I am thinking about using priceline to get a hotel in Newport R.I. We are going the end of June. When I went to priceline they grouped Newport and Newport Beach area as the same. In all my looking the two areas have nver been talked about seperatly. Is it the same or would both be o.k? What hotels do they offer there and any ideas on what I should offer? Thanks

You can try this web site to get an idea about hotels and rates before using Priceline. There is no difference between Newport and Newport Beach. Good luck, it's a busy place in the summer.

http://www.newportonline.com/lodging.asp

Go to BiddingForTravel.com and look at the hotel section for Massachusetts/Rhode Island. First posting is the "Hotel List". Looks like only two hotels have come up on BFT for Newport Beach, both 3-star properties. I saw a recent successful bid for the Marriott for $80/night in February.

Note: Priceline may not be a great option for a popular summer vacation spot like this. I'd give it a shot but don't bet on it.

Andrew

For PCLN advice without an attitude, check out Betterbidding.com.

OliveOyl, i went to the betterbidding site. There's nothing there. Why are people pushing this site anyway.

Biddingfortravel has so much more to offer in my opinion. For example, Bidding has over 1300 posts just on SF where betterbidding has but a handfull on all of California.

"Why are people pushing this site anyway."

Because most of us are tired of the BS that occurs elsewhere... deleted/edited posts if they don't like what you have to say, FAQs which are longer and more difficult to read than a mortgage application, and (imo) just general nastiness.

I guess the rest of us are looking for an alternative, a place where newbies are free to ask questions without having to read thru 10 pages before doing so, a place that can actually be fun to visit, has a good user interface, and is FRIENDLY!

BetterBidding is also more concerned with the user getting the best deal, no matter where that deal may come from. They not only cover Priceline, but Hotwire too, as well as deals NOT available thru Priceline and Hotwire.

BetterBidding is only about 2 months old and i think they've done an excellent job so far. Some areas are already complete, some still need some work, but if we continue to post our winning bids then the database will continue to grow and be complete in short order. Every journey has to start with the first step, and i think BB is already well on their way.

So it would be appreciated if you, and everyone else, posted your winning results there, as we'll all be able to benefit from it in the future. It also provides a good forum to publicize other travel related deals you may find.

I was an avid support of Biddingfortravel.com and posted my Priceline results there regularly. Despite making every possible effort to bid intelligently and despit making the effort to ensure that I posted there consistently and used their "bidding links" to ensure that BFT got credit for the link, I found that my posts were regularly picked apart and criticised for the shortcomings of my bidding techniques and choices. I'm an experienced and very regular user of PL and easilt able to handle constructive criticism. What troubled me was the tone of the moderators responses to my posts. I had private email discussions wiht her on a number of occasions and the result was her conclusion that we have "different styles". It's her website and she's unquestionably entitled to that opinion. I, on the other hand, prefer to go where I feel comfortable and welcomed.

It's true that the new site www.betterbidding.com has a dearth of information but everyone has to start somewhere. Once upon a time BFT had almosty no info either. What's more... any bidding info that's more than six months old isn't of significant value anyway. I appreciate that the new site has sections for other travel related deals and also allows for Hotwire info to be posted and discussed. Count me among the group who is posting there and will continue to do so - I hope they succeed. I'm sure BFT will continue to enjoy its own audience but I think the time is right for an alternative and I'm glad there is one.

For what it's worth, I've posted numerous posts on BFT over the last year and a half and never had one "picked apart". But I'm very aware of the posting guidelines.

If you are new to Priceline, read and understand the BFT FAQ - don't just skim it. Priceline is harder to use than Hotwire - to get the best deals with Priceline, you must understand how to use it. The BFT admins will be extraordinarily helpful compared to other boards - if you are willing to take the time to understand the FAQ and answer the simple questions they ask before providing bidding advice.

Andrew

Budman, Bo and Owen said virtually everything I would have had I seen your note before now. BFT's primary problem, IMHO, is the treatment of potential bidders, which in my view, can border on the outrageous. I've seen jaw-dropping rudeness on her part...rudeness that had I been the recipient, would have sent me skittering for the sidelines. Competition does absolute wonders for such problems and if others post to BetterBidding, that site too will grow and become a valuable resource.

And if you do use BFT, be certain that when answering the "simple questions" Andrew mentioned above, you don't leave out #13 which says you will use BFT's link when you go to bid on PCLN. Three slaps with a wet noodle if you fail to answer that one yes. You'll find yourself right back at square one for such a dastardly oversight. I find that sort of petty attitude, coupled with other examples of what comes across to me as absolute arrogance, intolerable in a business, and frankly, would be happy to see another site take off and give them a run for their money. I left school ages ago and don't feel the need to be treated as a child at this point in my life, nor do many other adults. By the way...I have never bid there, but read often, keeping tabs on our business, so this isn't sour grapes from having been on the receiving end of her stick! I feel very sorry for those who have been, however, especially the newbies who were anything but prepared for it.

Olive - we share not only a set of initials (OO!) but a similar viewpoint. I consistently used their bidding links and contrary to Andrew's assertion I did regularly read and try to operate by their suggested guidelines (Andrew - exactly what is your specific affiliation with BFT? It appears highly likely that you have one...).

The fact remains that on occasion I had reasons for bidding in a specific way (which I always attemoted to articulate in my posts) yet still got "slapped". Perhaps some bidders, Andrew included, are so experienced and knowledgeable that they never make bidding errors and meet with the approval of the moderator. My sole purpose in visiting BFT was to share winning bid information and learn from the experiecnes from others. Fortunately, we live in a country where we have many choices. I'm voting with my mouse by utlizing a resource where I'm treated with courtesy.

My affiliation with BFT is easy: satisfied customer (of Priceline). I'm not a moderator, customer, vendor, anything more than you are. But since discovering BFT over a year ago, I've saved tons of money on hotels - not really rental cars or plane tickets, but I've done great on hotels. Good lord, where else on the web can you get the kind of free advice that can save you real money? That's why I toot their horn whenever I can.

I do have a website that - contrary to the more paranoid out there - I created out of the goodness of my heart (believe it or not, some people still do nice things for others for nothing in return). Both BFT and BB link to my site - it's used to calculate how much Priceline paid for a room you bid on. My site is free and has no advertising - but it does cost me bandwidth on my website.

I know BFT admins are strict and sometimes overly harsh, but consider how much BS they have to put up with from people unwilling to spend the time reading the FAQ, answering the same basic questions over and over and over again...when they are already answered in the FAQ. You'd probably get grumpy too.

Andrew

Andrew, just for a second, consider how much BS waitstaff put up with, FA's, Front Desk clerks, Claims adjusters, customer support, tech support...you name it. If they responded to their customers in a similar manner, heads would roll, and trust me, every one of them is inundated with dumb questions day in, day out. It is inexcusable. It is unprofessional. As long as BFT has a monopoly on that service I don't see any hope for a change, and frankly suspect it's a personality flaw that might not be correctable. She's a smart gal, but IMHO, one who perhaps needs to take a little breather before she destroys what she has created.

OliveOyl, BFT is not a hotel or restaurant where you are *paying* for service. BFT is a *FREE* website via which you can *save* money. The only way BFT makes any money at all is if you bid through their links (and actually succeed). Given the kind of service they provide and the money many of us regularly save, they ought to be making a lot more than they make.

I read BFT a lot, and I'm astounded how quickly Sheryl replies to posts. We're talking often minutes, not hours, until she responds to a query. Tell me where else on the web you can find *FREE* service like that??? All so you can save a few or a lot more than a few bucks on your vacation?

And for this free service that saves you money you expect the admins to kiss your ass? (But - but she hurt my *feelings*, waaaaaaaaaaaaah!) I'm sorry, but if someone is willing to bend over backwards to help me save money, I'm not going to be snotty and expect them to be ever-so-polite when I'm asking dumb questions I could have answered myself if I was willing to take a few minutes of my precious time to read an FAQ. It's too bad some of the replies from BFT admins are abrupt and offend a few people, but given what you are getting for nothing, you have little right to complain.

BFT's strict, sometimes harsh attitude does have a welcome side effect: the board is well organized and full of useful information, not clutter I have to sift through. That means I get what I need to know a lot more quickly, and I like that.

Listen: I'm all for alternatives to BFT (especially a Hotwire version), but good luck to anyone trying to match the level of service they provide. It's a hell of a lot of work to keep a busy board like that going and also keep it useful, relevant, and organized.

Andrew

Whether you pay for the service or receive it at no cost has absolutely no bearing on whether or not an individual should treat another with civility, Andrew. What the heck is that all about? There is no excuse for that level of rudeness in any kind of dealing, business or personal, EVER, and to assert otherwise is silly. If I'm a Social Worker, doling out financial assistance and advising on community resources I have every right to treat my clients with brusque rudeness, chastise them for failing to read all the rules for receiving my assistance? Sounds that way--after all, it's free and I'm providing them with terrific financial benefits.

Rarely have I seen those who've had their hands spanked display any sort of "snotty" attitude prior to the chastisement--it comes out of the clear blue, a lightning bolt. And no one is asking for "ass kissing" in any way shape or form, but common ordinary decency in dealings with others who have done nothing more offensive than to fail to answer a question properly, or to understand a format. And God forbid you express an opposing view! What sort of business model is that--in this country anyway? gt;

Civility should NOT be an arguable point, Andrew. There is no excuse for ill-mannered, discourteous behavior. If you can't handle dumb questions or incomplete "work", then you have no business being *in* the business, because that's just a fact of life. She does work hard, no doubt about it, but if that is the result, she'd be well advised to get more help and take a break before it breaks her.

I would love to see BetterBidding.com succeed, as this sort of thing will persist as long as BFT believes they've got a lock on bidding assistance, with no competition. Hopefully others will post winning bids on BetterBidding.com--build the site up. Certainly those who don't want to risk that wrath will find a comfortable home, with increasing usefulness. I wish "hotel" luck in his endeavor and hopefully the competition will bring about some positive change. What have you got to lose, anyway, in their success? I don't understand your concern with BetterBidding? Why welcome a Hotwire model, but not an alternative PCLN model? Is it because the former offers no competition to BFT for PCLN's dollar whereas the latter does?

Hey Owen. I like your initials. I didn't realize you'd had problems at BFT as well. I know you�ve done a lot of PCLN bidding so was surprised to hear that. I've read a lot of your posts...you couldn't exactly be branded brash or snotty, not an inexperienced traveler, nor hardly a rabble rouser!

I responded to the above mentioned rudeness of the BFT owner/moderator the same way I would if treated this way by any other business - I voted with my feet and refuse to "bid through our links". They are may still be making some money when I "window shop" at BFT, but I would never buy anything at a business that treated its customers in the way they are treated at that site.

Part of owning a business and dealing with the public is that you must be silently tolerant of their "stupidity" and other shortcomings and not rant at them if you find them annoying.