According to priceline.com’s website,
I’m still squeamish about winding up in some drug or prostitution motel. Does anybody have any experience going ultra-cheap on priceine? Do they offer any sort of guarantee that the place they put you in will be at least as good as a Motel 6?
TIA
Why go for the cheapo motels? I’ve had good luck getting high end hotels at bargain rates. For example, I once asked for a 4+ star hotel in downtown Denver for $50/night. I got it.
Unless you really need something for $10/night or something, I’d ask for the higher stars at the price you want. The hotel I booked for $50/night was dead when I got there - I suspect I would have gotten it for cheaper had I asked.
I agree with Athena. Lowball a 3-4 star hotel. You can always raise your bid, or lower your rating. On weekends, when business travellers vacate hotels in non-resort areas, you can get fantastic deals.
However, if you are going someplace likely to be fully booked (convention, weekend getaway, etc.), it won’t work as well. I’ve no experience with priceline.com and low-end hotels to help you with here.
I wanted to stay at the inn at six mountains at killington - called up and got a discount rate of about $60/night. Since I wasn’t sure I was going I couldn’t make a reservation. When I was sure I called up and that rate was not available. I tried priceline and put a bid in for a 2 star for $52/night and got it at the inn at six mountains.
That was the only time I tried and it worked
YMMV
It sounds as if it works for off-peak times, BUT…I once couldn’t get a room near my companies HQ for under $250/night (Dupont Cirle, Wash. DC), so I used priceline. The room I got was cheap, about $175, but it was the worst room in the hotel. Right by the elevators and the vending machines, I got woken up every morning at 3 AM by flight attendants going to the airport, and when I tried to change rooms, they more or less told me to stuff it. They knew how I had gotten the ticket and that there was no where else to go. Plus, the hotel wouldn’t credit my stay to my frequent- whatever account. So, caveat emptor. I don’t think that hotels really like Priceline that much.
I’ve had two Priceline hotel experiences, both for space in NYC. Two years ago or so we put in a bid of $125, selected a minimum of two stars and ended up in a great room at the WTC Marriott. A couple months ago my True Blave and I had half a week to kill, so on a whim we fed Priceline a bid of $75, again for NYC. It gave us a room in the Hyatt Regency directly across from the Metropolitan Museum of Art. When we called to confirm (and checked on travel sites and the hotel’s own website) the cheapest rate we could find was around $300! Priceline has a lifelong customer in us, as long as they stay in business.
My WAG is that as a business, they can’t afford two things. First, if you end up in the NoTell Motel, you are going to be quite pissed. Since you found your hotel through the internet, it is likely that you will know to come here, or to Bizrate, or to one of a myriad of forums to complain to. I don’t think it would not take too many horror stories to add up to a dent in Priceline’s reputation, hurting their business.
Second, I’d think that they wouldn’t get much for their money chasing down every flea-bag in the city. There are a LOT of those (and a lot of cities!) so as a business model (does anyone know exactly how Priceline works? Do they buy rooms in bulk ahead of time? Sure seems so) it is probably either too expensive or not worth the investment to chase these types of hotels down.
This is not to say that there is no chance of getting a miserable room. I’ve stayed in some pretty crappy nationally recognized hotels, but IMHO, bidding at two or above stars should be a safe bet. Happy traveling!!
Rhythmdvl
An aside to Lamar Mundane: are you sure they knew you got the room from Priceline? Anyone else find this? When I’ve stayed, they could only see that the room was already paid for and that all I was responsible for was the incidentals. At the Marriott they could not even tell how much I paid for the room. Back when I worked for the Hilton and the Ethan Allen Inn, no one cared a hoot for how you paid, as long as our rooms were booked. But you’re right though, you can get a good deal on Priceline, but you have no control over where in the hotel you’ll be. We lucked out with two excellent hotels, but one room had no view. We had the luck of a friendly front-desk clerk when arriving who moved us when we asked.
It was a Hilton, and I asked for credit to my Hilton Honors account and they said they wouldn’t credit the stay because of the “rate code”. They were quite blunt about it.
I’ve used Priceline for hotel rooms several times and have been satisfied with them. You have to remember that what they’re doing is simply trying to get you a room at a hotel; you can specify the star-rating of the hotel, but that’s about it. Whether or not you get a room by the ice machine is the luck of the draw, though I believe that’s largely due to what rooms the hotel has available when you check in.
I have no qualms about going to Priceline again if I need any ol’ room in a decent hotel and I’m not picky about it; but if I were planning to book a vacation in a luxurious suite in Vegas, I’ll probably just deal with the hotel directly.
How far in advance would you suggest using Priceline to book a hotel room? I amthinking of surprising my boyfriend with a night in a nice (4-star) hotel here in Boston for his birthday (early September).
I’d guess the same as any other hotel reservation, maybe a week or two in advance. If you’re planning to visit during a major holiday, even earlier.
(Not exactly a major holiday, but I once made the mistake of going to Las Vegas the same week the Belagio opened. The entire city was booked solid, and reservationless me had to pay $60+ for a fleabag motel room that wasn’t worth $30)
I’ve always had better luck the nearer the date I want - I’ve used Priceline on a Thurdsay morning for rooms for the weekend. I’ve always assumed they use databases to check available hotels, who would rather rent you a room for half or less than their normal rate than they would have the room unoccupied.
I can’t always get exactly what I want, but I also can’t think of a time I was disappointed with what I got for what I paid. I’ve never been put in a shoddy hotel or room even; usually the only problem is being a few more miles from where I wanted to be.
Offtopic - I will not use priceline for airfare anymore. I’ve had the absolute worst flights of my life on them, and bumped more often than not.
Everything you ever wanted to know about bidding on Priceline
Read the many FAQs and sample bids for details and bidding strategies. I found that site a year ago, and I have been using their info to save lots of money on hotels and plane tix.
Share and enjoy!
Phouchg
Lovable Rogue
I recently went to a convention in Cincinatti. Most conventioneers paid 3 figures, maybe over 150 (albeit to stay in the convention hotel). I got into a Marriot a mile away putting in a bid of $38. I think I asked for 2 stars and it was upgraded to 3 (or 3 to 4). Place was first class and empty. I had broadband in my room. I met up with a couple staying there, we compared notes and they had bid around $60 (they were pretty smug till I told them my rate:). They ended up extending their stay past the convention, and bid the extra days at 38 and got it. I wondered if they could have gotten 25 
Thanks for the link Phouchg. It’s very reassuring to see that other people have gotten very cheap rates on the hotels I’m interested in. I’ll keep an eye on it as birthday approaches.
I will tell you I work for a hotel on Michigan Avenue in Chicago. I can’t tell you what you pay but I can tell you what we charge priceline. Never lower than 63.00 never higher than 109.00
Usually hotels will give you the WORST rooms they have. We are a 4 star hotel and average about $199.00 for a transient rate
As a company Priceline is awful. They don’t pay hotels regular. We had to have them give us a credit card. So in other words Priceline charges you and we charge Priceline’s credit card. I have had Priceline’s credit card come up declined.
Our Revenue Mgr said to give the people the room but I wouldn’t have cause we most likely will take hits for those rooms.
BTW while the clerks don’t know what YOU paid. They all know what the hotels pay Priceline. Priceline and other wholesalers make us agree not to tell the customers.