There is no right or wrong answer, it depends on several factors including:
- How frequently you travel and whether you can reach elite levels
- How long your stays are
- Whether you normally travel at your own expense or work pays
- Whether you are mostly/always able to use a single brand (i.e., Marriott)
- How much using Priceline (or Hotwire) would save you, and how much time you want to commit checking betterbidding or biddingfortravel to see how others have fared to maximize savings

I don't travel all that frequently for work, so for many of my personal trips, I end up usually using Priceline or Hotwire. Some locations you get better deals than others. For example, we just returned from a weekend in Ft. Lauderdale - I had bid and won a room for 2 nights at the Courtyard Ft. Lauderdale Beach hotel for $64/night. I checked Marriott's website after my successful bid and the best rate they listed was $319/night! And I have a stay in March in Dallas where I accepted a Hotwire room for $42/night which turned out to be a Hilton Garden Inn, and the best rate at the Hilton website is $101/night. When you can save at least 50%, it is hard to argue not going the Priceline or Hotwire route - regardless of your status level - in my opinion.

KJ