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Summary of Winning Bids on Priceline, Hotwire, etc.

sunlover5

By sunlover5,
in San Juan, PR

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zzmaxwell

zzmaxwell

Posted
Posted

Hello! I'm in the process of organizing a group cruise of friends and we are going out of San Juan for the first time. There will be 60+ of us and most are new to cruising and we are having a meeting in a couple of weeks to go over airfare and precruise hotels and all the stuff associated with cruising. I'm putting together the sheet of things to know and was wondering if anyone would be willing to put together a small set of instructions from the # of stars to the area we need to do to secure hotels before our cruise on priceline. I see some use Hotwire but I'm not familiar with them so if you have a little info on them also that would be great. I know there's a wealth of info. on this thread but having to go through and sort it all out with the bits and pieces per comment has been overwhelming.

 

Our info. is we are going on the Adventure next February 9th 2014.

 

Thanks so much for your time if you're willing to do this for me! :)

 

Happy New Year!

Robin

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webecruzin2

webecruzin2

Posted
Posted
I'm wondering the same thing? It seems like the 4 star that you would get on priceline deal would be the Sheraton Casino one (not the one in Old San Juan). I wish someone would update on how to get the best deal/hotel using priceline or hotwire. Hotwire actually has a new guarantee on some hotels where if you get the name and you don't like it, you have 24 hours to cancel. They currently have a 4star for $137 for July 5th, one night. I was thinking of booking, but when you add the fees (outrageous) the total comes to $182, PLUS it says the resort charges a fee of 16%. This would end up being well over $200.

 

I just need a hotel for one night pre-cruise. Our flight doesn't arrive until almost 8pm at night, then we leave early the next morning for the cruise. $200 seems a little extreme for that small amount of time. I would LOVE suggestions on which hotel to choose for a simple overnight stay.

 

Hi there! I found the best site for hints on how to bid and hotel info is on Biddingfortravel.com. That site should help you in learning how to bid.

Another travel site to visit is Lastminutetravel.com. I found they have the best prices. If they don't show you the hotel name on the website before purchasing, just call the res. number and they'll tell you the name of the hotel.

A couple of times we stayed at the Comfort Inn. Approx 110.00 incl taxes.

I thing (hope) it's been renovated somewhat because it needed it but if you're looking for just a place to lay your head pre-cruise that is under 150.00 this should be it.

We'll be staying at the Embassy Suites in April for the 2nd time. You should be able to find something there around 165.00. Remember that includes a cooked to order breakfast. And if you're getting in late, it's only about 1.5 miles from the airport.

Good luck

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AmandaKaye79

AmandaKaye79

Posted
Posted
Hi there! I found the best site for hints on how to bid and hotel info is on Biddingfortravel.com. That site should help you in learning how to bid.

Another travel site to visit is Lastminutetravel.com. I found they have the best prices. If they don't show you the hotel name on the website before purchasing, just call the res. number and they'll tell you the name of the hotel.

A couple of times we stayed at the Comfort Inn. Approx 110.00 incl taxes.

I thing (hope) it's been renovated somewhat because it needed it but if you're looking for just a place to lay your head pre-cruise that is under 150.00 this should be it.

We'll be staying at the Embassy Suites in April for the 2nd time. You should be able to find something there around 165.00. Remember that includes a cooked to order breakfast. And if you're getting in late, it's only about 1.5 miles from the airport.

Good luck

 

Thanks, we used priceline. Bid like others 4* and up and $105 ended up with San Juan Water & Beach Club. It was for July 2013. It seems most were getting Conrad, so I don't know why ours turned out to be the Beach Club, but I guess it will be ok and we will make the most of it.

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ISurfTooMuch

ISurfTooMuch

Posted
Posted

4/6/13

3.5*

$95 plus tax

 

I originally bid $90 for resorts in zone 10 and got nothing. Stayed in that zone, added 4*, and went to $95. Still nothing. Then added 3.5* and got the Radisson. Not exactly what I was expecting, but I'm fine with it, since it's just a one-night pre-cruise stay.

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Lois R Great Review Rare

Lois R

Posted
Posted
4/6/13

3.5*

$95 plus tax

 

I originally bid $90 for resorts in zone 10 and got nothing. Stayed in that zone, added 4*, and went to $95. Still nothing. Then added 3.5* and got the Radisson. Not exactly what I was expecting, but I'm fine with it, since it's just a one-night pre-cruise stay.

 

Hi,:) I stayed here in November and posted a review on Trip Advisor

about it. If you use that site you can find the review (if you want to

read it).

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Lois R Great Review Rare

Lois R

Posted
Posted
I really need your help with bidding for a hotel near the Pam Am cruise port for April 23, 2013. We need two rooms; one regular and one accessible. How do I go about bidding in order to get an accessible room?

 

Hi, Priceline does not guarantee anything. If there is a specific type

of room you "must have", I would never use a bidding site for it.

 

The closest hotel to the Pan American Pier is "The Sheraton Convention

Center".

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ISurfTooMuch

ISurfTooMuch

Posted
Posted
First time using a bidding site... worked well for us!

 

Date: 06/21/13

# of nights: 1 (pre cruise) - two rooms

Hotel: Radisson Ambassador Plaza Hotel & Casino

Rating: 3 1/2

Area: San Juan, PR

Site: Priceline

Winning bid: $150.00 (for two rooms - $75/room)

Taxes & fees: $ 25.54 (total for both rooms)

Wow, that's a good price, but now I feel like I paid too much. Oh well, it still beats retail, and it looks like a decent place for a one-night stay.

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Sheffie

Sheffie

Posted
Posted

I am so confused. I stupidly added the area near El Junque and won! I called Priceline and gladly cancelled, with a $25 fee. I now need to start over. I get that I need to do area 10, but can someone please post what level I should start off at, and what to add? I did this a couple of times in previous years, but it has been too long ago, and this thread is sooooo long to glean for that info. All help is appreciated.

 

Thanks.

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cincycruisincouple

cincycruisincouple

Posted
Posted

I've never used Priceline before, but while fooling around on the site I got the idea. My question is this: If you bid a higher dollar amount will you get a better hotel? For example will a $120 bid get you a better hotel than a $70 bid even though they are in the same 4 star category? Thanks to anyone that can help.

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Fisherlady48

Fisherlady48

Posted
Posted
I've never used Priceline before, but while fooling around on the site I got the idea. My question is this: If you bid a higher dollar amount will you get a better hotel? For example will a $120 bid get you a better hotel than a $70 bid even though they are in the same 4 star category? Thanks to anyone that can help.

 

No, I would start with the $70 and then go up in price rather than just start with $120.

 

K

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WaggesAZ

WaggesAZ

Posted
Posted

Date: 03/17/13

 

# of nights: 1 (post cruise)

Hotel: Condado Lagoon Villas at Caribe Hilton

Rating: Resort

Area: Condado San Juan, PR

Site: Priceline

Winning bid: $135.00

Taxes & fees: $ 23.73

Total for room $158.73

 

I started at Area 10 with Resort checked at $115 and I was asked to make another offer. Added Area 4 (Dorado) to Area 10 with Resort checked at $125, and I was asked to make another offer. I then added Area 1 (Aguadilla) as additional area with Resort checked at $135 and won. Both areas added do not offer resorts.

 

Kind of far from Old San Juan to walk (about 2.5 miles) and has a 4pm check-in. Will do baggage hold for us, but have to go all the way out there with the luggage & back to explore the forts. We will do what we need to do! :)

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Scottsdale Guys

Scottsdale Guys

Posted
Posted
Date: 03/17/13

 

# of nights: 1 (post cruise)

Hotel: Condado Lagoon Villas at Caribe Hilton

Rating: Resort

Area: Condado San Juan, PR

Site: Priceline

Winning bid: $135.00

Taxes & fees: $ 23.73

Total for room $158.73

 

I started at Area 10 with Resort checked at $115 and I was asked to make another offer. Added Area 4 (Dorado) to Area 10 with Resort checked at $125, and I was asked to make another offer. I then added Area 1 (Aguadilla) as additional area with Resort checked at $135 and won. Both areas added do not offer resorts.

 

Kind of far from Old San Juan to walk (about 2.5 miles) and has a 4pm check-in. Will do baggage hold for us, but have to go all the way out there with the luggage & back to explore the forts. We will do what we need to do! :)

 

I had a reservation for this same hotel for 3/16/13 for one night done by a travel agent for $259. I decided to try the Priceline thing for the first time. I picked Resort in the San Juan Area (the area numbers change), started at $101, then $118.

 

Got it for $129. (with taxes $158.07)

I know thay will charge a 16% resort fee but all included at $183 beats $259!!

 

It may not be perfect but it is for one night and it is close to OSJ!

 

Great Sticky; thanks for the advice.

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brobin123

brobin123

Posted
Posted (edited)
Has anyone been getting the Marriott Stellaris on PL?

 

I ended up with the Marriott San Juan and Stellaris Casino for my November trip. Express deal for resort at $119, originally $195.

 

Price:avg. per room, per night $119.00

Rooms: 1

Bed Type: City View - This Room Provides 1 Bed.

Nights: 2

Room Subtotal: $238.00

Travel Insurance: $10.00

Taxes & Fees: $75.66

Total Charged to Card: $323.66

Edited by brobin123
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cruzfiend

cruzfiend

Posted
Posted
Not quite!

 

In order to NOT get a resort in another zone, you need to re-bid in a zone that DOES NOT HAVE RESORTS. This is called a free re-bid. So before you start bidding, select every zone individually. The ones that do not have resorts write the zones down so that if your first bid isn't accepted, you can add these zones as free rebids right away. Otherwise you'd need to wait 24 hours before bidding again. This also allows you to not overbid since you can start low and work your way up. Be sure to NOT change the star level. Keep it at RESORT just add the zones.

 

Here's a sample bidding strategy:



Select - San Juan - Resorts- bid xxx

add Cabo and rebid xxx

add Dorado and rebid xxx

add Maya and rebid xxx

add Ponce and rebid xxx

 

If you notice, each zone that I added has no resorts which ensures that the bidding goes back to my initial zone which is San Juan. I was able to snag the Intercontinental for $91 in January, so priceline is a good option if you know how to bid and want to save some money.

 

Hope this helps. I'm a priceline junkie!!!!:D I can bid and write up strategies in my sleep. There's even a way to squeeze more free rebids than the above strategy, but that's for the more experienced users. If you have more questions though, feel free to ask.

 

Happy Bidding! ;)

 

Does anyone know if this strategy still works or have they added more resorts that I should be aware of?

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