Priceline usage

Used for a hotel in London. Got the Regent's Park Marriott for $90. Friend was meeting me there so basically a double room with two beds for $45/per person. Been to London many times so knew which neighborhood(s)that would work. This hotel is not in central London but I was fine with that. Only spending a couple of nights. Swiss Cottage tube station was 2.5 blocks away. If you Google this Marriott's website the room photo you'll see is EXACTLY what I got. Very pleased. Did the same thing for a weekend trip to SF. Got a lovely room at the venerable Warwick Hotel on Geary (2 blocks from Union Square and across from one of my favorite places for an evening cocktail, the Redwood Room at the Clift Hotel) for $75. Believe I noted either 4 star for both of these selections. So for the two times I've used Priceline been very pleased with my accommodations.

I have used it for hotels and cars, but only in the U.S. I have to believe it works the same for Europe. Are you wanting to do the Name Your Own Price option?

I am looking for a place in Paris. I had a B&B lined up through BedandBreakfast com -- turns out it was not a good deal, for lack of a better term. So, I'm there next month, on my own, and trying to find a decent place. I've used Priceline for airfares in the US and have had success. WAsn't sure about European hotels.

I've used it a number of times in the U.S. and a few times in London. It has always been fine. In the U.S., I've always gotten rooms with major chains (e.g. Hilton, Westin, Marriott, etc.). In London, I got Park Plaza Westminster, Millennium Baileys and Harrington Hall (although can't remember if last two were via Priceline or lastminute.com Top Secret hotels) Check for tips on bidding on the websites biddingfortravel.com and betterbidding.com.

We've used the Name Your Own Price on Priceline several times in the US and once in Vienna. In Vienna we got Le Meridien for $90/night (I think it was about $104 after taxes) and Le Meridien's website for our same dates was showing a rate of about €138 for the same room. So it was a very nice savings at a great hotel. In general, the hotels we've gotten by bidding have all been larger chain hotel-types. I second the websites Laura mentioned above to see what hotels people seem to be getting and at what prices. Those websites will be a strong indication of what you are likely to get. Good luck!

I use the Name your Own price a lot... always on rental cars. I usually have a hold on a car at a decent price in case I don't get a good bid price, but I usually try numerous times on any given trip and have saved hundreds. No real pattern to it... sometimes great at the last minute, other times not. I have also used it for hotels and most have been a great deal...some okay. In a tourist area like Las Vegas it is easy to narrow down to a 5 star on the strip, etc. Other locations are not so easy, but if you go to a 3 to 5 star you should be fine. I use it more in the US, and for most of my international trips I like to use booking.com. I tend to change plans on a whim and I usually have a car, so I like to be able to change plans many times and you can't with priceline. Once its paid, you really can't change it.

We use Priceline in the US, but never Europe. Part of it depends on if we are picky about where we want to be situated, and our flexibiity. In big cities, like San Francisco, you can chose neighborhooods, and bid in order of your preference. If your lowest offer(s) aren't accepted, then 48 hours later you can try again. We've always gotten a national chain, bid for a 4 star hotel and have never been disappointed.

Stop by Fodors Forum. The people on that forum seem to use Priceline a lot. People posting on Trip Advisor ask occasionally too, but not as often as on Fodors.

Related --I used Hotwire last month for a hotel in London. I picked my neighborhood, went cheap (although I would have loved to have paid a little more to get something swank, but that's not in the cards with our financial situation right now) --we ended up with a very clean, well-located (for our purposes) Holiday Inn Express for something like 88€ a night, tax and breakfast included. No, it wasn't a charming b&b, but it fit the bill for us perfectly and enabled us to save our money for meals, drinks with friends, etc. I couldn't have been more pleased. Come to think of it, that's the second time I've used Hotwire in London, and the other time, when I had completely different needs, worked just fine too.

Priceline is good if you've only got 2 people. More than that and you risk getting a room that won't fit more than 2 people. Remember, you can't specify the number of room occupants. I would never use Priceline hotel bidding for ANY destination if I had more than 2 persons per room. Hotwire is much better in that you can see pretty much what you're getting before you pay. Just use www.betterbidding.com to decipher the hotels that Hotwire offers before actually committing.

I do not use Priceline for anything, since being burned by them a number of years ago. The trip insurance they sold me on plane tickets to Europe did NOT cover anything related to employment (yes, I know, I shoulda read the fine print) and so we ended up losing $2,000. No appeal, no recourse. (My husband was transferred to head up a new district the DAY AFTER the tickets were purchased, and we had to pay for them, PLUS another set. Argh.) So - I use Hotwire. Never a problem with them.

I have used bid your own price on priceline several times, with good results. As someone already suggested, go to biddingfortravel.com and spend a few minutes to understand the multiple-bids strategy. And start your bidding low - you never know! Also on that site, people report on successful, and sometimes unsuccessful, bids, so you can get an idea of which hotels you are likely to get and at what price. And check the zones carefully. I also check trip advisor for reviews of hotels that are named. I got 4/5-star hotels at lower than 3-star prices in Vienna, Prague and Amsterdam. The main drawback is that the 2 and 3 star hotels and B&Bs give you more - breakfast, free wifi, etc. - while the 4-5 stars charge a lot for those things. But you get all the luxe room amenities.

We have used PL for hotels in London, Vienna, Zurich, and Madrid as well as in the US. Never had any problem or disappointment. You just have to be careful selecting your preferred location in London-ours is S Kensington. Our old favorite is/was the Rembrandt but we no longer care to spend so much on a room in London.

Thanks all! I followed many of your suggestions.

I have used PL exclusively for the last 5 years in the U.S. only and bid my own price. Most of the hotels I got were chains (i.e. Hilton, Mariott, Red Lion) I immediately call the hotel to make sure we have 2 beds, once booked. I do a lot of last minute booking. Since I can control the location and # of stars, I'm not too concerned about what I get. Hilton in Monterey= $80....posted price $180 Holiday Inn in Jacksonville= $50........$150 Hyatt in Savannah = $70.................$200
Portola Bay in Monterey - $120..........$200 I'd rather spend it on a nice bottle of Cab!

Suzy, Maybe I'm late for your bid but here goes. I've frequently used Priceline in Europe. But there are nuances to choosing star level and areas that I won't get into. As for Paris, I got a good deal for the Marriott Rive Gauche in the 14th Arrt last December for 5 nights. The more central arrondissements will be more expensive but you may get a higher starred hotel off center. Enjoy, it's a beautiful city...