Does anyone know about any event happening in Barcelona between May 13th and May 17th?

Prices for hotels in PRICELINE seems to be a little steep in this period.

Thanks in advance!

[thereuare]

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

What star rating and prices are you seeing?

Have you tried bidding at all yet? Are the prices you're seeing thru PRICELINE's "retail" product (where the name of the hotel is shown before purchase) Which zone(s) are you looking at?

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[Brazilian_soul]

Thereuare, sorry for the misunderstanding. I am looking for 4 stars and I am not getting less than USD 120 (before taxes and comission) as counteroffer. Doesn't it seem a little bit high? Thanks.

[thereuare]

Which zone(s) in Barcelona are you searching?

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[Brazilian_soul]

Thereuare, I was looking into Las Ramblas/La Barceloneta and West & Suburbs, but did some further research on hotel locations and decided to get something ONLY in Las Ramblas/La Barceloneta. Thanks.

[thereuare]

Do you recall how much you bid when you received the counter-offer?

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[Brazilian_soul]

Thereuare, I was bidding around $80.

Thanks

[thereuare]

Rates don't seem too far out of line...

The counter-offer implies that the "right" number is between $81-$120... and this is the range of most reported 4* hotels in this zone (assuming that the counter-offer would have given you a hotel in this zone and not the West and Suburbs zone) so the suggested rate doesn't seem seem out of line to me.

I searched a few of the hotel 4* hotels for your dates and the best rate i'm able to find is $160/nite, making your current bid only half of prevailing rates... what is your maximum bid for this stay?

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[four leaf clover]

Barcelona and Rome are both expensive cities for hotels. Seldom will you get "cheap rates" for them on PRICELINE, which is in complete contrast to PRICELINE rates for hotels in Prague, Lisbon or Amsterdam.

I too, agree with previous contributors that Rome "deserves" more of your time than Barcelona. Good Luck with the bidding!

[Brazilian_soul]

Thereuare, I was willing to pay max $100, but given it seems difficult will end up paying up to the counteroffer price, around $120.

I agree with you, looking outside PL, prices are way higher. Just thought I would be able to get something around $90-100.

Tomorrow, will bid again starting at $95.

[thereuare]

If your last rejected bid was $80, and with 2 months to go before your stay, i wouldn't go up $15 on your next bid... better to increase in $5 increments ($85, $90, $95, etc, etc). It will take you about a week to get to your $120 maximum (hopefully successful before then) and you do have the time, imo.

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

Good luck and let us know how it goes.