Getting the Lowest Hotel Rates

The services described below (Hotwire and Priceline) offer the lowest hotel rates you can find. However, there are a few things you should know about them before you start:

• You won't know the hotel name until your reservation is done. You WILL know the area, quality level and price.

• Once completed, reservations cannot be cancelled or changed.

• Resort fees, parking charges and other hidden fees that are not quoted when you make your reservation can make your final bill higher than you expected.

• The services charge a booking fee and the quoted rate does not include taxes. Priceline will not show you the fees until your bid has already been accepted.

• These services do not accommodate special requests such as adjoining rooms, extra beds, king-sized beds and the like. If you need to make a special request, don't use them.

• Some places hesitate to discount for Saturday check-in, making it hard to get the lowest hotel rates. You may have better luck if you wait until Friday to make your reservation.

• You cannot earn frequent stay points for hotels reserved through these services.

Five Steps to Cheapest Hotel Rates Using Hotwire

Hotwire's ease of use, ability to see booking fees before reservations are completed and its reasonably-priced trip insurance make up for its somewhat-higher rates. To use it:

1. Go to the Hotwire website. Select Hotels. Enter your destination city, number or rooms and people and travel dates.

2. Select one or more areas. Enter the dates of your stay.

3. Review the list of hotels they offer. While you won't know the hotel's name, you can read about its amenities. Remember that the rate shown does not include taxes, or booking fees of $5 to $15.

4. Choose one of the hotels and click Continue. You can find out exactly how much the booking fee will be before you continue. Compare the total cost to the rates you've found elsewhere before you make your reservation.

5. If you might have to cancel or change your reservation, you can buy their cancellation insurance.

Seven Steps to Get the Cheapest Hotel Rates Using Priceline

Priceline can get you rock-bottom prices on four-star hotels. It works best when used in smaller cities where you'll have a better idea of where your hotel will be located.

To get the very cheapest hotel rates with Priceline takes a lot of work, which is not worth the time invested for small extra savings. However, we've used the simpler process described below to get four-star hotels in San Francisco for as little as $70 a night.

1. Check Areas: Go to Priceline, click Hotels and enter the city name. Enter any date (you just want to see the map on the next page right now). Pick the area(s) you want to stay in.

2. Check Quality Levels: To find out what quality levels (star ratings) are available in an area, check the box next to it, then click Next. Note the range of ratings available. Click Prev to go back. Write down all the areas and the quality levels available in each.

3. Select one or more areas you want to stay in.

4. Check the Going Rate: Go to the BiddingForTravel forum, select your city and note what rates others have gotten from Priceline for the same quality level, area and date you're interested in.

5. Check online booking services: Get an idea of the going rates for similar quality properties. Because of Priceline's booking fees and nonrefundable reservations, we suggest that you set your maximum Priceline bid at least $20 lower than this going rate.

6. Bid: To get the lowest rate, start with a bid a little lower than the amount you got from BiddingForTravel and work up.
   • Go to Priceline, click Hotels.
   • Enter the city name, dates and number of rooms.
   • Select your preferred area and the quality level you want (this system works best if you choose four stars). Ignore messages urging you to choose more areas.
   • Enter your bid. Ignore messages urging you to raise it.

7. Rebid: If your first bid fails (and it probably will), Priceline won't let you increase the bid unless you also change quality level or add an area.
   • Increase your bid by $5 to $10, up to the limit you've chosen.
   • Add another area you're interested in, or if you want to stick with a specific area or run out of interesting areas, choose the Priceline loophole sometimes called a "free rebid." This is how this it works: If you're bidding on a four-star hotel and add an area that has no four-star hotels in it, you can't possibly end up staying there, but Priceline will let you increase your bid anyway.
   • Keep rebidding, increasing the amount each time. If you can't get a room for at least $15 to $20 less than the going rate you discovered while doing your research, stop bidding and make you reservation another way.