Priceline Hotel: 4* DC (Convention Center-Capitol Hill) Renaissance Washington

[manypims]

I have an early morning meeting in D.C. and doesn't really matter where I'm staying since I'll be cabbing it, so I let Priceline determine the area. It said the best deals were the Convention Center-Capitol Hill zone and the 4-Star Deluxe category.

Using Better Bidding, I determined that previous wins in this zone and star category were priced at $75 (Renaissance, Hotel George). A couple of months ago, I had won Liaison for $65 in the same zone so I knew the price range and the likely hotels I would received.

I started at Convention Center-Capitol Hill at $45 and then added free rebids of $50 (Alexandria West) and $55 (Bethesda) before hitting on $60 by adding (DC Suburbs-Northeast Area). I actually had two additional free rebids (Mount Vernon and Silver Spring) to spare.

Word of advice: If you want to get the best Priceline deals, do not attempt to book your room months or even weeks in advance. If you have the courage, wait until a day or two before you need the room. Or if you have massive courage, book your room the same morning of your stay.

By booking the day before, I got the Renaissance for $60 ($75.79 including tax) instead of the Priceline list price of $329.

[yellowdog]

Thank you for sharing your result with the board!

Enjoy your stay.

Please use the site's HOTWIRE and PRICELINE links to start future purchases.

Yellowdog.

[TravelPhotographer]

Word of advice: If you want to get the best Priceline deals, do not attempt to book your room months or even weeks in advance. If you have the courage, wait until a day or two before you need the room. Or if you have massive courage, book your room the same morning of your stay.

Same advice if bidding multi-night stays? Should multi-nights be broken up into single night bids using PRICELINE link?

[AaronJB]

I definitely wouldn't break up a stay into single nights - I'd start with 50/50. Additionally, waiting until the last minute can be very problematic if there is something going on in the area on those dates.

[thereuare]

If you want to get the best Priceline deals, do not attempt to book your room months or even weeks in advance. If you have the courage, wait until a day or two before you need the room. Or if you have massive courage, book your room the same morning of your stay.

I disagree with this statement. Waiting for the very last minute can leave you without a room should rates move higher and/or sellout for a given nite. As well, while we all focus on the day(s) that we need, the hotel revenue manager is constantly juggling multiple tasks and dates throughout the entire year, so is not likely to go thru the task of lowering rates each day for the day of check-in. Additional thoughts are in the related link in our PRICELINE FAQ.

For multi-nite stays, i would try to get as many nites for the first purchase as possible, as it would make the second purchase easier if you're seeking fewer nites.

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

[manypims]

Waiting for the very last minute can leave you without a room should rates move higher and/or sellout for a given nite. PRICELINE FAQ.

By waiting to the last minute I may not be able to find a room? C'mon, be real. The only time I have ever run into this issue even remotely was the Super Bowl in Fort Lauderdale. And I still was able to find something the week of the game. That's a very special exception. I've book at least 100 rooms on Priceline for work and pleasure and I've never been burned by waiting until the last week or last couple of days. Unless you count the handful of times I booked a week in advance and didn't like the place. Then on the day of the trip I did some lowball bidding in other zones and found something better.

With that being said, I do like your idea of booking a refundable place in advance. If only for the fact that it will make your Priceline bidding less desperate and help you stick to your maximum price.

And finally, after reading your take on last minute bidding, I decided to bid two days in advance for another room in DC in stead of waiting until the day of. Got the exact same deal as the last two times -- Renaissance for $60 -- so I'm not really sure what that proves.

[thereuare]

Got the exact same deal as the last two times... so I'm not really sure what that proves.

I don't think a sample size of one 'proves' anything, but perhaps it means that there is not an advantage to waiting until the very last minute and bidding the morning of arrival.

Our advice has always been to "know" what a good price is for the area, and bid as soon as your plans are firm... making sure that you don't overbid. By bidding early there is very little pressure and it gives you the ability to try lowball bids to see if there is any "low hanging fruit"... then gradually increase your maximum bid to more realistic levels as you get closer to arrival.

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

And 'yes', i have seen situations where hotels were offered within a user's budget a few weeks prior to arrival, but they chose to wait and closer to their stay rooms were no longer affordable/within their budget.

[TravelPhotographer]

Got the exact same deal as the last two times -- Renaissance for $60

And, using PRICELINE link above, I got same, & bid $59 before getting $60.

Will post details in new thread asap.