Hi friends:
this is why I did. I placed a bid for a hotel on Priceline and I got the Ramada inn Boston at 800 Morrissey Boulevard, for five nights(June 13-18 '05). It's for myself and the wife. Please tell me the pros and cons of that location. We are just going sightseeing, love to walk and are in good shape. Please be as candid as possible, since the bid is non refundable. Thank you.

Go to Ramada's website and sign up with them as frequent guest even if you'll never stay there again. Check if you can get points for this stay.

I did it once with Ramada, but not through Priceline, and one 5-nights stay gave me enough points for a free savings book for any area of my choice. Better then nothing!

Sorry don't know anything about Ramada in Boston.

Thanks again.
eN

Don't know the hotel, but the location stinks. It is in Dorchester, a part of Boston which is not near anything. It is not a walking area. Best I can say is that it was probably inexpensive - which is a big deal in scarily expensive city.

Research with hotel how to get to downtown Boston from hotel - perhaps they have a shuttle. Go to MBTA.com and you can research public transportation from hotel.

This hotel is in the south Boston zone and most of the things you will want to see are in north Boston. Next time you bid Boston hotels bid Copley/Back Bay or Downtown zones. You should be able to take the T to the Back Bay or North End to sightsee.

I guess, I blew it again.

The location is horrible-- I've stayed in Dorchester and will NEVER do that again, even if it's the last room in New England. I would never bid on a Boston room in any zone other than the Back Bay, personally. But....

I hope it was a REALLY low price. Anything more than $30 is a ripoff for Dorchester.

Buyer beware. I never bidded for that area. My choices were Downtown , Back Bay Cambridge and World Trade Center, on the Priceline website. $75.00 per night though. They gave me what they wanted and now I cannot get my money back( I guess you get what you pay for).

EN made a mistake, can somebody be positive? Is there any public transportation to the usual tourist areas?

You need to contact Priceline again and tell them the zones you bid and that you were given a hotel in South zone. This hotel is clearly not in any of the zones you bid and Priceline should not place you in a zone you didn't bid.

It's our 36th anniversary. Can anybody offer some words of comfort? I'm thinking on blowing off the money and going somewhere else. Screw the money, you only live once!

en, did you do what kybourbon suggested?

By the way, happy anniversary you poor guy! Sorry, that's not very comforting

Yes I did. But the person from Priceline said that according to their records, I did bidded for south Boston also. I didn't have any records of the areas I bidded so can't prove anything..

HI en---so sorry this happened and I have to say that your idea of just chalking up the loss may be your best/only option. Is there *any* possibility they would let you apply it to another location? I cannot imagine any reason for a hotel in such a non-tourist friendly location.

I fear your anniversary will not be pleasant if you stay there. Maybe Ramada will negotiate w/you directly to make a change, altho off the top of my head, I don't know if there is any other Ramada location in Boston. However, there may be one....

You have my sympathies - having made some hotel mistakes myself. Nothing like arriving at an awful hotel with family looking at you since you were the one who booked it.

I truly can not think of anything good to say about this location. I am not trying to make you feel worse, but thinking you would rather know ahead of time. I might try again with Priceline, ask to talk to the supervisor's supervisor - cry, plead - anything. But my guess is that they have heard every true and fabricated sad story in the books.

Now - move on. Do some really good research about Boston. Book a couple of really nice dinners someplace. Impress your spouse with how carefully you have planned the rest of the trip.

Priceline will generally give you a one-time-only reprieve. If you haven't used yours yet, phone them and explain that you are completely unfamiliar with Boston and, had you known better, should not have bid the South Boston zone. (There is a South Boston zone, and they can tell your bidding history in their records.)

With luck, they will cancel that bid and assist you with rebidding while you're still on the phone. The Hyatt Downtown has availability for your dates and has been going for $62/night with Priceline. You'd want to stick to Back Bay and Downtown zones, and a 4* hotel, maybe 3*. (Ramada on Morrissey is a 2*).

I highly recommend that anyone not experienced with Priceline bidding carefully study bidingfortravel.com, even request bidding assistance, to avoid less than thrilling results.

As others have said, the location of this hotel, 5 miles from downtown Boston, is not favorable, particularly the neighborhood. It's 3/4 mile from a subway station, a walk I would not want to take. But, maybe you'll get lucky and the promised shuttle service will be available. (See reviews at TripAdvisor.com)

Thank you all for being so gracious. I will call Priceline again and report back to you.
En

This Ramada is no where near public transit - you would need a car or you would need to take taxi. This hotel is only convenient if you are doing business south of Boston - not visiting Boston.

Well I never fell so important in my life.
Thank you all for the concern.
To make the story short Priceline said no
twice. So I have to eat crow.
Now please help me with the final questions:
Is this a bad neighborhood. If I rent a car, could we manage, isn't?

It would be more economical and more convenient to use taxis for getting to downtown Boston destinations. You don't want to drive in Boston or find parking and pay (expensive) for it.

Allegedly, the Ramada offers shuttle service. You may want to call the hotel directly for details. Be advised that many have reported spotty service (this is true for many of the Boston hotels offering shuttle service, though, not just the Ramada).

Again, it's a 3/4 mile walk to the subway (Field's Corner) station from the Ramada. You could always take the "T" in and taxi back to the hotel to economise.