Priceline Hotel: 2.5* Ft. Lauderdale (Downtown) AmeriSuites

[nynewfies]

My husband and I are cruising out of Fort Lauderdale on February 20th on the Jewel. We are flying in the afternoon of the 19th. I have booked a room at the Hampton Inn on Stirling at $168.00 and after reading these boards, it seems safe to say I should be able to do a lot better than that, even without the free airport and cruise pier shuttles and breakfast (all of which are included at the Hampton). I know that the 19th is the first Saturday of President's Week and I don't know how much that is likley to jack up prices. I also don't know what zone would be best to request. I've never tried Priceline before, so any and all help will be appreciated.

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

I'm fairly confident you should be able to beat the deal you have at the Hampton Inn. Most Ft. Lauderdale cruisers choose the downtown zone, while a few who have difficulty with their dates and/or have a late flight choose the airport zone... neither is too far from the pier.

Before you get started you should give this thread a read just to familiarize yourself with both Priceline and Hotwire: I'VE NEVER USED PRICELINE OR HOTWIRE.

The strategy i have in mind for you will try Priceline first, then if unsuccessful, use Hotwire. In order to try Priceline, you'll need to understand how re-bidding works, which allows you to bid again without waiting the usually required 72 hours. Re-bidding is explained in this thread: PRICELINE BIDDING BEFORE 72 HOURS. This can be a little confusing at first but we'll walk you thru any questions you may have (you may understand it right off the bat, you may feel like you have no clue as to what is going on... but read that thread and we'll walk you thru any concepts you may not understand). I'd be recommending you bid at the 3* level, for which there is one re-bid zone available when bidding this area. As well as ask questions, see if you can figure out which zone is your re-bid zone and confirm it with the board.

Once we have the concept down, we'll suggest a strategy for which to proceed. As i said above (and i'll say again), don't hesitate to ask questions. :)

[nynewfies]

Thanks so much. I read the section on Priceline and the one on rebidding. I'll look up the Hotwire info after I post this. I looked at the airport, downtown and beach zones and all have 3* level hotels. So, am I right then to assume that I choose a dollar amount, choose, say, downtown as my first bid choice and put it out. If it is rejected, I just add the airport zone and try again at the same dollar amount. It would probably be pointless to add the beach zone for a third try, even if they allow a third try, as hotels in that area are probably more expensive. If I have that all down correctly, does $70.00 seem like a reasonable first bid? It seems in line with a lot of what I've read, but I just don't know how to factor in the Saturday night over a holiday weekend thing.

I want to not only beat the price of the deal at Hampton, but the extras as well. So, if I figure $20.00 for cabfare ($10.00 from the airport, $10.00 to the pier) and $20.00 or so more for breakfast for two, I am good up to a bid of at least $100.00 to still be ahead of the game.

Please let me know if I'm on the right track.

[thereuare]

Close, but not quite... when you re-bid, you're looking for zones that only have hotels less than the star rating you want.

The idea is that by adding a zone that only has hotels less than the minimum you are willing to accept, you are able to bid again immediately (since, as per priceline's rules, you've added a zone)... yet there are no hotels in that area that meet your minium star level criteria... so it's as if you're bidding again for only the original zone (it's explained prett well in the graphic near the bottom of the RE-BIDDING EXPLAINED thread.

You only have one such re-bid zone (the other zones you mentioned are not re-bid zones since they contain 3* and higher hotels). See if the above information clarifies it a bit, and if you're still confused, list all the zones within Ft. Lauderdale and the highest star rating offered next to it... we'll then be able to show you quickly what we mean.

Stick with it... the savigs are well worth it! :)

[nynewfies]

Oh, duh, gotcha. I'll check it out.

[nynewfies]

Right. So, I bid 3* downtown and then use Miramar for a rebid as it has nothing above a 2 1/2* rating, right? What did you think about the $70.00 opening bid idea?

[thereuare]

GREAT!... you got the re-bidding right!

I just checked rates and it appears that the Marriott Marina is sold-out for your dates... this greatly reduces your chances in this area.

I would select 3* Ft. Lauderdale Downtown zone...

Bid $75, if rejected add re-bid zone and...

Bid $80.

If the above is rejected, i would then go to HW where you will see a 2.5* hotel, Customer Favorite, and have an "S" suite icon for ~$69. This should be the AmeriSuites (you can compare the amenities seen to those HERE to "make sure" (although you can never be 100% certain). Assuming this property is fine with you i would then go with it after/if the above priceline bidding fails.

Any questions feel free to ask.

Good Luck and let us know how it goes.

[nynewfies]

OK - I'll try this as you suggested and let you know how it goes. Thanks so much for your help and encouragement.

[nynewfies]

This is great - both my $75 and $80 bids were rejected by Priceline, but that's OK because by the time I'm bidding at $80.00 and they add in taxes and fees the room is getting close to $100.00 anyway. I went to Hotwire and got the Amerisuites for $72.00, which with taxes and fees is about $85.00, which is just about half what I would have spent for the Hampton Inn. As far as I can tell the Amerisuites is in an equally good location and should be of similar quality. I would never have had the nerve to do this without your support. "Don't buy a pig in a poke" still rings in my ears from my dear departed granny. But, just as you said, the "customer favorite" and "S" 's were there, I looked up Amerisuites on Travelweb, liked the reviews, and went for it. Thank you so much for your help!!!

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your win.... glad it worked out well for you.

Now you have more money to spend on your SeaPass account on the ship!

Have a great trip and an even better cruise!

[nynewfies]

Thanks so much. I am planning a 4 day trip to San Antonio in April. I may give this a shot when I work out the details for that one as well.