I just checked hotwire and they have a 4 star property in Coral Gables for $142/night and a 3.5 star for $105/night. Has anybody used them for hotels in this area and any ideas on what these places are?? Thx

Check BiddingForTravel.com or betterbidding.com which lists hotels that come up on Priceline and Hotwire.

My guess on the 4* would be either the Omni Colonnade or the Hyatt Regency, and the 3* is the Doubletree. If it matters, I just landed the Hyatt Regency for $48 through Priceline.

I was going to say, do try Priceline for Coral Gables. Have used it 4 or 5 times and have never paid more than $50. We usually get the Hyatt Regency Coral Gables, and the other 4-star would be the Omni Colonnade, as misjanna says. I always bid 4-star, so don't know what the 3-star would be. The Hyatt Regency is very nice, located in downtown Coral Gables, nice pool, etc. We got the Omni for the first time, tho had to bid higher ($64, I think because it is for Easter weekend.

thanks - I've never tried using either priceline or hotwire so this will be a new experience - are there secrets to making it work? I have this vision of bidding for a hotel and ending up with a dump since its a blind auction.

Read over BiddingForTravel.com's FAQ's section before bidding. You should have no problems landing any of the 4* hotels in Coral Gables in the $50 range, as the area, while nice, is not as popular on Priceline as say, downtown (because of the cruise ships) or South Beach. If you are offered a free bid, add an area that doesn't have a 4*, like South Miami, Dadeland or Key Biscayne (which was my tactic.)

marilynl, can you give me any more info on the Hyatt Regency? I've been to Miami a few times, last time stayed in South Beach and wasn't crazy about it, thus the location change. Did you find you were given a good room or treated differently as a Priceline customer? I'm staying there in late April.

Key Biscayne is the first choice anyway but after surfing for hotels there it looks like they are sold out (are there sometimes rooms on priceline for places that appear soldout?). Coral Gables will be the second choice. Stayed on south beach a few years back at the Loews and yuck = smelly rooms and nasty looking neighborhood but I hear its gotten better.

Coral Gables is really not a beach destination. We go there a lot because our daughter is a UM student. The Hyatt there is nice--nicer than the downtown Hyatt, where we also stayed once to attend a particular function in that area. I have not detected any difference in how we are treated in any of the hotels we have stayed in through Priceline, except for the Camino Real at the Mexico City airport.

At the Hyatts, we have received club level rooms if that was what they had. Our first Priceline stay was at the Hyatt Regency Downtown Miami, and I tell you, it felt like stealing: club level room, great views, free breakfast, etc., all for $39 a night!

Have had a variety of rooms in Coral Gables. Best one had a balcony and overlooked the pool, which is large and (I think) on the 5th floor. Had a small room once, but I think the hotel was pretty full, and we checked in very late at like 2 am or something.

Again, I don't find Coral Gables to be particularly beachy, but it is a nice, somewhat suburban feeling area. Vizcaya, a large Italian style villa overlooking the Biscayne Bay built in the 20s by a millionaire, is well worth visiting, as is the Venetian Pool, built in an old rock quarry, if you can find it--winding strets of Coral Gables are not conducive to getting ANYwhere in a straight line!