MilesBuzz! - Hotel programs or Priceline?

I am currently through promotions or qualifing a SPG PLT, HH Diamond, Hyatt Diamond, and Mariott Silver. While I enjoy the perks they seem to be less and less. I used to pay a little more to be involved in a program. Now upgrades seem less worth it and with priceline I seem to be able to pay less than half what I would have to pay to have a qualifying stay. I think I will do more priceline and save the money. What opinions do others have? Hotel programs or priceline?

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dallasflyer, Let's put the fun back in FlyerTalk!

Priceline all the way. From what I've seen, no hotel perk program can possibly equal the value of saving 40%-70% on every hotel stay. I have only paid a published rate for hotels 4 or 5 times since I started using Priceline in 1999.

If it's the company's money, I'll go the hotel program route and try to keep it reasonable. When it's my money, it's Priceline all the way. My last 6 winning bids:

Toronto Intercontinental: $65
Toronto Radisson Suites: $35
Tampa Hyatt Regency: $30 (received all Diamond perks)
Minneapolis Hyatt Regency: $35 (received all Diamond perks)
Minneapolis Hilton: $35 (received all Gold level perks)
Chicago Hyatt Regency: $50 (again, all the perks)

Why would I pay 3-4 times as much when I receive the same benefits except points? There is no way a night at any of these properties yields $100 in frequent guest points...

I save up my points for when the Priceline deals are unavailable, which isn't very often.

I own the company so it is always my money. I just got the Hyatt Regency Denver Tech Center, which is a pretty nice hotel for 10 days at $30 per day. Lowest web site price on Hyatt.com would be about $129 average.

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dallasflyer, Let's put the fun back in FlyerTalk!

[This message has been edited by dallasflyer (edited 10-10-2003).]

After being called a "tightwad from the smallest of companies" in print this year, I'm now forced to use nothing *but* opaques for my business travel, or risk being tarred and feathered by everyone I know who read that blasted article.

The equation to me is simple: I'm an employee-owner of the company, and our business travel is rarely billable back to our customers, ergo, it behooves me to stay for as little as possible. Also, while I may whine about cheap hotel pillows (Hyatt Regency Vancouver, are you listening? *Your* crappy pillows were specifically mentioned in my USAToday interview, but the reporter was nice enough to redact the worst of my vitriol - oh, wait, I'm off on a rant), I am remarkably tolerant of almost any clean, comfortable 2.5 star or better property for business trips, so, Priceline it is.

Do I miss the points? Yeah, but I save more than enough money to pay for that swank suite on leisure trips. I don't have to be worried that I won't be upgraded as an Unobtanium Elite Mondo Executive Premier - I'm guaranteed the room I want. I'm still a ridiculously "elite" guest to the properties I visit frequently (and get treated accordingly - could it be my policy of using some of the money I save to overtip, or is it that I know which desk clerks like flowers and which ones like Scotch and which ones kill for Callebaut chocolate? Dunno.). I just don't have the systemwide recognition. Big whoop - if I want chocolates and bottled water, I can buy my own with the money I'm saving even off a good negotiated rate.

Eric


[This message has been edited by VibeGuy (edited 10-10-2003).]

I'm about 100% leisure travel (the one time I travelled on business, it was made to be done via a corporate rate), so I figure its best to Priceline it - however, if I'm going somewhere on a MR or something, I'll stay at the cheapest place possible & get points. (I'll be staying at a Rodeway Inn in CMH, get the airline miles + the bonus for M.A.R. with NW, and its only 30/night) - however, if it's with multiple people (no family, just friends) I'll use priceline and if I can't get a cheap enough rate, I'll pay the extra 10 bucks to stay at a hotel that I like and earn the points (room is being split 3 or 4 ways, why not?) - so I guess its based on what my purpose is for the travel. Hotels don't have that great of reward programs, but I like knowing where I'm staying. On a MR, I'd rather be able to book a hotel that is near things (bars/movie theaters, etc) or that has free airport transportation and pay an extra few bucks than priceline something that will include additional costs, like taxi cabs or other transportation - also a "free" continental breakfast is great for MRs...
just my 2 cents...

Well, I just made a booking for nights 60-64 at an HHonors hotel. 80% reimburseable business travel, the rest leisure. As such I've always considered the small premium paid for the leisure stays to be worth it for the elite benefits (example: $115/night at the Caribe Hilton in San Juan got me the executive floor, just down the hall from the President to of Uruguay).

I made the switch to Priceline about a year ago. It was a no brainer. I'm thankful for the years of big-company travel that helped me build Marriott and Hilton point totals for six free weeks in Hawaii and Europe, but now that I've cycled through the points, it's no longer worth it to build them back up with my own money.

I still hang on to low-elite cards through various means (promos, credit cards, etc.) but hotel status isn't terribly important to me. Yeah, I like the free breakfasts and executive lounges, but they aren't worth paying 3x the Priceline rate for.

Disclaimer: Most of the hotels I stay in either give breakfast/happy hour to everyone (Hampton, Res.Inn., Embassy, etc.) or no one (most hotels that have designated themselves as "resorts"). If I did a lot of big-city weekday stays in 4* business hotels, I might think differently about the value of status. Then again, I would probably still say "Is breakfast and happy hour worth $100/day? No."

I will always check the winning bid web sites before making a res. I am finding more often that I will reserve on the chains web site and get the benes as most places I do not see much difference. Two recent exceptions were:

Radisson at JFK for one nite, $40 less on Priceline and I still got Gold reward points;

Regal Kowloon one nite $65 less than spg, Marriott, Hilton etc.

Priceline all the way for me.

I even use it for company use when possible (of course, the company travel agent does not like it).

I see it as a way of saving money in my budget for more travel for me or my employees.

William

I am beginning to see the benefits of Priceline. Similarly, I have been able to get pretty good prices on Hotwire as well. So, if hotwire doesn't a price that I am comfortable with, I would try priceline.

Over 80% of my stay is leisure. I don't really care about the hotel programs since I don't stay enough to be their top elite, but I am very particular on which hotel I stay. So I do not use Priceline because they do not let me specify the hotel.

I am all for Priceline except in rare instances where it doesn't work (like the wine package at the Inn my hubby got for me as a gift).

DSW -- What is so special about certain hotels that you won't use Priceline? 4 star hotels aren't all that different -- are they????

I'm near 100% leisure, always on my own dime and definitely partial to Priceline (to give you an idea of the typical budget, Motel 6 was starting to get too expensive for me. In many places they cost double what they did 8 years ago).

Many of my hotel stays, especially in the U.S., are in conjunction with mileage runs. I just can't justify to myself flying someplace and then flying back, so I always make a trip out of it. Typically 3-day weekend, rent car at weekend rate with a free day coupon, hotel through Priceline.

That said, though, there's one frequent destination where Priceline usually falls short: Las Vegas. I always try PL, but it might come through one time in 4 (For LAS I try to pay $15-20/night and top out around $30). Usually the third-party sites like tripreservations.com and Expedia and the websites of downtown casinos will have something PL just can't see to beat. You also have places like the Sahara that you might get through PL that will gleefully charge an extra $3/day energy surcharge, or Palace Station and its $4.95/day "hotel services fee." Seems unfair to me that these guys are on the same footing to take your bid as places that don't charge those fees.

As an aside, cheapovegas.com's "Hotel Bargain Bin" is filling with reports of people landing $10-15 rooms at pretty decent places (through their websites) in Las Vegas during the December dead weeks. Check it out.

I've always liked Priceline for times when I couldn't get an award room or didn't want to use points and the rates in the city were too expensive.

As a Hilton Diamond and Starwood Platinum member I have had some luxurious rooms in international cities and that is an incredible feeling because all my travel is leisure. Prior to learning the tricks of the trade on FT I regularly used Priceline, stayed in B&Bs, and always spent a great deal of time trying to find a nice bargain room for my travels. Many of these rooms were wonderfully charming and some were rooms I wish I could forget. I have enjoyed the all around higher standard of the chain lodgings with Hilton and Starwood.

That being said I am now trying to accomodate to program changes with Hilton. Airline mileage transfers made it easy to accrue 600,000 points a year with HHonors and that was enough for 36 nights in luxury hotels. It was worth the money to make sure I had diamond status and access to awards anytime and nice upgrades. Now United and LatinPass have discontinued transfers and at the same time there have hardly been any lucrative bonus point offers in 2003 with Hilton. Starwood looks much more attractive this year.

I think a strategy of Priceline and some status with Starwood is my favored route for 2004. It all depends on where you travel and need rooms as to whether a Priceline only strategy is the best way. Last night I studied the bidding-for-travel board and I see some pretty high rates in the $100-150 range for 4* hotels in several of the European cities. I favor a method of accumulating Starwood stays in the range of $60-80 to accumulate points during bonus offers, Priceline when the rates are low for the places I am traveling or in Europe when I want to conserve hotel points, and then an annual splurge of points for something really luxurious that is way out of the range of my pocketbook change.

My calculation is about an extra $1,000 to split my bookings of about 50 hotel nights a year between Priceline and Starwood, maintain status with Starwood, and accumulate 50,000 points a year vs. an all Priceline hotel stays strategy.

If you search the Hyatt site on Flyertalk, you will see that you can have your cake and eat it too. Hyatt has continuously allowed Priceline stays to qualify for their Faster Free Nights program, which is on yet again from October 15 – February 29. This gives you a free night for every two stays.

The Priceline stays also count towards your elite status in the program, and you are extended all elite benefits on the rate. Starwood will not extend elite benefits on Priceline rates beginning on Jan.1.

Of course you have to use Priceline effectively with the assistance of biddingfortravel.com. During the last FFN promotion at Hyatt. I accrued about 5 free nights on Priceline stays of about $30/night at SFO and other places. I used these nights at their resorts in Maui and Lake Las Vegas.


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[This message has been edited by ericwinter (edited 10-11-2003).]

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by RustyC:
IThat said, though, there's one frequent destination where Priceline usually falls short: Las Vegas. I always try PL, but it might come through one time in 4 (For LAS I try to pay $15-20/night and top out around $30). Usually the third-party sites like tripreservations.com and Expedia and the websites of downtown casinos will have something PL just can't see to beat. </font>

I think this is changing, at least at the upper-end properties. The Venetian for $79 (not uncommon from PL of late) is markedly better than any published deal, and I have personally booked 12 room nights at the soon-to-open Westin Casaurina LV for the low, low rate of $43/night.

Where I find PL especially useful in LV is for big conventions and the week ahead of them; I am consistently able to get better rates than the Casino Guest rate, even at properties where I have rated play.

Eric

I've purchased hotel rooms mostly under 2 loyalty programs (SPG and HH) this year, but once I completed the requirements, I switched a lot of the business over to Hotwire and Wyndham ByRequest 72 hour sale rates. My hotel costs have dropped about 20% this year.

I'm probably going to drop SPG as I have tried and really don't care for any of their products; I prefer HH and will continue to book my 30-35 stays per year with them. More stays will also come through PL and Hotwire.

I agree it is Priceline all the way-
With only one city so far I have refused to use it in- San Juan, Puerto Rico!

In any other larger city you have a choice of areas ( MG- last time I looked MSY had five areas to pick from).

But in SJU you could be stuck anywhere from the Caribe Hilton- Old San Juan, to basically next to a 737 at the airport (what six miles apart).

If location is no problem- go for it-
but if you're looking to spend most of your time in Old San Juan (pre-cruise maybe), or Condado, or Isla Verde- Don't count on being relatively close to what you want.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Tino:
If it's the company's money, I'll go the hotel program route and try to keep it reasonable. When it's my money, it's Priceline all the way.

* * *

Why would I pay 3-4 times as much when I receive the same benefits except points? There is no way a night at any of these properties yields $100 in frequent guest points...

I save up my points for when the Priceline deals are unavailable, which isn't very often.</font>

Ditto. Government travel regs do not permit me to use priceline for business travel, so I usually book the best hotel I can find at the government rate. For a while that was Marriott due to the breadth of choices, but lately I have become partial to Hyatt and Starwood.

Priceline is my first choice for leisure travel, particularly for weekend nights in cities with Hyatt locations. Otherwise I will go with a discounted internet reservation service (e.g. londontown.com, travelworm etc.) depending on the location. I usually end up with a 3*-4* room in the $40-80 range, depending on the season and location.

In the last year, I have only booked 2 leisure stays at posted rates: (1) Bajamar Mexico (I had no choice for a friend's wedding) and (2) Fort Bragg, California. In both cases I was rather pissed off to pay $100+ (the rack in Mexico) for a mediocre sub-holiday inn room. Boy do we get spoiled on priceline.

I expect to have low level elite status by the end of the year in a couple of programs. Depending on the benes, I may re-direct some of my business travel to these programs. But I seriously doubt I will do any "hotel runs" at year end just to get status, with the exception of Hyatt, which still allows you to double-dip (or at least counts PCLN nights for status and provides status benefits on PCLN stays).

For stays &lt;=3 days

1. If a pointstretcher is available, grab it. Best bang for the buck.

2. See if a good Priceline rate is available at a HH hotel that has a track record of honoring Elite status no matter what you pay.

3. If cent/point ratio is higher than 0.75c/point, got with the HH points redemption.

4. If there is no award availability with HH, encash your SPG points as the last resort. With a HH Diamond, capacity control is not an issue.


For stays &gt;= 4 Days

1. HGVC points redemption.


P.S. I would rather stay at a Mid-level Hotel in an upgraded room with elite benefits than at a high-end hotel in the crappy section.

Granted, you can't beat Priceline. Still, I usually don't bother b/c for a regular trip I check the major booking engines and the hotel web sites, then book.

For Priceline I do the above, then I check the location maps (which are pretty good) against the hotels I've already targeted, then I check biddingfortravel.com, then I anxiously bid, wait for Priceline to tell me it's a ridiculously low bid, anxiously check to see whether it's accepted, and if it is, anxiously wonder whether I'll get status recognition and points.

Well, in reality there's very little anxiety, but there is time and uncertainty and sometimes it seems worth it (conventions where it's hard to get a decent rate) and sometimes it doesn't (overnighter at an airport hotel).

I'm 80% Priceline last three years, but always always always have the hotels's program card for any chain you expect to land at and offer it. Sometimes gets you stay credit, often an upgrade, even at chains that advertise they don't do anything for Priceline or consolidator rates. There seems to be a "hotel option" on both of those, and they might just choose to bless you. (Except right how Wyndham, which will tell you what you can do with your card on a Priceline rate).

The caution is Priceline in some markets has gone up and chain web rates have gone down, especially on low occupancy days. The spread some places isn't what it used to me and certainty and perks might be worth the difference. Make sure you don't outfox yourself, especially if the Bidding for Travel (Priceline bidding) thread warns of the rare turkey hotel on Priceline.

Priceline and Hotwire http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/thumbsup.gif

Go to Hotwire first, see what they offer, offer $5-$10 less on Priceline, if it doesn't work, the go with HotWire.

I stayed at Sheratons, Hyatts and Embassy Suites for less than $40 using both services.

Even with the company money.

No reason to spend more http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by fredmartens:
...I switched a lot of the business over to Hotwire and Wyndham ByRequest 72 hour sale rates.</font>

How do you find these Wyndham rates? I took a glance at a couple pages on their web site but found no mention of it...

Plus if you're a Upromise member, you'll get 3% cash back if you book through Priceline. No chain is going to do that for you. ;-)

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by jayer:
(Except right how Wyndham, which will tell you what you can do with your card on a Priceline rate).</font>

I *think* the reason Wyndham plays hardball with the bennies is because their program entitles you to specific, tangible benefits with every stay. (e.g., free long-distance phone calls, free faxing, free high-speed internet, etc.) At least that was the explanation given to me on the 2 Priceline Wyndham stays we've done. In both cases, I was given a nice room (not a real upgrade, but nice view and correct bed/smoke type) and was not given any "attitude" about using a prepaid rate. Just a well-reasoned explanation as to why prepaid rates don't get all of the usual goodies.

I've used priceline with mostly lots of good experiences. The one problem I had was in Flagstaff AZ at the Holiday Inn. They put me in a single, smoking room. Even though PL says you will get NS, queen bed, it is really up to the hotel in the end. I would have moved and eaten the cost if they hadn't moved me first thing in the morning when a room opened up. It was really gross. I booked the room really early and called to confirm my late check in so I wasn't the last one to get a room... just the only one paying below the regular price... which they made a point of mentioning several times.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by kyrie:
I wasn't the last one to get a room... just the only one paying below the regular price... which they made a point of mentioning several times.</font>

No you were not. You paid a "regular" price. Priceline rates are still rates - they're just not rack rates. It's total B.S. on the part of the hotel. No one makes them load inventory into Pl's system - they choose to do it. No one makes them charge $75 for a 4* room - they choose to do it.

Then they blame you for paying the rate that they and PL agreed upon in advance. Screw them! http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/mad.gif

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by notsosmart:
Then they blame you for paying the rate that they and PL agreed upon in advance. Screw them!</font>

Sounds like a few airlines I fly.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by kyrie:
I've used priceline with mostly lots of good experiences. The one problem I had was in Flagstaff AZ at the Holiday Inn. They put me in a single, smoking room. Even though PL says you will get NS, queen bed, it is really up to the hotel in the end. I would have moved and eaten the cost if they hadn't moved me first thing in the morning when a room opened up. It was really gross. I booked the room really early and called to confirm my late check in so I wasn't the last one to get a room... just the only one paying below the regular price... which they made a point of mentioning several times.</font>

You need to report this to Priceline. They should either prevent the hotel from working with them in the future, or make them give you the kind of room you paid for. I would demand a refund in this case.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Tino:
If it's the company's money, I'll go the hotel program route and try to keep it reasonable. When it's my money, it's Priceline all the way.</font>

AGREED!

Followup:

I'd probably use Priceline more on biz trips, but if plans change at the last minute, clients don't like to be billed for empty hotel rooms.

I have used PL all over the world.I have found that I can stay at 3, 4 or 5 star properties for less than the motels which use #'s for names.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by kyrie:
Even though PL says you will get NS, queen bed...</font>

Actually, PL says that they'll request a non-smoking room, and the room will accommodate 2 people. This can mean two twin beds, a double bed, or some other configuration.

Would everyone feel the same way if the other hotel brands went the same way as SPG is going with no Elite Benefits for Priceline bookings?

I have been a Hilton Diamond member for many years and until this year I tried to give most of my business to that chain. When Hilton devalued its points at the beginning of this year I began to look at other alternatives.

I found I could stay in comparable properties usually for half the price I had been paying, using a combination of Hotwire or Priceline. I am self-employed so the money goes in my pocket! In the past I could rationalize paying more by telling myself it was tax deductible.

I enjoyed the perks of being a Diamond, but have noticed a steady decline in the program the past few years. Suites are virtually never available, very few properties have lounges and lately the greatest advantage (Award Room Availability) has disappeared. I am still a Diamond and my last three award room requests were met with “NO AWARD ROOMS AVAILABLE” answer. The only advantage left is a free breakfast and half the time I have to beg for the coupon. The fifty to one hundred dollar savings per night can buy a lot of brealfasts.

As for the above posters comment about losing elite benefits for Priceline stays, Hilton has already implemented this policy and I don’t miss it much. I have traveled a great deal this year and my saving already exceeds five thousand dollars. The points or breakfast just are not worth it.

One other point I would like to make! When you are an elite member of a Hotel Group you tend to expect special treatment because you give them so much of your money. Most of the time my stays as a Diamond were disappointing because very little acknowledgement was given. On a Priceline or Hotwire stay I expect no special treatment so my expectations are always met or exceeded.

I have not used priceline but many of my reservations were in out of the way places where it was not available. I may try it for an upcoming trip. I would not use it for a plane trip as I would not want an itenary that I could not see first, but for a hotel, it probably will work out fine. As for the points & programs, the best thing they have going for them are affinity credit cards - I spend no more than I wouldn't spend already, save the annual fee, which is easily recovered with a reasonable amount of spending on the card.

I no longer travel as much as I used to so I have nothing more than lower level in my hotel programs. My leisure travel is never really enough to earn status so I am moving more towards Priceline. I had my first PL stay recently saving over $100 a night for 3 nights. I got an ES so I got the free breakfast/happy hour which was an added bene. The room was a N/S King which is what I wanted but was a little scared @ the possibility of getting a smoking room.

I would definitely use PL again but probably if I knew the hotel I was going to get was 1 of 2 or 3 in that zone or the only one in that zone. Especially if the savings is great. I probably would opt for a higher points earning rate if it was only $20 more to get a specific hotel in other cases.

Mostly I think it would depend upon the specific situation and what kind of rates I could find.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by lookin4miles:
Would everyone feel the same way if the other hotel brands went the same way as SPG is going with no Elite Benefits for Priceline bookings?</font>

The effect is actually worse than Starwood realizes, as I am reluctant to choose Starwood for my business trips since they won't count my priceline stays towards status. For the same reason, I am switching my lucrative business travel to Hyatt and others - precisely because I receive status recognition for priceline stays.

As someone pointed out above, no one forces a hotel to offer priceline rooms. If they choose to do so, then they should honor their obligations to their elite patrons rather than being penny wise and pound foolish. How much does it cost to upgrade a room, drop off a newspaper and provide access to a lounge with bad pastries and coffee? Not to mention that many of these lounges are closed on weekends, which is primetime for priceline.


[This message has been edited by Boraxo (edited 10-22-2003).]

I have been using priceline for years and love it. Biddingfortravel takes much of the guesswork out of the process, and I can usually be 90% sure that I will be able to get a specific hotel.

I just got the Beverly Hills Hilton for next Sunday night for $82. I also got the Hilton LAX for next Monday night for $40. Both of those represent savings of more than $100/night, so if neither honor my HHonors Gold, that $100 will buy plenty of breakfasts. Half the time I am able to have my hilton # input and when I make a phone call from the room (for an incidental) I get stay credit.

To DCW. I relate well to your view of Priceline. I tried it once, and when I found that I was committed to paying before I knew at which Hotel I would be reserved, I backed-out at that point, never to try again.

About 25% of my Priceline Bookings are no shows for me due to travel plan changes. I still book priceline where possible despite my poor "show-up" record. I am still Hilton Gold the hard way.

Priceline is not useful for many third world destinations.

[This message has been edited by davistev (edited 10-23-2003).]

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Garibaldi:
I tried it once, and when I found that I was committed to paying before I knew at which Hotel I would be reserved, I backed-out at that point, never to try again. </font>

Huh? Using Biddingfortravel will usually reduce your potential choices to about 4-6 properties. For $50, how different is a 4* Marriott from a 4* Westin from a 4* Hyatt from a 4* Hilton from a 4* Intercontinental?

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Garibaldi:
To DCW. I relate well to your view of Priceline. I tried it once, and when I found that I was committed to paying before I knew at which Hotel I would be reserved, I backed-out at that point, never to try again. </font>

That's a good reason to avoid Priceline when you absolutely need a particular property. For example, if you are doing business at a convention center and absolutely need the hotel that's attached to it.

But Priceline isn't after that market. There are other complaints about Priceline, but for the most part the size of their zones doesn't seem to be a common one.

LGA, if you sign up for the Wyndham ByRequest program you get e-mail specials every week. If you happen to be going the right place they are often significant sales. Sometimes beats Pricline in secondary markets (like Galveston), and you know where you will be.

There's no beating PL+Biddingfortravel on hotels and cars when spending YOM as opposed to OPM. I would only note that if you are a big guy like me, and you like sleeping in king beds, PL won't let you book one (although their latest TV commercial shows someone sleeping in a king bed). According to PL you are supposed to grovel to the property for a king bed. Some chains/properties (Marriott) will never ever accommodate such requests, others will.

Just my $.02, as I started a similar thread in the Online Booking Forum. I have spent nearly $3000 on Priceline int he past few years, but

with the lack of bonus money,
increased discounting by the hotels themselves,
poor customer service from Priceline if there is a problem,
'problem' hotels more and more often slipping into ratings (such as Holiday Inn or Best Western's as 3*),
not a lot of availability at smaller locations,
not a lot of information on smaller locations at either BFT or BetterBidding,
the lack of elite benefits,
combined with the predisposition to be treated somewhat worse as a Priceliner,

I have not booked a Priceline hotel stay in nearly a year. I figure I pay about $20-$30 a night and get flexibility on cancellation along with choosing my hotel. Worth it for me, but I guess if price is still your only concern, Priceline is the way to go.

The pitflyer post of 10-26 is very eloquent in noting when Priceline does not work well, and the importance of doing your homework. For Priceline to work for you, you have to read the bidding boards, know what appealing hotels are going for, and know where to avoid. The statement about smaller towns not working as well is accurate. Some larger towns, like NYC, have so many independent hotels its trickier. Pushing your bid past what others have posted as winning bids is usually counterproductive and is likely to land you in an unknown hotel that is less Priceline friendly than a more agressive hotel that picks up more bids. Know what the web rates are and if you are not getting a Priceline hit for significantly less--quit. Book the web rate and have some certainty. Unfortunately the remark about Holiday Inns often being threadbare is true--although I read yesterday they caught on they have too many worn out locations and are starting rebuilds. That said, I've saved a fortune on Priceline. Some places work really well. San Francisco is a good example if you know what the bids are and don't decide you have to visit on a high-occupancy weekend.

[This message has been edited by jayer (edited 10-28-2003).]

I have continued to book priceline for my Denver stays and am getting the Hyatt Denver Tech Center for $30 a night. I am booking 9 night stays at a time. I can't come close to this price for a decent hotel. They do not seem to be honoring my Hyatt Diamond status, but at $30 a night it is hard for me to complain.

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dallasflyer, Let's put the fun back in FlyerTalk!

Using priceline for hotels and rental cars has saved me more money in the last few years than I thought possible. I love the expression on biz associates faces when I tell them I got a room at a hotel for $50 when they regularly pay $150+ for the same place.

dallasflyer, what Diamond bennies are they omitting? I've Pricelined Hyatt's in four states and Canada till I made Diamond and have always gotten the stay credit, welcome goodies, and an upgrade or two. Was supposed to be in that hotel once but the trip got cancelled.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by jayer:
dallasflyer, what Diamond bennies are they omitting? I've Pricelined Hyatt's in four states and Canada till I made Diamond and have always gotten the stay credit, welcome goodies, and an upgrade or two. Was supposed to be in that hotel once but the trip got cancelled. </font>

All of them, no regency club access, no upgrade, no amenity, however for the price I am paying who can gripe?



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dallasflyer, Let's put the fun back in FlyerTalk!

I always travel on business so that either my customer pays for expenses or my company does. Either way, I don't pay for the hotel/car/airline tickets. Therefore, programs mean more to me as the points count and can be used by me for personal travel. Therefore, I usually never pay for airfare, hotel and car rentals. At the end of the day, free is free.