Originally Posted by
bigcahonna
Does anyone know how Priceline works once you submit a bid? For example, is the 5 minute wait time "real"? Do their systems sync with vendors' systems to check for availability? Is there someone at Priceline that calls their vendors to check for availability? Or is the wait a gimmick to make people think Priceline is "negotiating".
While I don't know for sure, I think it is mostly gimmick. What I do know is that hotels load their PL rate into whatever the booking system is (can't remember the name right now), so PL knows in advance exactly what will and won't get an acceptance. And really it's not even 5 minutes it takes to get the acceptance, I've usually gotten it in about a minute or less, so not nearly enough time for an actual human to take care of the reservation.
