Priceline Hotels

[mrsw94]

Can someone give me the lowdown on using Priceline for hotels? Hubby and I have decided to take a last minute trip next month to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. With a senior in high school, we have some major expenses upcoming, so are trying to make the trip as cheap as possible.
Since it's just the 2 of us, I was thinking of trying Priceline for our hotel rather than booking direct.
Any suggestions of how to get the best deal?
Thanks!
ETA: Also, are there any hidden fees I should know about once we get to the hotel?

 

[jbh275]

I've had great luck with priceline. Since it's just 2 of you, that will work perfect. You usually get a single king bed, not the standard double queens.

 

[mrsw94]

I've had great luck with priceline. Since it's just 2 of you, that will work perfect. You usually get a single king bed, not the standard double queens.

Thanks! Are there any tricks to getting a place within walking distance? Also, any tips for an extra discount?

 

[accm]

I have an extension for Chrome called hotel canary, that will tell you the most likely hotel if you're going for an express deal. The times I've used it, it's always been the hotel it guessed. Priceline should also let you know if there will be any resort fees or additional fees charged at the hotel.

I've been keeping an eye on the express deals, but haven't seen anything that I've considered worthwhile. I'm also wanting to be as close to the parks as possible, so that's impacting my perception.

 

[tarheelalum]

Check out the forum on the betterbidding website. They have a hotwire and a priceline forum section with tons of info on your question. Here is link to the orange county priceline section of the forum.

https://www.betterbidding.com/index.php?showforum=430

 

[B-rad]

IMO the savings through a third-party agent like Priceline do not justify switching away from booking direct. Don't get me wrong, for some trips Express Deals can make the difference. For a trip to DLR, however, I'd stick with booking direct. The prices are likely comparable, and there's no middle-person when it comes to customer service issues (e.g. cancellations, changes, etc.). Heck, if you book through Priceline, Hotwire, etc. and have some horrible CS issue with the property, it will be a nightmare to get your money back because they've likely already received a voucher from the third-party and it will leave you no immediate recourse.

Full disclosure: the last trip I booked partly through Priceline required 8 phone calls to 4 different companies to adjust reservations for a rental car and a single night hotel stay. Not salty though

 

[tarheelalum]

There definitely is some truth to what you are saying. Customer service is awful if you have to deal with Priceline or Hotwire. And in general, unless you are booking a 4 star hotel or at least a 3.5 star hotel, the place will likely be a dump if its a 3 star or less in Anaheim in my experience. But with that said you can get some really good deals sometimes around Anaheim. But its pretty much impossible to get a walking distance hotel from my experience. Using Priceline bidding for hotels is best when booking a 5 star hotel in Vegas or NYC.

 

[hyperminimalism]

I haven't ever used Priceline but I know it's slightly similar to Hotwire where you can look for a hotel in a specific area with a certain rating and certain amenities, and they'll give you your choice of a few but not tell you the name of the hotel until you book it. I've only done this once before and I was lucky enough to get the Sheraton Park Hotel for about $700 total w/taxes & fees + parking for 5 nights. The only hidden fees I've ever come across, if you're not looking very closely, are "resort fees" (but they end up either telling you the hotel will have one at the time of check in or it gets factored into what you pay when you book) and parking if you don't select that as an amenity and just assume parking will be free without doing research about the hotel. Other than that, Priceline and Hotwire, I believe, factor in taxes and fees and so you shouldn't have too many other hidden fees if any. With Hotwire, and I think with Priceline too, you can purchase what they call "Trip Protection" to guarantee the ability to cancel if something comes up. Usually when booking through places like Hotwire/Priceline, you are not guaranteed the ability to cancel like you can when booking direct unless you add on the trip protection. This is not often the case when you book directly through the hotel you're thinking of staying at.

So that's one route to go, but honestly if it's just for one or two nights, you might be able to find some deals through places like Get Away Today, which would also include taxes + fees. You just want to look for hotels that don't have a parking fee to prevent yourself from spending extra money. Or maybe consider just calling the hotel directly to see if they have any specials going on. Also, sign up for free hotels rewards. Often times if you do that you can save 10% right off the bat just by being a member.

 

[B-rad]

Using Priceline bidding for hotels is best when booking a 5 star hotel in Vegas or NYC.

Totally agree. I know everyone vacations differently, but to me, a hotel for a Disney trip includes four walls, a parking spot, and some source of running water.

 

[j9isawesome]

I don’t have much experience with Priceline but we use Hotwire every time we visit Disneyland or Disney World and have had over 50 trips with no issues. Everyone trying to scare you away from saving money sound silly to me. Select what you need (if you need free parking or a pool or to be within walking distance to the parks you can filter for any of that) & only select well rated hotels. I’m not sure if Priceline works like that but I know Hotwire (& AirB&B) sure do.

 

[LizzyS]

IMO the savings through a third-party agent like Priceline do not justify switching away from booking direct. Don't get me wrong, for some trips Express Deals can make the difference. For a trip to DLR, however, I'd stick with booking direct. The prices are likely comparable, and there's no middle-person when it comes to customer service issues (e.g. cancellations, changes, etc.). Heck, if you book through Priceline, Hotwire, etc. and have some horrible CS issue with the property, it will be a nightmare to get your money back because they've likely already received a voucher from the third-party and it will leave you no immediate recourse.

Full disclosure: the last trip I booked partly through Priceline required 8 phone calls to 4 different companies to adjust reservations for a rental car and a single night hotel stay. Not salty though

I have to say, I always book direct with hotels, but considered using a third party site for our next trip. After considerable looking around, I abandoned that idea and booked direct again. The savings at hotels close to DLR were not far off from the direct booking prices and I'm afraid of issues if there are problems, just as you've described.