Showing posts in category Hotel Tips
By Don Nadeau, on June 6, 2009, in Hotel Tips, Travel
President Obama's implication that you can't have a serious business conference in places like Las Vegas and Orlando has severely hurt Las Vegas convention business. This has caused meetings to be moved to other cities, often significantly more expensive ones, because CEOs want to avoid potential criticism.
These cancellations mean that Las Vegas first class and deluxe hotels--especially those near the convention center such as the Las Vegas Hilton--are hurting for business. That means incrediable potential values for you.
Actually, the number of visitors to Las Vegas remains rather stable per the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, with fewer arriving by air but more by car, yet without the convention business, the prices they are paying are incredibly low.
Using a link like
Last-Minute Hotel Deals at Expedia.com, check weeknight prices at the Las Vegas Hilton and others. Last I checked, $39 plus tax per night for the Hilton--and this is not even a "name your own price" rate.
The Convention Center area puts you close to most Las Vegas attractions and has two stations on the monorail at the Convention Center and at the Las Vegas Hilton.
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By Don Nadeau, on June 6, 2009, in Hotel Tips, Travel
Merely choosing a hotel on the Las Vegas Strip is not sufficient. How much you enjoy your time in Las Vegas may depend heavily on exactly where you position yourself on the Strip.
The Strip varies greatly by location.
If you’re “naming your own price” for a 4- or 5-star hotel in either the north or south Strip areas, you’ll be in a good location. However, if you’re bidding on a lower-star hotel, you’re more likely be satisfied with what you win on the South Strip.
Generally, the blocks between Steve Wynn’s Encore and the Mandalay Bay are considered best. The Encore and Wynn Las Vegas, both great hotels, banked on the area north of these to be quickly redeveloped, which hasn’t happened.
Walking between the Encore and the venerable Sahara Hotel and Casino may make some feel uncomfortable especially at night. Much of this area has been cleared for condo and other projects halted by the economic downturn, but what remains is often quite seedy.
Hotels in this “no person land” include the Circus Circus, Riviera Hotel Casino, and Hilton Grand Vacations, not to be confused with the Las Vegas Hilton. The aptly named Stratosphere, just north of these, exists among seediness, but the crowds that jam the Strip around it bring comfort.
The Sahara, where Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack once partied, transcends its location by having a direct connection to the Las Vegas Monorail. Its retro vibe and usually cheap rates bring repeat business, in spite of its seen better days rooms.
The Strip isn’t your only choice. Off-Strip places like the Hard Rock and Palms (one of my favorites) pull in the party hardy, and the Green Valley Resort offers some of the best rooms I’ve seen in Las Vegas and presents these at a moderate price.
Use this link to find
Las Vegas hotel neighborhoods discussed in detail.
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We talk a lot about airfares on this blog, but Priceline and Hotwire hotels and rental cars continue to offer the easiest ways to save.
Although there are still bargains in airfares, such as last-minute fare reductions by bidding on Priceline and price wars like that you’ll find now on LAX – Australia routes, it’s a lot easier for an airline to reduce flights than for a hotel to reduce the number of rooms it must maintain and more importantly the size of the mortgage it must pay each month.
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As you probably know, for hotel room only reservations, Hotwire does not reveal the name of the hotel where you will stay until you pay. You'll know its neighborhood, star quality rating, and price, but not its name before you book.
However, you can find out typical hotels Hotwire uses in each star quality.
See BidonTravel's
Hotwire Hotel Names and Ratings.
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By Don Nadeau, on May 13, 2008, in Hotel Tips
Hotel bookings are significantly down in Las Vegas. Passengers coming by airline are significantly down too, in spite of large conventions.
In April, MGM Mirage, which operates 10 Strip casino hotels, announced 400 layoffs. During February, Strip gaming revenue fell more than 3%, in spite of an extra day in February this year. Last week, the owner of the Tropicana casino on the Strip filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
For Priceline users, these events mean prime opportunities for extra low prices.
See sample Priceline winning bids at
Name Your Own Price Hotel - See Winning Bids in Top Cities!
As always, best values come Sunday through Wednesday nights in Las Vegas. Friday and especially Saturday are often most expensive.
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By Don Nadeau, on March 2, 2008, in Hotel Tips
On BidonTravel's
hotel strategy page, you'll find out about making "Smart Bids" on Priceline, bids that allow you to rebid right away, without having to wait 24 hours.
Here's one tip: Always aim high. Don't start Priceline bidding at a low star quality level.
If you start low, let's say start by bidding on 2-star hotels, Priceline considers that a bid for 2-, 3-, and 4-star hotels. That means if your bid fails, you'll have to wait 24 hours before bidding again if you want only that neighborhood.
However, if your bid on 4-star hotels fails, you can immediately rebid in the same neighborhood on 3-star hotels and so on.
That means extra chances to save.
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By Don Nadeau, on February 25, 2008, in Hotel Tips
Priceline.com now posts winning hotels bids at
Name Your Own Price Hotel - See Winning Bids in Top Cities!
Can you sometimes pay less than these examples?
Yes.
However, be sure that you have time to rebid if your first one fails. Remember that you have to wait 24 hours before bidding on the same neighborhood and star quality.
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By Don Nadeau, on August 9, 2007, in Hotel Tips
Have a small group?
You can now book up to 9 rooms at one time using Priceline's "Name your own price" bidding.
This means extra savings for class field trips, teams, small business conferences, weddings, and family reunions, because "Name your own price" discounts are usually greater than group discounts.
Remember, though, that Priceline bids are for standard hotel rooms, which especially in a few older hotels in large cities may not have room for more than two persons.
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By Don Nadeau, on July 3, 2006, in Hotel Tips
I've posted
easy-to-follow hotel tips suggesting what you can do before and during your hotel stay to keep it as problem-free as possible. These five tips will help you have a pleasant stay.
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By Don Nadeau, on June 4, 2006, in Hotel Tips
Some 243,000 Hotels.com customers have had their credit card information stolen from a laptop in a locked car of an Ernst & Young auditor, according to the Associated Press.
Ernst & Young audits the finances of the Hotels.com division of Expedia, Inc. Interestingly, it also claims to specialize in “security auditing,” in spite of apparently a number of similar incidents working with other companies, when its employees did not keep their laptops with them.
The laptop was password protected. Most customer transactions are from 2004, but a few are from 2002 and 2003.
If you are in this group and have not been contacted by Ernst & Young, call Hotels.com at 1-800-246-8357 for more information. Ernst & Young will provide free enrollment in a credit monitoring service.
At this time, there’s no evidence that any of the stolen laptop information has been used, according to the Associated Press report.
I like Hotels.com, and use it. As part of a public company, it must be audited. It's a shame that has had negative consequences in this case.
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