I am addressing questions I am frequently asked about Priceline. I can only speak to my experiences and I have only used the Name Your Own Price section of Priceline for hotel rooms.

Hotel rooms

1. Can I pick out my hotel?

No. You can pick the area you want to stay in and the star level, but you cannot choose your hotel. Priceline will pick one for you based on your criteria.

Tip: You may be able to get an idea of the hotel or hotels you might possibly get by checking out biddingfortravel.com or betterbidding.com. On both of these sites, people report their successful bids on Priceline. You can search these sites to see what hotels others are getting in the area you are searching.

2. Will my room sleep 4?

Maybe. Priceline guarantees that your hotel room will accommodate two adults. Any special bedding requests must be made directly with the hotel and they are just that, requests. You may only get one bed. In my experience most hotels are willing to accommodate your request for two beds if that room type is available. Although, I have run into one or two who wanted to charge me extra for a second bed.

3. Can I get a non-smoking room?

Maybe. You are not guaranteed a non-smoking room but most hotels will give you one on request.

4. When do I pay for my room?

You will pay for your room when your bid is accepted.

5. Can I get a refund if my plans change?

No. Your room is yours whether you show up or not. You may not cancel a room.

6. Will I get a nice/clean/safe hotel?

You should. From Priceline’s website: Priceline hotel participants are major national brands or the highest quality independent hotels. We screen participating hotels carefully and update our information constantly to ensure you always receive quality accommodations. Priceline works with their hotel partners to ensure that that you have a quality stay.

Do things always go according to plan? No. I have have had many, many wonderful Priceline hotel stays. There have been a few problems along the way as well. We had one stay where a friend’s room had ants in the bed and another where the hotel had overbooked and we had no room when we arrived. These things happen. They happen regardless of the amount of money you pay for a hotel room.

The real test to me is how Priceline responds in these situations. I am happy to report that in both these situations Priceline was willing to listen to my concerns and refund my money. That’s why I continue to recommend them.

Flights

1. Have you used Name Your Own Price for flights?

Yes, but only once for Scot. You cannot choose your flight times and I have a hard time letting go of that control. The one time we did it worked great for Scot. I have purchased a handful of airline tickets from the other section of the site where you don’t bid. I have been very happy with them.

2. Can you get frequent flier miles on your Priceline tickets.

Yes. On the regular part of the site, but not on the Name Your Own Price section.

Rental Cars

1. Have you ever gotten a rental car through priceline.

Yes. Many times on both sides of the site. I have been very happy with the deals I have gotten. You can check betterbidding.com and biddingfortravel.com to see what kind of deals other people are getting on rental cars.

2. Can you choose what type of car you get?

Yes. You can choose the category just like you do when you reserve with a rental car company.

Vacation Packages

1. Have you ever purchased a vacation package through Priceline?

No.

Cruises

1. Have you ever purchased a cruise through Priceline?

No.

I love to travel and I love a good deal. When I can marry the two it’s like a symphony to my ears. Can you hear it? If not, I am here to help you with three tips for getting a great deal on a hotel room.

Watch my video on Expo and then come back for some more details. None of this will make sense without seeing the video.

1. Use Priceline to book your room. Look midway down on the left side of the page for the name your own price section. Click bid now under the hotels heading. Enter your information on your city and dates and click bid now. Check out the possible areas of the city you can bid for on Priceline.

2. Don’t bid blindly. Go to BetterBidding or BiddingForTravel.com to learn about successful bids in your chosen city. On both these websites travelers post their successful wins on Priceline. You can benefit from their experience.

3. Use free rebids. If your first bid on Priceline is unsuccessful, you have two options. You can either wait 24 hours and try again or you can bid again immediately if you change one of the following variables: dates of your stay, star level or location. Usually my dates are already set and I am fairly committed to trying for the star level I am bidding on. I can change my location using any free rebids available to me.

I will use Orlando as an example. Go to the Priceline name your own price area and input some dates for an Orlando stay and click the bid now button. I’ll wait. Go ahead.

You will see that Step 1 is to choose where you will stay. If you click on each area individually you will find that the Step 2 section, Choose the star level for your hotel changes to reflect the level of hotels offered in that area. I found the following for Orlando:

1. Disney World Vicinity – all star levels available

2. Downtown Orlando – up to 4 star

3. Kissimmee – up to 2.5 star

4. Maitland – Altamonte Springs – up to 3.5 star

5. Orlando Airport – up to 3.5 star

6. Orlando East – up to 2.5 star

7. Sand Lake Corporate Park – up to 2

8. Universal Studios – Sea World – all star levels

9. West Disney – up to 3 star

10. Winter Garden – up to 3 star

11. Winter Park – up to 2 star

I have learned that there are 11 areas I could stay in in the Orlando area. I want  to stay in the Walt Disney World Vicinity. I know that others are getting a 3 star hotel in that area for around $40. I can bid for a 3 star in that area and if I don’t win I have 4 free rebids. Kissimmee, Orlando East, Sand Lake Corporate Park and Winter Park are all free rebids for me because they do not have any hotels available above the 2.5 star rating. That makes them free rebids because I can add them as an area I am willing to stay in, thus changing a variable and allowing me to rebid, but I know I won’t win a hotel there because Priceline does not have any 3 star hotels in that area.

My bidding strategy looked like this:

1st bid – I offered $35 for a 3 star in the Walt Disney World Vicinity – unsuccessful

2nd bid – I offered $36 for a 3 star in the Walt Disney World Vicinity and Kissimmee area – unsuccessful

3rd bid – I offered $37 for a 3 star in the Walt Disney World Vicinity, Kissimmee and Orlando East area – unsuccessful

4th bid – I offered $38 for a 3 star in the Walt Disney World Vicinity, Kissimmee, Orlando East and Sand Lake Corporate Park – unsuccessful

5th bid – I offered $39 for a 3 star in the Walt Disney World Vicinity, Kissimmee, Orlando East, Sand Lake Corporate Park and Winter park- I got it this time. I won 3 star hotel in the Walt Disney World Vicinity, the Radisson Resort Orlando – Celebration. I needed two nights and here is the cost breakdown:

Your Offer Price Per Room, Per Night: $39.00

Subtotal: $78.00

Taxes and service fees: $18.02

Total charges: $96.02

By using Priceline, not bidding blindly and using free rebids, I got a great deal on a hotel room in in Orlando. I’ll let you know how our stay is when we return.

Scot and I are both traveling this weekend, but in different directions. Scot is flying to Richmond, Virginia for a funeral. The girls and I are driving to St. Louis for a little Spring Break Getaway. Of course, we are doing both trips on the cheap. Here’s how:

Scot’s trip to Richmond, Virginia – Unfortunately, Scot’s trip is for a memorial service which means there was not really any advance planning, but here is what I managed to pull together for him.
Airfare – I found an inexpensive ticket on Continental (our airline of choice) for $140.
Housing – free because Scot is staying with friends. Thanks Josh and Jamie!
Rental car – I found a deal at Alamo so the grand total for the two day rental is ….$28.72.

The girls trip to St. Louis – We decided we wanted to do something for Spring Break, but not spend a lot of money since we are trying to save for our summer vacation to the Walt Disney World Resort which is only a few months away. We considered Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis with the latter winning out. One key advantage of St. Louis is the amount of attractions that are free. We also invited the grandparents.
Transportation – driving the van
Housing – I scored a Priceline room at a Doubletree for a bid of $37 a night, total with taxes and fees for three nights is $133.22.
Activities – St. Louis Zoo (free), St. Louis Science Center (free), shopping (free?), Gateway Arch (found a coupon to get the girls tickets for free).
Food – We will eat breakfast in the room and pack snacks. I have found some other deals for dining like 40% off at The Old Spaghetti Factory on Tuesday. I’m getting me some Spaghetti with Browned Butter & Mizithra Cheese. Yummy!

Tomorrow I will share my Priceline bidding tips and strategies.

Bidding:

1st Choice – Downtown NMA area – I was only willing to bid up to $65 a room for 2.5 star property. Others had gotten the Residence Inn for that price. I knew parking would be expensive and I was ok staying in another area outside of the city. I was unsuccessful.

2nd Choice – Schaumburg – I was wiling to bid $42 a room for a 3 star property. Several hotels were accepting bids at this price. Price accepted at the Doubletree Hotel Chicago/Schaumburg.

My Offer Price Per Room, Per Night: $42.00

Subtotal: $168.00 (Two rooms for two nights)

Taxes & Service Fees: $29.12

Total Charges: $197.12

Hotel Review:

Priceline policy: All rooms will accommodate 2 adults. Bed type requests (King, Queen, 2 Doubles, etc.) or other special needs such as a non-smoking or smoking room should be requested through your confirmed hotel, can not be guaranteed and are based on availability.

I called to request non-smoking and 2 double beds in each room. Request was taken, but I was told they only had King rooms available at that time. There was a possibility that something would open up.

Check-in: Upon check-in only king rooms were available. We were assigned non-smoking rooms as requested. They gave us wonderful Chocolate Chip Oatmeal cookies which were definitely worth sharing a bed for. No mention of Priceline.

The room: The room itself was spacious and clean. We had a desk, high-speed Internet access (I’m not sure if there was a fee), reading chair, coffee maker, a clock/radio that I was able to plug my ipod into, upscale Neutrogena bath products including face wash and moisturizer. The bed and bedding were very comfortable.

The hotel: The lobby was small, but functional. There was a restaurant, but we did not use it. A nice pool was available as well as workout facilities.

Any problems: We were able to hear quite a bit of noise from a neighboring room. Luckily, we were at the end of a hall so hallway noise was minimal. I wore earplugs to bed one night and slept well. Our neighbors seemed to go to bed at a decent time.

The surrounding area: The hotel is in a business park setting. It was easy to find and a short drive to all the shopping and restaurants that Schaumburg has to offer.

Would I recommend this hotel to others: Yes.