Hotwire is offering a 3-star strip hotel in Las Vegas for $69. Does anyone know what kind of hotels Hotwire would designate "3-star?" (please give specific examples, ie. Exalibur, etc.).

I've always gotten the best deals by calling the hotels directly.

Why not try that?

for hotwire hotels try looking at biddingfortravel.com

betterbidding is better for hotwire than is biddingfortravel

match up the list of amenities with the ones described by successful bidders on betterbidding.com

you can also go into hotwire as if you're planning a vacation package. that's when HW lists the names of the hotels offered for the dates you've chosen. you can then make a more educated guess about which one they're offering in a hotel only booking.

as much as ever, when you're soliciting comments and feedback on VEGAS hotel prices, it's crucial that you include the dates you plan to go, because that is really the key to determining whether you're getting a good deal. if a convention is in town that same 3* hotel might be double the price per night.

Here is a recent post from better bidding.com

3* LV Strip
Sahara Hotel and Casino

$30 per night
Taxes and Fees $12.95
Total $72.95

Casino
Restaurant
Pool
Business Centre
Golf Nearby

Riviera, Stardust, Sahara, Boardwalk, Frontier, Stratosphere.

If you added up all the stars from that last group of hotels, it still shouldn't total 3 in my humble opinion.

I've gotten great rates via the Southwest airlines website. You can book hotels thru them without flying with them (who knew?) And you get to see what the hotels are.

Just go to reservations and hit the hotel tab and take it from there.

I booked recently via Southwest at the Excaliber (theoretically a three star). The best rate I could find anywhere else was $79, SWA had them for $46. Have had similar savings/experiences in the past (and at 3-5 star hotels).

You can usually get a better deal by going to the hotel's web site. We are frequent visitors to Las Vegas. The hotels often run specials that will beat any of the on-line travel sites. The $69 price you mention is nothing very special for that quality of property unless you are talking weekends or during special events.

The following link is for Caesars Entertainment ( formerly Park Place Entertainment ) which owns Caesars Palace, Flamingo, Ballys, Paris, and LV Hilton in Las Vegas. The first 4 are very well located on the mid-strip and are good properties. Check out their specials. We always stay at the Flamingo which has one of the best pool areas in Las Vegas.

http://www.caesars.com/Corporate/LasVegas

We got our best deal by going directly to the hotel's website. Most hotels will offer short notice specials at the last minute to fill up their hotels. My suggestion is to tie up a reservation now, and cancel it if you find a better rate and place at the last minute, just know what the cancellation policy is thru hotwire.

FYI, the $46 I got via Southwest (booking hotel only, no flight with them required) was better than the hotels best deal. Booking directly with the hotel for the same dates the best price either via their website or via direct call to the hotel was $79.