Summary of Winning Bids on Priceline, Hotwire, etc.

[love2vacation]

Hi! I just found a 3* hotel thru Hotwire that I think somebody said is Sheraton OSJ for $92 on 1/24/10. Is there really a way to tell by the amenities whether it is or not? There's a casino, fitness center, pool, restaurant, business center, high speed internet access, & tennis nearby. Thanks for the help!

 

The regular Hotwire site lists OSJ as a 3 1/2 star. I went in to the vacation portions and did a search for San Juan hotel pkgs.

[Lois R]

I notice that both the Sheraton OSJ and the Embassy Suites are the only two 3 1/2* in San Juan. Is there a way of bidding through Priceline to ensure you will come up with one and not the other? On Hotwire it's clear because of the amenities listed.

 

Hi Phil:)hope you are doing well. I love Priceline and use it all the time

but to be totally honest with you, there is no guarantee you will get

a certain property. You can read what other folks get, what zone they bid on and what stars they choose but

that is why if a person is in the category of "must know" where there are staying beforehand are not good candidates

for Priceline or Hotwire.

Edited November 1, 2009 by Lois R

[marciew]

Thanks for the info, love2vacation. You were right about Hotwire. I had been trying first for resorts, then for 4* with Priceline & none of my bids were accepted. So I just decided to try for a 3 1/2* & got the Sheraton Old San Juan on my first try for $91 on 1/24/10 for our post cruise stay & am very happy with it.

[cruisegirl29]

Thanks for the info, love2vacation. You were right about Hotwire. I had been trying first for resorts, then for 4* with Priceline & none of my bids were accepted. So I just decided to try for a 3 1/2* & got the Sheraton Old San Juan on my first try for $91 on 1/24/10 for our post cruise stay & am very happy with it.

 

Hi marciew=

Which cruise are you going on? I'll be on the Victory 1/16/2010. We have a thread going if your on the same cruise join us!

 

Sue

[marciew]

Hi marciew=

Which cruise are you going on? I'll be on the Victory 1/16/2010. We have a thread going if your on the same cruise join us!

 

Sue

 

Hi, Sue.

 

We're going on the Caribbean Princess on 1/17/10. Thanks for the invite, though!

[cruisegirl29]

Hi, Sue.

 

We're going on the Caribbean Princess on 1/17/10. Thanks for the invite, though!

 

Opps I ment 1/17/2010 Victory! We'll be sailing the same time! Woohooo!

 

I thought about staying at the Sheraton but we are at the LeConsulat & it's cheaper since we have 6 in a room....

 

Enjoy your cruise!

Sue

[cheffip]

Hi Phil:)hope you are doing well. I love Priceline and use it all the time

but to be totally honest with you, there is no guarantee you will get

a certain property. You can read what other folks get, what zone they bid on and what stars they choose but

that is why if a person is in the category of "must know" where there are staying beforehand are not good candidates

for Priceline or Hotwire.

 

Hi Lois:)

I used Priceline for the Sheraton OSJ last January and got it for only $70. But Galaxy was the only ship departing the next day and this year there is another large one as well as Summit so that may explain why I'm having trouble getting it or something equally nice. I see you nabbed a resort for your pre-Summit stay? Way to go!!! Guess I'll just keep trying...still have some time to play!

-Phil

[Lois R]

Hi Lois:)

I used Priceline for the Sheraton OSJ last January and got it for only $70. But Galaxy was the only ship departing the next day and this year there is another large one as well as Summit so that may explain why I'm having trouble getting it or something equally nice. I see you nabbed a resort for your pre-Summit stay? Way to go!!! Guess I'll just keep trying...still have some time to play!

-Phil

 

Hi Phil:)yes, I booked it a long time ago:D

[cheffip]

Got the Sheraton OSJ for $95 on Priceline for Jan 29 for one-night pre-cruise. I had gone to $100 when I bid on Saturday with no success so I guess the availability changes day by day. It's more than I paid last year but I'm satisfied.;)

[VTSnorkeler]

Went up to $115 for 3.5*

 

Still nothing.

 

Date is 01/30/2010.

 

This is getting frustrating.

[kitkat9438]

Have you tried resorts only? You will probably have better luck for a better price. With resorts you will probably get either the Marriott Stellarris & Casino or the Intercontinental, both of which are great hotels. We got the Marriott for $95 plus taxes for 12/11 and 12/19. If you need to rebid add 4 **'s and you could get LaConcha which is our favorite hotel so far.

[VTSnorkeler]

Have you tried resorts only? You will probably have better luck for a better price. With resorts you will probably get either the Marriott Stellarris & Casino or the Intercontinental, both of which are great hotels. We got the Marriott for $95 plus taxes for 12/11 and 12/19. If you need to rebid add 4 **'s and you could get LaConcha which is our favorite hotel so far.

 

Tried resorts up to $125.

 

Tried 3* up to $115.

 

No hits :(

[winewanderer]

I think we overpaid for the Courtyard Miramar for 1 night April 17th, 2010. We got it for $100.

 

There are something like 5 ships embarking and about the same debarking around that date so I didn't want to wait. We tried 4*/resort (trying to get Marriott Stellaris or Sheraton over a few days and went up to $150, nothing.

 

We got this with a 3*. That's ok I just wanted to get something reasonable. $15 taxi from airport and same to Carnival pier.

Edited November 3, 2009 by winewanderer

[cheffip]

Tried resorts up to $125.

 

Tried 3* up to $115.

 

No hits :(

 

The Sheraton was $107 on Hotwire for Jan 29th and 30th last weekend. I thought I could do better and did ($95). It isn't on Hotwire tonight but you might wan't to keep an eye on Hotwire as well as Priceline.

[kitkat9438]

Tried resorts up to $125.

 

Tried 3* up to $115.

 

No hits :(

 

I think something must be going on the night you are wanting, there are a lot of ships in port, or it is simply because it is a Saturday night because I checked hotwire and lastminutetravel and all the hotels start at least $145 for a 3 star. I received an email about a special that is 40% off for the caribbean so when I tried the Marriott Stellaris for 1/30/10 it gave me $225 for the cheapest room and $240 plus taxes and fees for ocean view. My guess is you are going to have to go up on your bid if you want to get something decent but not pay full price. I saw another poster got the Marriott but they had to go up to $150, which is still cheaper than paying direct, because you don't have the fees on top of it.

 

Here's a piece of advice from Toonjie on this thread about bidding.

 

Select resorts only, there are 4 possibilities, the Marriott, Intercontinental, Caribe Hilton, and the El San Juan. If your bid is not accepted you can bid again and add any zone except Rio-Grande-Humacao because that is the only other zone that Priceline has resorts in. (Rio Mar and El Conquistador)

 

Did you try four star?

[sc_cruizer]

I just got the Sheraton in Old San Juan in May for $102. I booked through Hotwire and chose the 3* option and got exactly what we wanted.

[royal_flush]

Is it just me or have the average hotel prices gone up?

[Reisebiene]

Got the San Juan Hotel and Casino Waldorf Astoria for 115 US$ per Night,

11/27-11/30/09. Hoped for Marriott Stellaris or Intercontinental :mad:

[gsmith]

Just got the Marriot Stellaris 3/20/10 for $160 after targeting only resorts on Priceline. Yes, I know that seems high for a blind bid, but this property was exactly what we wanted and since it was $209 on sale (40% off) online everywhere else, I felt confident going with that price. After taxes and fees,which are more on other sites, I figure we saved at least 70 bucks, easily, and can enjoy the beach, pool and casino pre-cruise. A win-win!

[maygoddess]

Hi all! I am hoping to bid in the next few days 2 nights pre-cruise for end of March 2010. I am travelling on carnival victory with my sister, 10 yo niece and her 11 yo friend. I plan to travel in alone on Friday and my sister and the girls will arrive Saturday. So I will be alone Friday night, but then we will have 4 of us in the same room. I am hoping for the Sheraton OSJ since it is closest to cruise dock and with kids, figure it would be easiest. My DH and I actually did a similar intinerary this past April on the Carib Princess and we stayed IC pre-cruise and Sheraton 1 night post cruise..so I am familiar with the area already.

 

So...regardless of the property I want...I don't think I could bid one night different than the other. Should I just say 2 adults for both nights and not mention the kids or should I just say 2 adults and 2 kids straight off. Not sure how much it will raise my price either way.

 

 

Also..is it better to bid via priceline or hotwire if you really want to narrow it down to one hotel? I know priceline has the Sheraton in the 3 1/2 * category only with the Marriott Courtyard (which I am not familiar with where it is). Or would hotwire be a better bet?

[flyingandcruising]

We are very excited, we got the Sheraton Old San Juan for Dec 19th, $120.00 Plus resort fee. on Hotwire.

 

Cant wait.

[VTSnorkeler]

Marriott Stellaris $150 for 01/30

[maygoddess]

I just used Hotwire and got 2 nights precruise at Sheraton OSJ for $102 a night. I HAD to have this hotel and got it! I did stay there this past April and had bid on priceline for the one day post cruise and I think we paid $90ish so I am happy. Thank you to the folks who posted the tips about looking for the specific list of amenities so I knew it was the Sheraton OSJ!

 

With 2 kids tagging along this time, I wanted to be as close to the ship as possible so we get over easy to embark!

 

Yeah...now everything is done except pay final payment in January and buy new snorkel gear. oh and figure out excursions...teh fun stuff!

 

Whew!

[suznf]

Used Hotwire and found a 4 star in Rio Grande 1/8-1/10 for $115- It was the Rio Mar Beach Resort & Spa! (we were 98% sure that is what it was because it is the only 4* hotel in the area with an airport shuttle). Current rate on other websites is $240.

 

We have stayed here before, and it is a great location- if you have a car!

[funsunner]

I just used Hotwire and got 2 nights precruise at Sheraton OSJ for $102 a night. I HAD to have this hotel and got it! I did stay there this past April and had bid on priceline for the one day post cruise and I think we paid $90ish so I am happy. Thank you to the folks who posted the tips about looking for the specific list of amenities so I knew it was the Sheraton OSJ!

 

With 2 kids tagging along this time, I wanted to be as close to the ship as possible so we get over easy to embark!

 

Yeah...now everything is done except pay final payment in January and buy new snorkel gear. oh and figure out excursions...teh fun stuff!

 

Whew!

 

 

So is the Sheraton OSJ 3 star? What ammenities did it show? Also how did you like the hotel, obviously you must of liked it because you are staying there again but anything you didn't like? Thanks.