JudyADenver

My friend and I are driving to Atlanta on a 4 day shopping spree and want to be in the Lenox Square/Buckhead area. The Marriott, Ritz Carlton, Westin are too expensive (we want to save our dollars for shopping). Seems that the other choices are the boring chains such as Courtyard by Marriott, Residence Inn, Staybridge Suites etc. I can't seem to find a moderate place which has consistent good reviews on Trip Advisor. Any suggestions for 3 nights in mid Sept for two women (not interested in night life)under $200 per night? Quiet, clean with comfortable beds are important.

cab5s

Hotels in that area tend to be expensive and even some of the ones you named are a pretty decent walk from the mall. The Embassy Suites in that area is pretty nice and includes a nice breakfast and daily free Happy Hour. If you can't find something you like in that area, you might consider staying downtown or somewhere else that is close to Marta and just taking Marta to the mall.

caribtraveler

Have you ever considered bidding for your hotel with Priceline? We just came back from a short weekend stay in Atlanta and bid for a 4* in the Buckhead area. We won a room at the Intercontinental for $70/night (regular room rate was $219/night). Beautiful, classy hotel. The other 4* you could win are the Westin, the Grand Hyatt or the JW Marriott.
Obviously, you have to know your dates for sure and be aware that Priceline is not refundable. If you are interested, go to biddingfortravel.com to see what people have been winning for Atlanta and for how much.
Good luck whatever you decide.

iceeu2

Priceline bids I have been successful with in Buckhead were:

June, 2005, Intercontinental-$65
August, 2005, Grand Hyatt-$65
September, 2005, JWMarriott-$65
February, 2006, Grand Hyatt-$72

Read biddingfortravel.com very carefully if you have never done a priceline bid before.

It is so exciting when you pay $65 for a hotel that is going for $189.

My favorite was the JWMarriott especially for it's location.

JudyADenver

Whenever my husband travels, we always get this room through Priceline. My concern with the Atlanta trip, is that we must have 2 beds--a king bed with 2 women having hot flashes just would not work! Although I am reasonably sure those 4 star hotels would have two beds per room. I wouldn't want to prepay for the nights and not have the bed arrangement acceptable. Any ideas?

iceeu2

Judy...when we got the Intercontinental...we just sweet talked the desk clerk...it was all girls. We agreed to stay on a smoking floor if he didn't make us stay in the same room as the smoker!

He was so cute......found us rooms across from each other........I really think it's easier to get 2 doubles than a king,,,but who knows? Crap, for $65/night you could get separate rooms.

GoTravel

Go to Hotwire and put in that you have four people. That way you are assured of two beds.

cab5s

I'm not sure Hotwire or Priceline can guarantee a smoking/nonsmoking room or type of bed no matter how many people you enter. I used to use Hotwire all the time but eventually stopped because I kept getting smoking rooms and the hotels told me it was their right to select my room when booked through Hotwire. I checked the Hotwire website and it was true - they say they try to request nonsmoking king rooms, but ultimately it is up to the hotel.

Brian_in_Charlotte

I think Pricelining 2 separate rooms is a good idea, but if you don't like using Priceline, the Embassy Suites is a great choice.

starrsville

There's a Sheraton across the street.

starrsville

And, an AmeriSuites about a 1/2 mile away that has run $99/night specials.

JudyADenver

The Sheraton across the street and the Amerisuites both have very disturbing reviews on TripAdvisor. The Embassy Suites Buckhead is completely sold out for Sept 18 for 3 nights! The Homewood Suites, Embassy Suites and Hampton Inn are all near the Galleria--about 6 miles. Do any of those choices sound reasonable? I must admit we are tempted to try Priceline for 2 rooms but if there is a convention in the area, we won't have a chance at a $65 4 star hotel.

Brian_in_Charlotte

I wouldn't stay way out at Galleria. I'd take the Amerisuites over that no matter what the reviews.

There's no risk of at least trying Priceline at a 4-star level. I wouldn't think a convention downtown would fill up all the Buckhead hotels (at least this far in advance).

padams421

I haven't looked at a calendar to know what days of the week that will be in Atlanta. The Buckhead hotels often have specials for Fri./Sat. nights when those hotels have many empty rooms. Weekday rates are typically much higher because those hotels get a lot of business travel traffic. The Galleria area hotels are just as far from Lenox as the midtown hotels so you might expand your search to include midtown Atlanta.

starrsville

I've stayed at both in the last year and they are fine. Not in the league of a JW Marriott, Ritz or Westin, but the rates aren't in that league either.

cab5s

I wouldn't recommend staying in the Galleria area either - it is too hard to get back to Buckhead from there. You are much better off in Midtown or Perimeter.

JudyADenver

This is trickier than I anticipated. I read through Atlanta hotels on biddingfortravel.com Seems that bids were mostly accepted for weekends--we need a room for Mon, Tues, Wed. What are free rebids on Priceline? Would we have a better chance of getting accepted by a 4 star if we start out at $75 rather than being rejected for a bid too low?

I have heard that the premium hotels put priceline guests in the worst rooms--near the ice maket, elevator, no view etc. Do you find that true?

starrsville

I don't know why you are considering driving in horrible Atlanta traffic from the Galleria area or other, when you could just walk across the street from the Sheraton. The hotel is used by many Southern "ladies" as their base for shopping at Phipps and Lenox. I read the TripAdvisor reviews and didn't see anything there that would concern me. It IS a well used Sheraton. No, it's not the Ritz. No, it's not the JW Marriott. But, it's a good deal in a great location for Lenox shopping.

Yes, the deals are better via Priceline on weekends when hotels are not filled with business travelers. Yes, there is a chance you will get the less desirable rooms.

Do keep checking the Ritz rates. Sometimes they offer shopper specials - but maybe not for weekdays.

Go with your top 3 (and pay the price) if you want to be "wowed". Stay several miles and go crazy with frustration in traffic if you want a "nicer" hotel" but further away.

A few months ago, I was leaving the Container Store on Peachtree with an hour to spare before I needed to be at a friend's house a few blocks away. I decided not to attempt a left turn and went right on Peachtree with plans to stop at a store on the way. Short story = it took almost the full hour just to drive a big rectangle (Peachtree/Lenox/Piedmont) back to my starting point. An hour wasted in traffic to go basically nowhere. Good luck commuting (during commute hours) to Lenox from Galleria.

starrsville

...and you don't get a more comfortable bed than the Sheraton...part of the Starwood group. Join the Starwood program to try to get a better room assigned at check-in.

iceeu2

There's also a new SpringHill Suites in the area.