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.

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.