Priceline Hotel: 4* in MT or Lower Manhatten for 2/19- 2/21/10

[elmer]

Love this site! Used the strategy successfully to get the Millenium Hilton at least twice in the last two years for around $125....

Can't remember the strategy details though...

Would prefer the Millenium Hilton in lower Manhatten for $125 or less for Friday, Feb. 19, departing Sunday the 21st--

second choice is the Hilton New York in Midtown (1335 Avenue of the Americas) where I've also stayed.

I will use the PRICELINE link on Better Bidding-- thank for the input in advance!!

[AaronJB]

Good morning. :)

The issue with this would be that if you attempted to bid for either of these properties, you could also wind up at one of quite a few other 4*'s in either area - there's no way to bid for a particular hotel via PRICELINE. Would you be willing to accept a hotel beside the two Hilton properties?

What would be your desired budget per night?

Thank you for using the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[elmer]

you make a good point- I guess that because I have been successful two times before bidding on Priceline for a 4* hotel, (offering as much as $125 a night usually around this time in February), and "winning" the Millenium Hilton - I thought it would be a no-brainer.

In answer to your question, as long as I stay in a 4* rated hotel I can accept a different hotel in lower Manhatten... I just didn't think I had much luck winning a more chic hotel in that neighborhood given what I am bidding...

The one other thing I forgot to mention, is that this time we will be a party of three instead of our usual two. We're all friends and have no problem sharing one room, but at least two queen beds would be best.

[thereuare]

As PRICELINE only guarantees double occupancy, this could mean a room with only one bed, with no room for a rollaway. Given this is NYC, with a higher percentage of singled bedded room than many other locations, the risk in using PRICELINE for more than double occupancy increased dramatically.

HOTWIRE does allow you to search for up to quad occupancy, and while it may cost you a little more than PRICELINE, that is what i would recommend for this trip given your triple occupancy needs. Searching HOTWIRE for triple occupancy for your dates reveals a 3.5* hotel in the MTE zone for $1119 (i'm guessing the Roosevelt or Tudor Hotel at the UN) and a 3* hotel in the Downtown zone for $114 which is believed to be a match for the Hotel Reserve.

Do either of the above work for your needs? Let us know your thoughts and we'll take it from there.

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

[elmer]

I've found it's best to stick at 4 stars and above when dealing with NYC... The 3.5 star hotels that I've stayed at in NYC over the years have seemed like they should have been 2.5 stars in my opinion.

Although I've never used Hotwire, does it offer blind bidding for really good deals similar to Priceline? If Hotwire also offers 4 star hotels in the downtown/SoHo/financial district, it should be fairly simple to apply a Better Bidding strategy to achieve a 4* hotel in the desired location(?)

thoughts?

[AaronJB]

HOTWIRE does not offer bidding - the service offers a set of listings with amenities, star rating, zone (area) and fixed price. The service does not reveal the name of the hotel until after purchase and at that point, the reservation is not refundable/changable. HOTWIRE is also a discount service, also it is often somewhat more expensive than PRICELINE since it it less opaque than PRICELINE.

Additionally, one can search for more than 2 people in the room via HOTWIRE, whereas PRICELINE only guarantees double occupancy.

Thank you for using the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[elmer]

oK- with that in mind, I would rather take my chances with Priceline. Can Better Bidding provide a strategy for a 4* hotel in Priceline's downtown/SoHo/financial district at a maximum price of $125.00?

I noticed on the calendar of wins that people have "won" the Millenium Hilton, (my first preference as I know what to expect), for less than $130.00 a night.

thanks!

[thereuare]

Before seeing your maximum bid at $125...

When searching for HOTWIRE double occupancy there is a 4* hotel in the Downtown zone for $113/nite believed to be the Embassy Suites... this is below your maximum bid of $125 above, so would you want to lower your maximum bid to $113 or lower... or would you want to bid higher than this in hopes of receiving the other hotel? (while risking an overbid for this hotel) Also, the Embassy Suites has an included breakfast as well as an evening managers reception, so perhaps you would even want to set your maximum at less than $113, since once you get close to this figure the included breakfast and managers reception would be adding some value to your purchase.

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

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

[elmer]

Still holding out for either the Millenium Hilton (downtown/soho/financial district,), or second choice would be the New York Hilton (Midtown, 1335 Avenue of the Americas)-- in that order.

Embasy Suites, while a nice a hotel, doesn't measure up to either of the other two properties IMHO.

I've developed a certain comfort level using Priceline- and our third friend just dropped out, so now we really only need a double occupancy.

What's my best strategy if my maximum bid is $130 a night would you say?

thanks!

[elmer]

I just re-read your previous message and realize that I completely missed the point you were making about the 4* hotel at $113.00 on Hotwire believed to be the Embassy Suites...

So if I understand this correctly- the Embassy Suites is located in the same section, (downtown/SoHo/financial district) and is considered a 4*?

I see your point now.....

[elmer]

I think that I will be bidding with a higher maximum bid to try to get the Millenium Hilton, with the understanding that I may inadvertantly over-bid and get the Embassy Suites-- although with the added value of included breakfast, and manager's reception would probably be fine with it after all-

I will also be adding MTW to my bidding in the hopes that I snag the Hilton New York, my second choice...

fingers crossed.

[thereuare]

So to confirm you're looking for a 4* hotel in either the Downtown-Soho OR MTW zone, with a maximum bid of $130?

If this is correct....

At the 4* level you have FIVE re-bid zones. If you're not familiar with re-bidding please read Priceline Re-Bidding Explained and feel free to ask questions and/or confirm your re-bid zones with the board before proceeding.

Select 4* Downtown...

Bid $80, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $85, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $90, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $95, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $100, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 4* MTW...

Bid $80, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $85, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $90, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $95, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $100, if rejected close browser and use our link to re-access PRICELINE

Select 4* Downtown and MTW...

Bid $105, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $110, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $115, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $125, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $130

Any questions feel free to ask.

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

Good luck and let us know how it goes.