I want to shoot for the Marriott Marquis or the Renaissance. I am going to New York City for a theatre trip sometime in June, any prices you think I should suggest on Priceline? I just want a good, cheap Times Square hotel.

There was a post recently where it was stated the person got a room at the Times Square Hilton for $85. Hotel is new and it is located on 42nd Street between 7th and 8th Avenues.

I bid $100 for 4 stars and got the Marriott Marquis (pre 9/11). Do a search on this site for Priceline. There is another site you should go to (I can't remember off hand). It gives you alot of tips on bidding and also a $5 allowance on top of your bid.

The website is www.biddingfortravel.com . A definate must see before bidding on Priceline.

You might be thinking of www.biddingfortravel.com.

Nick, if you have your heart set on the Marquis or Renaissance then you must give up Priceline. Although either of those hotels might come up on Priceline, the chances are far greater that no matter what you bid, you will end up with some other hotel. Priceline is fine for saving money, but does not work at all if you have a particular hotel in mind. And once they've set you up in a particular hotel, you're stuck with it.

Nick, Patrick's right if you're set on these two specific hotels. There are nine different hotels that have come up on a 4* bid on Priceline in the Midtown West zone (as listed on BiddingForTravel.com):

Intercontinental Central Park South
Warwick Hotel
LeParkerMeridien
NY Hilton & Towers
Marriott New York Marquis
Westin Essex House
Renaissance New York
Sheraton Hotel and Towers
Millennium Broadway

If you're willing to chance it, these nine hotels seem to come up on Priceline for prices ranging from about $80-$100/night (+ $5/night bonus money available via a link on BiddingForTravel.com.

Of course, it's always possible you might get a different hotel from these nine--new ones appear on Priceline winning bids from time to time. And there's no guarantee you could match these previous winning bids--depends on seasonality, inventory, etc. Of course, it's possible you could do better, too.

If you go the Priceline route, be sure to read the Hotel FAQs on BiddingForTravel.com to learn about coming up with an initial bid, using free rebid zones to maximize your chances of success, etc.

Usual disclaimers apply--no vested interest in your using Priceline or the Web site mentioned above, all winning bids on Priceline are final (even if you don't like the hotel you got), yadda, yadda.

Anyway, good luck!

What area (MT East or West) would I bid if wanting to be close to Penn Station?

For near Penn Station bid Midtown South. I just got a suite at the Avalon hotel on 32nd st between 5th av & Madison (close to penn st.) for $100. It's a 4* boutique hotel and includes continental breakfast. i don't think you can beat this. Penn Station is on the west side but further south than the MT west region on PL(which cover more of the theater district, 40s & 50s, west side).

Where would I bid for Grand Central? Thanks.

Vicki, Grand Central is right at the bottom of the Midtown East zone. It's just north of the Midtown South zone.

It's kind of an unfortunate location, because it's hard to know which of those two zones to bid on. Depending on the specific location of the hotel in a winning bid, a hotel in the South zone might end up being closer to Grand Central Station than a hotel in the East zone--then again, it might not.

Anyway, hope this helps...

I have to agree w/ Don's post. I just did Priceline and got a 4-star hotel, the Millennium Broadway, for $95. I'm pretty happy with that.

First of all, I have to say I get the more informative responses when I post questions about the eastern part of the U.S., particularly NYC! Thanks a bunch. I guess I'm going to give PL a try for NYC but here's my last question, and this is for PL experts (yes, I know about biddingfortravel.com, too!). Our trip isn't until early April? Is bidding now a good idea, or waiting until closer to the time we go and booking a backup just in case. Since there are five of us, I'd need to bid two rooms anyway. Thanks again, all.

ttt