Priceline Hotel: Maui/Kauai

[anjel]

I have never used priceline before because I'm not too sure how it works. I want to get a hotel in Maui from 09/06-09/11 and one Kauai from 09/11-09/16. right now I have a price of 239.00 per night at the Sheraton Maui and 205.00 per night at the Sheraton Kauai with the 5th night free on both islands. Do you think I can get a better deal on Priceline and if so what category do I bid on to get hotels similar to this?

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

I assume those rates are before the free nite is included (so multiply by .80 to get your actual nitely cost?)

I would think you'd be very safe (and happy) bidding for Resorts and 5 star properties (if available) and get equivalent properties, but i'll let one of our Hawaiin locals/experts to respond with more specifics since they have better first hand knowledge of the properties and what areas a honeymooner would want to target and/or avoid.

In the meantime you may want to give this thread a read which gives an overview as to how each service works: I've Never Used Priceline or Hotwire.

[LoneStar]

Congratulations, anjel. Yes, priceline can save you money on your honeymoon. Probably A LOT of money, if you're reasonably flexible, and can live with the priceline restrictions (most notably, you don't pick your individual hotel, and reservations are non-changable, non-refundable).

First, given "the stakes" involved here, make sure you become familiar with the bidding rules and simple bidding strategies. My guess is that, after reading the link thereuare has posted, you'll feel reasonably comfortable.

Now the nitty gritty. You've got tons of time, and September is a relatively slow time in Hawaii. That's good, because you're likely to get a good deal and, if you wish, you can wait several months before doing anything.

Looking at your specific plans, though, I think you can get a very good deal RIGHT NOW on a Kauai resort. By browsing through the "packages" feature on priceline for your dates (and please do so, it's a great window into priceline hotel availability -- just type "HNL" as your dummy origin city), I see that the Kauai Marriott Resort is coming up super-cheap. Priceline considers it a 5-star, while they only rate the Sheraton a 3-star. I think you could get it for about $110/night, but given the luxury of time, I'd probably start bidding at $90 and work your way up.

If you decide to wait, there's a good chance you'll be able to get this same deal months from now. There's also a chance you won't. It's a personal call based on how firm your plans are.

BTW, one thing to keep in mind is that the Marriott is in Lihue and the Sheraton is in Poipu. Pretty close to each other, but a little different (get a frommer's or Fodor's guidebook if you want to read the pros and cons. If for some reason you don't want a glitzy resort on Kauai, my favorite place to stay on that island is the Waimea Plantation Cottages, which are in the "middle of nowhere" and I think are very romantic, but are not for everybody (they're a laid back taste of old Hawaii). They're not on priceline, but hotwire sometimes offers it, and they can usually be had for half off with an Entertainment Card booking through Aston.

Regarding Maui, the Sheraton there is classified as a resort, and successful bids seem to go for about $150. It's a good choice, I think (if you like glitzy hotels, of course) and there's a very good chance you could eventually get it on priceline. Unfortunately, right now, none of the Maui resorts seem to have good deals, based on the results of a priceline packages search for those days. So I don't think you would be successful bidding in that range at this time. I think it's just too early -- they haven't loaded their rates. So while Kauai bidding might be a good idea now if your plans are firm, I'd sit tight on Maui and just check that packages function periodically to see if better rates are loaded.

[anjel]

Great thanks for the advice, The Sheraton Maui works out to 236.00 a night for POV room, so maybe I'll wait but how do I know what kind of room category I'll get ie. garden view, POV, OV?

[LoneStar]

"how do I know what kind of room category I'll get ie. garden view, POV, OV?"

You don't know what room you'll get. Plan on getting the "worst" category, which I guess is usually a "garden view" room. That's the tradeoff for saving a ton of money.

Of course, sometimes the hotel is nice to priceline customers and you get a better room. I'd say that happens about 1 out of every 3 times. And, of course, you really want to tell the front desk clerk you're on your honeymoon when you check in. If that doesn't help, nothing will!

[anjel]

okay l'll try. last question what category should I choose, resort or 3 star to get the Marriot or something similar?

[LoneStar]

Check only the "resorts" box!! That's what the Kauai Marriott is rated. It's a little confusing, because "resorts" is really like a 5-star, even though it appears on the list below 1-star. If you bid for a 3-star, you could get a much lower quality property.

So what you want to do is go to priceline hotels (you might want to use the link provided by the moderator so he can earn a commission for directing you there), put in your dates, and put your destination as "Kauai." You will then be directed to bid on a zone. Check Kapaa, and then the category -- check only "resorts." You then need to enter a price. As I explained the other day, my guess is they want around $110, but you might want to start bidding at $90, "just in case." If your bid is rejected, you get one free "rebid" for the Princeville zone, because there are no resorts there. So when you get a rejection notice, just add Princeville to your request and raise your price $5 to $95. You will likely get this bid rejected, but then you get to start all over in 72 hours. At which time you should bid $100 for a Kapaa "resort". If it gets rejected, add Princeville at $105. And if that doesn't work, 3 days later bid $110, and so on.

During this bidding, you may messages from priceline that you're not bidding enough. Ignore them. After you bid, you may get a counter-offer. Ignore that, too (it means you're getting close, though).

Good luck!

[anjel]

I've been trying for about a month now for Maui the Sheraton. I am not going to bid for Kauai, my back up deal works out better. I bid as high as 180 per night in Maui because I saw that some folks we getting 150 and 170 but I haven't had any luck. I will keep trying.