Priceline Hotel: Free Airport Shuttle?

[Parachute07]

Hello all -- I'm new to this forum and I didn't find the answer to this question by searching. I have an overnight layover at Houston's Bush Intercontinental (IAH) on February 13, 2009 (getting in at 9:45pm and leaving at 9am). Looking at several sites shows me that there are a variety of hotels from $50 and up near the airport with a free shuttle. I am tempting to try pricelining for a great deal -- but I'm wondering if I'll still get the free airport shuttle if I use priceline? Does anybody know?

The free shuttle is important to me as taxi and super shuttle fares look like they'll gouge me. Thanks for the help!

[AaronJB]

Welcome to Betterbidding. :)

There is no way to ensure/guarantee a hotel that offers a shuttle when using PRICELINE (although if you did get a hotel with shuttle, you would be able to use it.) However, you can search on HOTWIRE for a listing with an airport shuttle icon - while that won't guarantee a free shuttle, that would guarantee a hotel that offers it and it seems fairly rare that there is a shuttle surcharge at airport properties.

Please let us know if you have any questions, and please use the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[Parachute07]

Ok. That's exactly what I was wondering -- if I would still be entitled to a free shuttle if the hotel I get had one.

If I can tack on a second question -- what about if I priceline a hotel and it doesn't have a free shuttle? As I read on the airport website, it seems that the buses don't run at that hour, so the only options are Super Shuttle or Taxi. I'm trying to determine if I can save enough by bidding on the room to make up for the taxi/shuttle fare. Does anyone know about how much it costs to ride to a hotel in Priceline's airport zone?

I know this is a really wide open question. The lowest-priced hotels on Priceline and Hotwire and Orbitz that have a free shuttle start around $50 and I've seen the Doubletree for $79. If it costs us $25 each way for a taxi from the airport to a hotel without a shuttle, then I wouldn't do any better than what the Doubletree would cost to book -- so I may as well book one of the options already priced below that. Am I correct? My girlfriend and I are taking a short scuba diving vacation to Honduras and I'm trying to maximize the money I have to spend in Honduras while ensuring that we get a better night's sleep than we would on a bench in the airport. Thanks for the help!

[thereuare]

The Southwest corner of this zone is about 5 miles from the airport, so the taxi fare will differ greatly if you get a hotel in this part of the zone vs. a hotel just on the outskirts of the airport.

Why not use HOTWIRE where you may even be able to take an educated guess as to the hotel you will receive, which will then also enable you to research the property beforehand to find out shuttle hours (if not 24/7) as well as how far it is from the airport. HOTWIRE may cost you a little more than PRICELINE, but given your needs for this stay, it seems like it may be a better option given the additional cost should you end up with a hotel without a shuttle thru PRICELINE.

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

Let us know your thoughts and how you'd like to proceed and we'll take it from there.

[Parachute07]

Good thoughts and suggestions. I appreciate it. You're absolutely right about HOTWIRE being smarter in this case. I guess I was just thinking that the cheapest available with a shuttle on Hotwire is more expensive than the cheapest available on PRICELINE (before naming a price), so I hadn't spent much time considering HOTWIRE. After talking it over with my girlfriend, we might just rough it in the airport for the night. I can sleep anywhere - I just figured a clean bed for $50-ish or less would be nice.....but it's not necessary.

Anyone know if there's free WiFi in the Houston airport?

[Parachute07]

Hello all! I got an email from HOTWIRE and now I'm htinking about Hotwiring a room for February 13th to February 14th for my overnight layover at IAH. I would like some help identifying the two cheapest hotels with shuttles:

3* for $42 - Aldine - Bush Ictl Airport IAH Hotel

Airport Shuttle, Fitness Center, Pool, Restaurant, Laundry, Tennis Nearby

3 1/2* for $52 Aldine - Bush Ictl Airport IAH Hote

Smoke-free rooms, Airport Shuttle, Fitness Center, Pool, Restaurant, Business Center, High-Speed Internet Access

Thanks so much! I really appreciate all of the help I've gotten so far!

[yellowdog]

Parachute07

Best guess would be.

3* for $42

Holiday Inn Airport

3 1/2* for $52

This is a match for both Crowne Plaza Greenspoint and Sheraton North Houston.

Please use the site's HOTWIRE link to start your purchase, and let us know how it goes or if you need any additional help with your stay.

Yellowdog.