DOUBLE TROUBLE
New Member
With so many people staying there, we should have a tourney there on thursday. $5 a person and everybody gets a booster and 1st and 2nd get extra boosters in each age group.
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Westin Hotel on Priceline for $55
- Thread starter jrwaxman
- Start date
bullados
<a href="http://pokegym.net/forums/showthread.php?
Depending on attendance, I've probably got enough floating around here to put together something like that. I wonder if the hall would be open on that Thursday for just random screwing around or if we'll have to find some other place to hover for that...
Rogue Archetype
Moderator <br> Contest Host
Have any of you ever experienced a hotel stay using Priceline or HotWire ?
I always pay direct to the hotel because I'm terrified by the horror stories from former Priceline/Hotwire users.
I always pay direct to the hotel because I'm terrified by the horror stories from former Priceline/Hotwire users.
Yeah, about half of my trips now utilize priceline. I got my regionals hotel (Courtyard by Marriott) in VA for 40 bucks a night.
Keith
losjackal
Technical Administrator
Yes I have. What kind of horror stories? A hotel room is a hotel room. If you go for a reputable brand hotel, no matter how much you pay for the room, they have an image and quality of service to uphold. The front-desk clerks are fully aware of the deals that can be had through Priceline and Hotwire, and if they're not ignorant they always appreciate the business. Otherwise the hotel rooms go unused.
About the only caveat I can think of is making sure you get the accommodations you need (type of beds) and don't even think about trying to change your reservation. I figure this is Nationals, we're definitely going to be there. :smile:
Rogue Archetype
Moderator <br> Contest Host
That is a comforting thought. If YOU are doing good with Priceline, I just may give it a shot this time around. We spent a small mint during last year's nats. Thanks for dropping in.
I can go on and on about the horror stories.
1. It's NOT your room, it's Priceline's. They book it, you're just in it.
-- SO, if you have any complaints about anything, it's not your problem; it's Priceline's problem. The
hotel will direct you to complain to Priceline about your issue.
2. The hotel won't respond to your concern (i.e. wrong accomodation altogether), it'll just tell you to take it up with Priceline and you'll either go somewhere else or just deal with your 1 twin bed instead of 2 queens (LOL!) <== slight exaggeration for effect.
3. NO MONEY BACK FOR ANY REASON. There's no leverage for you.
Priceline's not dishing out refunds, the hotel is not dishing out refunds. Nobody cares, they already have your money. "You're gonna take what we give you and like it!" <= that loss of control is what freaks me out.
4. PAY NOW! My summer money comes from an entirely different place than my regular annual income (teacher summer school), so I'll be scrambling to get together the scrilla for a 4-nighter right now (even at $60 a night).
This is why I'm glad someone started this thread; I needed to speak with real people who use Priceline and get a couple of good opinions about this service.
SIDE TOPIC - what in the WORLD are you guys doing about parking??! Anywhere I look, it's gonna be $100 worth of parking for the weekend. I guess I'll just plan to spend $100 worth of parking :/
@R_A: My personal experiences with Priceline are generally good. The reservation is set with accomodations for 2 adults. (If you bid on a room) You also select a star rating and an area of the city (ie downtown, airport, suburb, etc). I ALWAYS look at their regular deals 1st to see what shows as a 3 star, 2 1/2, etc for that town. Sometimes an event is at a hotel that I want to stay in too, so I just pay the regular rate and get what I want as a room. I usually go to that hotel's main site too to see if any value can be had as a state/gov't employee! I did that for Jeff's NC state championship and got a better rate than he did for a block of rooms!
Once you determine that the selection of hotels downtowm, east side, etc is acceptable to you (ie no glaring issues with one you could get "stuck with"....then go to the bid portion and save big bucks! As a recent example....for VA regionals...the closest "region" to the Hall was airport district of Richmond/Sandston. 3 stars gave choices like Courtyard, Wyndam, etc. I plugged my dates in, 2 nights, 3 stars, airport (region 6) and placed a bid of $40 (normally 80-90/night rooms). I got it the 1st time for the Courtyard. I passed on my info to the Silvestros, they waited until the week before the event to book, went with $45/night and got the Wyndam down the road.
Once you get your confirmations, simply call the hotel directly a few days before you arrive to see what accomodations they have you in. When I went to S Carolina states, I had 2 other riders with me. I needed 2 dbls. The original reservation placed me in a King room. Called Hotel and they easily placed me in 2 dbls. As for VA Reg's, when I called ahead, they had me in 2 dbls already. Same with N Car. states. Good luck R_A! Hope my tips help!
Keith
Once you determine that the selection of hotels downtowm, east side, etc is acceptable to you (ie no glaring issues with one you could get "stuck with"....then go to the bid portion and save big bucks! As a recent example....for VA regionals...the closest "region" to the Hall was airport district of Richmond/Sandston. 3 stars gave choices like Courtyard, Wyndam, etc. I plugged my dates in, 2 nights, 3 stars, airport (region 6) and placed a bid of $40 (normally 80-90/night rooms). I got it the 1st time for the Courtyard. I passed on my info to the Silvestros, they waited until the week before the event to book, went with $45/night and got the Wyndam down the road.
Once you get your confirmations, simply call the hotel directly a few days before you arrive to see what accomodations they have you in. When I went to S Carolina states, I had 2 other riders with me. I needed 2 dbls. The original reservation placed me in a King room. Called Hotel and they easily placed me in 2 dbls. As for VA Reg's, when I called ahead, they had me in 2 dbls already. Same with N Car. states. Good luck R_A! Hope my tips help!
Keith
bullados
<a href="http://pokegym.net/forums/showthread.php?
I've never had a problem with Priceline. Then again, I don't expect very much out of my hotel room. A bed, a shower, and a door lock. A clean room. That's about it. Sometimes, I get some fantastic deals on there (2 beds and breakfast for $25/night). But I'm just a single guy without a family, and my needs are probably far less than somebody who's coming with a family. If all you need is a bed and a shower, they're pretty darn good about a decent room at a decent price.
Lawman pretty much hit it on the head. Nice report...LOL. I use it for all my business trips and most of Pokemon events. Biggest thing to do is to call ahead and see about number of beds if you have a big group traveling. I also look at Hotwire first to use that as a guage and then bid about 20-40% less.
I started this whole thread when I got the Westin for $55. Then I went to add a night to the reservation and it was not accepted. Raised my bid some and then they put me in the Omni for that night. I guess Westin got full with all you guys booking there.....ROFL. Oh well. And then Grafton won Regionals so now I will be selling my rooms. Too funny.
I started this whole thread when I got the Westin for $55. Then I went to add a night to the reservation and it was not accepted. Raised my bid some and then they put me in the Omni for that night. I guess Westin got full with all you guys booking there.....ROFL. Oh well. And then Grafton won Regionals so now I will be selling my rooms. Too funny.
HypnosProjectHQ
New Member
I used hotwire and got a room for $59/night.
bullados
<a href="http://pokegym.net/forums/showthread.php?
You pay the $180 (plus taxes and stuff) when your reservation is confirmed. It's actually not $180, it'll turn out to be closer to like $230 or something like that after all the little charges Priceline likes to add on. Still, it'll be cheaper than paying the roughly $100/night you'd find pretty much anywhere else.
You pick an area: Pick Downtown Indianapolis
You pick a star-rating: If you want the westin, you need to pick 4-star and no less.
You put in a bid: Bid around $45-$60.
Your bid may not be accepted. Don't lower your standards in order to get a free quick rebid, because it may throw you at a lower 3.5-star hotel down the road from the convention (like me). Come back in 24 hours and bid again, either at the same price or slightly higher.
Do realize that you will have to pay as soon as the bid is accepted. $50 a night, for 4 nights will likely be around $230-$250 because of the added taxes. You will need the money ready when you bid.
Good luck!
You pick a star-rating: If you want the westin, you need to pick 4-star and no less.
You put in a bid: Bid around $45-$60.
Your bid may not be accepted. Don't lower your standards in order to get a free quick rebid, because it may throw you at a lower 3.5-star hotel down the road from the convention (like me). Come back in 24 hours and bid again, either at the same price or slightly higher.
Do realize that you will have to pay as soon as the bid is accepted. $50 a night, for 4 nights will likely be around $230-$250 because of the added taxes. You will need the money ready when you bid.
Good luck!
I have talked directly to a few of the hotels in the downtown area, and they are all telling me that you will pay at least $20 a day for parking no matter where you stay or if you drive into downtown and park in the pubilc areas. Some hotels are charging more.
As far as the room rates goes, its wierd. I talked to one friend last night who booked with hotwire at the Westin. Then I called the Westin. They said they were out of rooms. Found out another friend booked a room there today through hotwire. Ok. no problem. I went through hotwire tonight and got a room for 4 people at $65 a night. Strange how these things work, but apparently they still have rooms and at good rates, even though the front desk says they are full.
As far as the room rates goes, its wierd. I talked to one friend last night who booked with hotwire at the Westin. Then I called the Westin. They said they were out of rooms. Found out another friend booked a room there today through hotwire. Ok. no problem. I went through hotwire tonight and got a room for 4 people at $65 a night. Strange how these things work, but apparently they still have rooms and at good rates, even though the front desk says they are full.
Troy (and others): FYI, the hotels aren't lying to you. THEY are out of rooms bc they sold a chunk of them to companies like hotwire, priceline et al. So, at this point, the only "people" with rooms left are the sites like hotwire, priceline etc. This way, they can start rejecting the lower bids bc they are the only 'pony' in town now.
Keith
Understandable but still a little misleading from a certain point of view. Anyway good point.
Another funny one we had tonight was 2 people from 2 different places looking at hotwire at the same time and getting 2 different prices for the same listing, or at least identical listing. When each of us narrowed our search to a 4 star downtown hotel, we each got 1 choice with all the same info, immenities, etc, but different dollar amounts. Not a bad thing because both were great deals but wierd nevertheless. Hotel looks awsome, and location is great.
Highly recommend using these services to get your rooms. If you plan ahead and have the funds to pay up front, its a huge savings.:thumb:
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