111op

I'm seeing JFK to LHR for about $450 on Orbitz on Virgin.

Any other places I should check? I checked site59.com yesterday.

I'm taking a look at bidding for travel, and it looks like the recent bidding history is a bit weak. Does someone have a good PL strategy? I've only used it once for London last May.

I only need a room for Saturday night -- expecting to be back Sunday.

Thanks!

111op

I bought my ticket last night, and I'm trying to use Priceline. In some warmup sessions last night, I didn't manage to get 4* Mayfair (up to $95, I think). I didn't get 4* Westminster or 4* Bloomsbury either, but I got a counteroffer of $90+ when I bid $60.

I'm lining up some backup options. I see that 87 Vauxhall is listed at RatesToGo for $97. If I remember right, this hotel has come up on Fodor's before. Could people remind me again what they think of this hotel?

I only need a hotel for one night (Saturday night).

Thanks!

WillTravel

I stayed at that hotel when it was a Comfort Inn, in 2003. It was rather orange, but everything was pretty new and in good shape then. There are two buses right outside the door.

I wonder why they're no longer a Comfort Inn.

111op

I just looked at the website and it's listed as a Comfort Inn. Or maybe I just imagined it?

Do you know how long it would be to walk from that location to Trafalgar's Square? Or to Waterloo?

I don't have a London map in front of me.

Thanks!

WillTravel

Oh - their web site still exists too - http://www.comfortinnvx.co.uk . So maybe they are co-branding, or something.

I think it's about 1.25 miles to Victoria Station, so how far would Trafalgar be beyond that - maybe another one or 1.5 miles?

WillTravel

The location was reasonably convenient for visiting the Imperial War Museum. I'd guess that Waterloo would be about a 30-minute walk.

111op

Hm.... Not sounding tempting at the moment. Since I've no idea how night buses run in London, I'm not especially thrilled about the prospects of long walks at 3 am.

WillTravel

I don't think it's a great location for 3 AM walks.

fishee

travelocity is showing $143 r/t before taxes on lufthsana but not sure if that will work for your dates...

111op

Are you sure about that price on Lufthansa, fishee?

Anyway, I've bought my ticket on Virgin already. But it's useful to know anyway.

AA is actually offering an E-saver for next weekend.

fishee

sorry, didnt see that you bought airfare already. i got the riverbank plaza hotel on priceline -- i think it's one of the few 4* in that zone, not sure. the hotel was great -- 5 minute walk to major busline or 9 min walk to tube. right on the river thames.

rkkwan

Don't be upset. The final price after tax and surcharges for the LH fare is also around $450.

111op

Thanks rkkwan. I know that I can never get the lowest fare anyway because I usually travel during the weekends. So I just keep the low price in mind for comparison purposes.

And since I bought the ticket yesterday to leave on Friday, I'm actually happy that I managed to find something for $450.

fishee

I think $450 is a great price for weekend travel to LHR. kwan is right -- after taxes that price shoots way up and I assume that it would be even higher than $450 for weekend travel. I use dream maps on travelocity where I can only get the lowest shown fare around 40-50% of the time. You need very flexible travel plans to take advanatge of it. http://dps1.travelocity.com/dreamMap...ce=TRAVELOCITY

111op

I was just on Virgin's website to do a DIY checkin, and I figured that I'd check the price of the ticket. It still hasn't changed. So theoretically I could have booked my ticket today to leave after work today.

Just thought I'd share this with people.

I'm staying at Days (Inn) Hotel near Lambeth North tube station. Thanks to WillTravel for finding me a rate on Orbitz that's $98 for a double ($91 for single).