Priceline

[RootDKJ]

I remember reading that AndyZee has used Priceline but what about anyone else?

Where did you go?
How many stars did you select?
How much did you bid?
Where did they put you up?
Did you like the place?



No, I'm from Iowa. I just work in outer space

 

[ski220]

never actually completed a booking with Priceline but I've used Hotwire succesfully and gotten some great prices on air,car rental and hotel. I think now the air is mostly the same no matter what site you look at where the itinerary is listed. With Priceline it's not listed prior to purchase

 

[Talisman]

I have used Priceline a number of times for rental cars and hotel rooms. For rental cars ~40-45% off of rack rate seems to be an acceptable bid.

For hotels there is a rating inflation so anything under 3 stars can be a dump. Pricing on hotel bids can be all over the place depending on the area and room availability at the time. More than 50% off of rack rate isn't unusual for hotel rooms on Priceline and there have been some rare instances when a bid of 75% off of rack rate was accepted at some nice hotels.

 

[billski]

I don't find I save that much. I never pay rack rate anyways because I've always got some affinity program that gives discounts: employer, aaa, professional association, etc.
When I have used it, I have only managed to save a couple bucks and often I give up control about where I'll stay and when. With that in mind, I'll spend the couple bucks to have choices.

I'm looking for the ultimate snow day when I arrive spontaneously and ask for their best walk-in rate. Those can often be 60-70% off rack. Hasn't happened yet.

 

[ta&idaho]

You can get ridiculous deals on four-star hotels in big cities. You can find out what people are currently getting at http://biddingfortravel.yuku.com/. The most important concept in Priceline bidding is what's known as the "free rebid." Each time you bid, you have to change one of your search parameters (in addition to the price, as you start low and gradually increase). In most cities, there are many areas without any four-star options, so you can add these zones to get a "free rebid." Suppose you want a hotel in midtown manhattan. You can keep increasing your bid incrementally by adding the midtown zones, but then you can also keep bidding once you have used up all the midtown zones by adding, for example, the Chelsea zone.

Good luck!

 

[Palmetto Native]

I used it this summer for my trip to New England.

The big saver, was spending $55/night to stay at the Affinia Hotel in NYC (across from Penn Station/Madison Square Garden). But I used it on most of our hotels and saved $20-50 per night. (Providence, Portsmouth, NH, Edison, NJ, and NYC).

Wasn't bad, but you have to pay for the hotels up front and you aren't always allowed to earn points/rewards because of the discounts.

Aaron

 

[RootDKJ]

So do you think I'm pushing my luck trying to get a below $75/night @ Stowe?

 

[billski]

So do you think I'm pushing my luck trying to get a below $75/night @ Stowe?

Depends when. Forget about holidays and school vacation weeks, where the town is pretty much sold out. The problem with Stowe is that they really do have a limited room inventory, and because its a destination, these tour groups have rooms locked and loaded months in advance.

If you don't mind driving a few miles, try Morrisville.

 

[RootDKJ]

Depends when. Forget about holidays and school vacation weeks, where the town is pretty much sold out. The problem with Stowe is that they really do have a limited room inventory, and because its a destination, these tour groups have rooms locked and loaded months in advance.

If you don't mind driving a few miles, try Morrisville.

Jan 3-8 or Jan 10-15 or some time in between. I'm still trying to figure out how long of a trip I want to do. I did 12 days at Killington last January and by 10 day I was hurting almost to the point where it wasn't fun anymore.

 

[aveski2000]

I'm heading to Utah in late Feb. Will be staying into first week of March. I might be solo the first four nights, so I booked this place on Priceline a total of $190.16. It's by the airport and also right off the interstate. Looks like a nice place and a good deal.
http://www.saltlakecityairport.place.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels/place/index.jsp

 

[RootDKJ]

So do you think I'm pushing my luck trying to get a below $75/night @ Stowe?

Used Priceline and got The Golden Eagle Resort for $70/night. Combined with the free "Stowe Points Card" ($59 lift tickets) I get with my Blue pass, I'll be skiing Stowe for $130 a day. I can totally live with that. :smile: