Priceline question

[Zoemakes5]

Another thread got me thinking about using priceline.com. Sounds good to me. Anyway, my question is whether anyone has used priceline.com for a family of more than the traditional 4? We have 5 (2 Adults, 3 kids). I didn't see anywhere on the site to enter the number of people when doing a bid.
Thanks in advance.

 

[kmsandrbs]

Priceline only guarantees that the room is okay for two adults. You CANNOT enter number of guests or request a larger room through Priceline.

Once you have your hotel, you can contact them and ask about extra beds, but they do not in any way have to meet that request.

For us, with Priceline, we have three young children (all under 7), and we figure, if we do not get 2 beds, someone can sleep on the floor if necessary (I really don't mind, so it.s sometimes me, sometimes the children).

This is definitely one of the drawbacks to Priceline, though.

 

[disneychrista]

Yep only gauranteed to get a room to accomidate 2. I have never had a problem getting a room with two beds by contacting the hotel direct, as soon as I have won my bid on priceline. I usually email the hotel and print and take a copy of that email as "insurance" if they say they do not see my request or whatever.

There are some places, so I have heard, that only have rooms with one bed so you should be very carefull when bidding on Priceline.

 

[jencav5]

We are a family of 5 and use Priceline regularly to go to the DLR. It is true that the room is only guaranteed for 2 adults. I always call the hotel as soon as I win a bid and put in a request for non-smoking/2 beds. This is just a request, though, and may not be available if the hotel is booked. With that said, we have rarely had a problem with this. I'd say 9 times out of 10 we get the 2 beds. We drive, so I always throw in an exercise mat & kids Disney sleeping bags, just in case. They stay in the car if we don't need them. Our kids are getting a little older now, so we do sometimes have one sleeping on the floor, even with 2 beds, now. They still think this is fun! Also, we don't hide that we are checking in with 5, but we don't advertise it, either! I usually check in, while DH stays at the car with the kids. Once we're checked in, I never give it a second thought! I've never had a problem with this and have never been told I would have to pay more for more people, etc..., but I just try not to put myself in that positon, either. If you haven't already, I would check out www.biddingfortravel.com for great info on bidding on Priceline. For Anaheim, I would not bid less than a 3*. Our favorite 3* to get is the Hyatt-we like to upgrade (for an addtl fee) and get their kids suite. I just bid for 9/30-10/2 and won the Hilton Suites for $54, which is another great one. Good luck!

 

[Zoemakes5]

I did the "compare and shop" and it seems that the 2-2.5 stars is what I would usually want to stay at, is that generally what you're going to get if you bid? Alot of the smaller hotels that I like around Disney are considered 2-2.5 stars, like the Fairfield and Best Western and Holiday Inn.

 

[disneychrista]

Go to biddingfortravel.com and find the anahiem/disneyland area forum. At the top is a list of hotels that have been reported for each "level" of hotel. This will give you an idea of what you may get if you bid in each level.

 

[jencav5]

I did the "compare and shop" and it seems that the 2-2.5 stars is what I would usually want to stay at, is that generally what you're going to get if you bid? Alot of the smaller hotels that I like around Disney are considered 2-2.5 stars, like the Fairfield and Best Western and Holiday Inn.

There are 2 problems with 2 or 2.5 stars on Priceline (for Anaheim):

#1. Priceline can and often will automatically upgrade you to a 3* - this means if you ask for 2 star, you could get a 2* or greater.

#2. There is one hotel in particular - The Jolly Roger - that you could end up with and it is not very nice. PL considers this a 2.5*, but it should be a 1* IMO. I'm not positive that they still use this hotel, but it could be a possiblility. Years ago, we got this one, and just started bidding 3* after that.

We have gotten the Travelodge for 2* & the Hawthorne Suites & Jolly Roger for 2.5* - every other time before doing 3* only, we were upgraded.

Another note-we needed a room for 1 night in April05 and couldn't get anything. I ended up just going for 1*. We got the Extended Stay America for that. It wasn't bad.

If you are using PL, I would not count on getting something within walking distance. You use PL to save money. If the location is more important to you, then I would shop for a good rate at the hotels that would work.