Originally Posted by
CodeAdam10
To me, luxury and the star-level of hotels matter significantly. When I was younger the Inn's and Express and such were just fine, but taste matures with traveling and age. Sure I wouldn't pay upwards $700+ for a Ritz, FS, or PH on a 3-day family getaway where we need (2) rooms a night, BUT it is good to have the peace of mind knowing I can do such thing for special occansions / trips using a currency other than cash. Priceline works, I'm a huge fan for over 12 years now, but sometimes you just need a specific hotel to create a specific experience - something which PL can't offer. But if you can tell me the secret of Naming My Own Price for a specific hotel, I'll split some of my savings with you for an upcoming 6 night stay that I had to book with cash!
You're right -- priceline almost always will not work if you must have a specific hotel in mind (this has happened to me frequently when attending weddings). I'm guessing as a priceline veteran, you know about betterbidding and biddingfortravel. Very occasionally, if you're going for a high-end hotel, and it is the only 4* or 5* that priceline offers in a specific zone, then you are basically naming your own price for that hotel only. But that is indeed rare. And the hotel lists on betterbidding and biddingfortravel should be cross-checked by running a general hotel search on priceline (i.e., not a name-your-own-price) and seeing what hotels come in your zone and star category.
And, even I'll admit that priceline is sadly not as good as used to be.