Boston hotel deals?

[sokolov]

I have to spend 4 nights in Boston in late September/early October. I'm shoked by the prices of hotels there.

Does it make sense to wait until close to the date?

Would anyone know about a masive discount? The 20% offered by the usual booking websites don't make crazy prices look that much better...

I don't need luxury, but internet and a location on a decently servde public transport route

[lasallejai]

You have plenty of time before your trip so you should try bidding for a room first, and you get to choose the area of your hotel you would like to have. No guarantee for free wifi, but it usually comes with the accomodation these days, except for 3.5 star and above hotels, where they usually charge you by the day. You can always go down to the lobby to use their free wifi though, and I do that all the time.

[Spantz]

How would you bid for a room? I'm also looking to visit Boston around that time. Thanks

[lasallejai]

Priceline.com is the only place you can bid for a room. Research at betterbidding.com, biddingfortravel.com, and biddingtraveller.com before bidding will help a lot. After using priceline extensively for the last 4 years I have become some what a veteran. Just went to Pittsburgh early this month and stayed at a 3.5 star Marriot for a mere $46 a night, and I just won another bid for Cleveland for end of next month, $42 for a 3 star Holiday Inn. It is actually kind of fun bidding for hotel rooms, but please bear in mind that Priceline only guarantees double occupany. Nevertheless, out of all the trips(about 13) we used priceline for our rooms in the last four years only three times the hotels did not let us have two beds. Have fun bidding! : ) I got the room in Boston 3 star hotel room last December for $49 a night and we stayed for 7 days there.

How would you bid for a room? I'm also looking to visit Boston around that time. Thanks

[Kris81]

Check Priceline or Hotwire.

When I went to Boston, I got the Intercontinental Boston plus a flight, 4 nights = $650 a person

[Arrgh]

I have to spend 4 nights in Boston in late September/early October. I'm shoked by the prices of hotels there.

Does it make sense to wait until close to the date?

Would anyone know about a masive discount? The 20% offered by the usual booking websites don't make crazy prices look that much better...

I don't need luxury, but internet and a location on a decently servde public transport route

Boston does have very high hotel prices, especially downtown. To get something at a decent price, would have to go to suburbs or airport. Even then it's still high.

As mentioned, try PL or Hotwire. Those are you best chances for getting better pricing.

[matdwyer]

Consider staying in Cambridge - close to the Universities (between Harvard & MIT), subway to downtown is close, but you can walk to either easily.

Lots of hotels because of the Uni's, and I'm sure you can bid there if there are no conferences etc. taking up rooms.

[sokolov]

Thanks to all for their replies. I'll try some bidding, though I've never been successful with that on Priceline. Hotwire was not on my radar at all. :-)

BTW, since lasallejai was mentioning his luck with separate beds: My sister and I booked a Motel room near St. Barbara for 3 nights through Priceline. We had to pay an extra fee of $30 on the spot in order to get separate beds, although plenty of rooms where free. And no discounts (like AAA) where applied on that fee.

[lasallejai]

Thanks to all for their replies. I'll try some bidding, though I've never been successful with that on Priceline. Hotwire was not on my radar at all. :-)

BTW, since lasallejai was mentioning his luck with separate beds: My sister and I booked a Motel room near St. Barbara for 3 nights through Priceline. We had to pay an extra fee of $30 on the spot in order to get separate beds, although plenty of rooms where free. And no discounts (like AAA) where applied on that fee.

I can actually recall all three occasions when we did not get two beds for the three of us when we arrived at the hotel using priceline bidding: first one was in Ottawa at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, but the front desk was very nice and sent up a cot bed for us right away, but the king bed room was so small once the cot bed was opened we hardly had any space to move around; second time was in Mishewaka, Indiana, at the Springhill Suites Hotel, and even I asked them for two beds they declined saying that that was what they offered to priceline bidding guests, but since it was an all suite hotel there was a sofa bed in the sitting area so I did not have to sleep on the floor yielding the kind bed to my wife and son; the third occasion was in Detroit at the Homestead Suite Hotel, and no luck that one time and we only had a queen bed in the suite with no sofa bed, and fortunately that was only for one night. There was almost a fourth time when we went down to Washington, DC, just this past April at the Arlington Hyatt(super deal $51 a night bid won for this 4 star Hyatt with subway station just across the street): the front desk said a king bed room was prepared for us but we could upgrade to a two double beds room for an extra $20 a day. I declined right away, but the lady said she would give the two beds room to us any way. I almost had to sleep on the floor for four nights that time. All the other 9 times I used priceline bidding we got at least two double beds. I would not take any chance if there are 4 of us though, especially staying for more than one night. I always use hotwire, hotels.ca, expedia.ca and travelocity.ca to buy our rooms knowingly and unknowingly.