Boston Hotels-Weekend Deals?
Dec 14th, 2001 | 01:42 PM
#5
Guest
Posts: n/a
Cissy, Go to http://www.BiddingForTravel.com and read the Hotel FAQs for info on how to bid on Priceline. Doing it properly is a bit of an art--coming up with an initial bid, understanding the free-rebid strategy to maximizing the number of rebids, etc.
On that same Web site, go to the Massachusetts-Boston hotel topic to see winning (and a few nonwinning) bids that people have reported. This will give you examples of what you might expect to pay for certain zones and star-levels of hotels in the Boston area.
There's also an area (scroll down the home page of that Web site) where people can submit reviews of the hotels they've stayed in. That might help you determine if there are zones or star-levels you want to avoid.
The short answers to your questions are:
(1) Yes, if you submit a bid and it's accepted, your credit card is immediately charged.
(2) Yes, you can specify a zone or zones (and a star-level, too).
(3) Any time is okay, in general, when you're only talking 4-5 weeks out. What some people do is start bidding fairly early, but they stop bidding at a fairly low price. A week later, they try again, with a higher stopping price than the week before. They repeat this until they either get a winning bid or the travel dates are getting close, at which time they bid up to the maximum price they're willing to pay--in most cases, if they've done their homework, they'll get a winning bid.
If you do go with Priceline, be sure to use a link on BiddingForTravel.com that will add $5/night (up to $25 total per bid) of bonus money to your bid, which saves you some cash.
If you're not comfortable with the risk of getting a hotel you don't want, don't use Priceline. I haven't used Priceline for Boston hotels, but I've been happy with the 3* hotels I've gotten through Priceline in Arizona, Oregon, Idaho, and Vancouver, BC. And the prices were great!
Usual disclaimers apply--no vested interest in your using Priceline or the Web site mentioned above, don't use Priceline if you want a specific hotel, there's no guarantee you'll match previous winning bids (although it's possible you can match or even beat them), yadda, yadda...
Whatever you do, enjoy your time in Boston!
On that same Web site, go to the Massachusetts-Boston hotel topic to see winning (and a few nonwinning) bids that people have reported. This will give you examples of what you might expect to pay for certain zones and star-levels of hotels in the Boston area.
There's also an area (scroll down the home page of that Web site) where people can submit reviews of the hotels they've stayed in. That might help you determine if there are zones or star-levels you want to avoid.
The short answers to your questions are:
(1) Yes, if you submit a bid and it's accepted, your credit card is immediately charged.
(2) Yes, you can specify a zone or zones (and a star-level, too).
(3) Any time is okay, in general, when you're only talking 4-5 weeks out. What some people do is start bidding fairly early, but they stop bidding at a fairly low price. A week later, they try again, with a higher stopping price than the week before. They repeat this until they either get a winning bid or the travel dates are getting close, at which time they bid up to the maximum price they're willing to pay--in most cases, if they've done their homework, they'll get a winning bid.
If you do go with Priceline, be sure to use a link on BiddingForTravel.com that will add $5/night (up to $25 total per bid) of bonus money to your bid, which saves you some cash.
If you're not comfortable with the risk of getting a hotel you don't want, don't use Priceline. I haven't used Priceline for Boston hotels, but I've been happy with the 3* hotels I've gotten through Priceline in Arizona, Oregon, Idaho, and Vancouver, BC. And the prices were great!
Usual disclaimers apply--no vested interest in your using Priceline or the Web site mentioned above, don't use Priceline if you want a specific hotel, there's no guarantee you'll match previous winning bids (although it's possible you can match or even beat them), yadda, yadda...
Whatever you do, enjoy your time in Boston!
Dec 14th, 2001 | 03:23 PM
#6
Guest
Posts: n/a
Cissy, Just a little more info...
In looking at the last month's worth of reports on the Massachusetts-Boston hotel topic on BiddingForTravel.com, the following 4* hotels have come up for winning bids in the range $51-$85/night. (These prices don't include taxes and the Priceline fee.)
Westin (Waltham)
Westin (Copley)
Swissotel (Downtown)
Colonnade (Copley)
Renaissance (Bedford)
The following 3* hotels have come up in the last month, at prices in the range $40-$55/night (plus taxes and Priceline fee).
Boston Park Plaza (Copley)
Four Points (Waltham)
University Inn (Cambridge)
Sheraton (Braintree)
Hilton Boston Logan Airport (Airport)
Marriott (Cambridge)
These winning bids are all located on the first page of the Massachusetts-Boston hotel topic. There are 10 pages of winning bids listed, in case you're interested in scanning for other winning bids.
Hope this helps...
In looking at the last month's worth of reports on the Massachusetts-Boston hotel topic on BiddingForTravel.com, the following 4* hotels have come up for winning bids in the range $51-$85/night. (These prices don't include taxes and the Priceline fee.)
Westin (Waltham)
Westin (Copley)
Swissotel (Downtown)
Colonnade (Copley)
Renaissance (Bedford)
The following 3* hotels have come up in the last month, at prices in the range $40-$55/night (plus taxes and Priceline fee).
Boston Park Plaza (Copley)
Four Points (Waltham)
University Inn (Cambridge)
Sheraton (Braintree)
Hilton Boston Logan Airport (Airport)
Marriott (Cambridge)
These winning bids are all located on the first page of the Massachusetts-Boston hotel topic. There are 10 pages of winning bids listed, in case you're interested in scanning for other winning bids.
Hope this helps...
Dec 15th, 2001 | 07:23 AM
#7
Guest
Posts: n/a
If you check the website www.bostonusa.com , you will find many different specials. January is a well discounted month.
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Dec 15th, 2001 | 08:05 AM
#8
Guest
Posts: n/a
Cissy,
What can I say, Don pretty much covered priceline in depth. I will tell you that I checked all the usual suspects for pricing, where you don't bid, but do know exactly what hotel you are getting (the websites I mentioned in a previous post). And the best price I saw for the Westin Copley for the night I stayed was $ 149. Priceline was less than half that. If you willing to risk it, the savings are great. Also, if you're bringing a car, the hotels have high parking fees on top of the rate. The Westin was $ 33/night. Factor that into your budget. It's a great city, so have fun!
What can I say, Don pretty much covered priceline in depth. I will tell you that I checked all the usual suspects for pricing, where you don't bid, but do know exactly what hotel you are getting (the websites I mentioned in a previous post). And the best price I saw for the Westin Copley for the night I stayed was $ 149. Priceline was less than half that. If you willing to risk it, the savings are great. Also, if you're bringing a car, the hotels have high parking fees on top of the rate. The Westin was $ 33/night. Factor that into your budget. It's a great city, so have fun!
Dec 17th, 2001 | 07:33 AM
#9
Guest
Posts: n/a
Thanks to all for the excellent info! Don, your explanation left nothing out and easy for my not-so-keen mind to absorb. I think I'll do some homework and might give priceline a try. Will also check out bostonusa.com. Again, I appreciate the feedback.
