I saved $100+, But Will You?
Written: Mar 17 '01
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The Bottom Line
Priceline can save you a significant amount of money with flexible travel plans, just read the fine print and know what you are getting into before submitting your credit card.
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I have mixed feelings about Priceline. I used them once before for airline tickets and was pleasantly surprised at the outcome. The purchase process was fairly easy and my overseas flight turned out to be hassle-free and comfortable. So when I decided to plan a last minute weekend to Tampa, I gave Priceline another shot.
Money was tight and my schedule was fairly flexible (within reason). These are the two criteria that I traveler should have when considering Priceline. If convenience takes priority over dollars and cents, try travelocity for a good deal. But if a couple hundred dollars means the difference between going or not, priceline is an excellent option.
I used Priceline to book all aspects of my vacation: airline, hotel and car rental, in that order. It is unwise to request all three at once because there is a wait of up to 20 minutes for approval on each request and no cancellation or changes are allowed for any reason.
For this vacation, I had very specific accomodations in mind and was therefore hesitant to use Priceline because you cannot choose a specific hotel or a specific room type. I called a travel agent for a hotel in either Clearwater or St. Petersburg but the result was few options and very high prices. I tried travelocity and the best they could come up with was $185 per night. I called the hotels directly and they couldn't do any better. I turned to Priceline.
While it is true that Priceline will not allow you to choose a certain hotel, they will allow you to choose specific criteria. They're star ratings system is almost identical to AAA and is an industry standard. The problem with the rating system is that 3 stars includes both a Quality Inn and a Sheraton or Hilton depending on ammenities the specific hotel offers. This is often a major complaint from travelers as often a Sheraton far exceeds a Quality Inn in luxurious accomodations. This, however, is a travel industry problem in general and not exclusive to Priceline. Travelers should be familiar with the star ratings before booking a hotel through Priceline in order to avoid later confusion and/or disappointment.
For my weekend, I wanted a luxury hotel on the gulf. Priceline would not allow me to request a gulf-front hotel. However, they did allow me to choose from very specific regions. In my case, I chose a strip on St. Petersburg Beach and Clearwater Beach as my two options. You can choose as many or as few regions as you prefer. The regions were small enough in this instance to ensure that my hotel would either be on the gulf or within walking distance.
Next, I chose a 4-star rating for my hotel. You can choose a minimum rating anywhere from 1 to 5. However, there were no 5-star rated hotels in the regions I chose and Priceline made me aware of that before submitting my request. Five-star ratings both for Priceline and the travel industry in general is reserved for very expensive, very luxurious resorts designed to cater to those accustomed to being pampered. There are few hotels nationwide that achieve this rating, such as the Ritz-Carleton near Los Angeles or the Four Seasons of Chicago.
Now it came time to enter a price. The cheapest hotel room in the same area that I could find was $185 per night, so I chose a price of $100 per night for 3 nights. Within 10 minutes, priceline e-mailed me with an acceptance notice and a link to my hotel information. I was pleasantly surprised to find a room reserved for me at the Tradewinds Resort, the top hotel on St. Petersburg Beach and directly on the gulf.
An hour later, I phoned the hotel directly to verify my reservation. They were very helpful and had no problems allowing me to request a specific bed type and a crib at no added charge. When we arrived at the hotel, I was pleased to find that Priceline had reserved the best available room for me not just a standard room which was actually a two-room suite instead. I verified the charges to my credit card and had no problems with any part of this transaction.
My experience with Priceline has been wonderful, however, I hesitate with my recommendation because I could see how travelers might get easily frustrated. You have to understand what you are getting into before you book with Priceline. First, you cannot choose your hotel, merely rough guidlines for it. Some people feel very strongly against specific chains and if that is your case, forget Priceline. Also, if you are very picky about accomodations, I suggest a different booking option because even though my situation turned out better than expected, had the hotel been full I may have been stuck with two double beds in a standard parking-lot view room instead of a king suite. Last but not least, Priceline does require you to submit a credit card before processing your request. This means that if your offer is accepted, your credit card will be charged immediately and you will get no refund for cancellations or changes. Many people are not comfortable using a credit card over the Internet and should not use Priceline.
In summary, if you have flexible travel plans, an interest in saving a great deal of money and are comfortable with the Priceline process, Priceline will more than likely save you money and leave you pleasantly surprised. As far as navigating their website in general, read everything carefully. It is fairly easy to use and Priceline guides you through step-by-step. I should also point out, however, that Priceline will bombard you with allowing credit card offers and calling card plans as you go through your booking process. I just ignored the offers and Priceline has not bothered me with any follow-up e-mails or calls.
Overall, Priceline worked well for me.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
rmgood
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Member: Raquel
Location: Minnesota
Reviews written: 89
Trusted by: 85 members
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