God I love Priceline. Have you tried it? It's a site that allows you to bid for hotel rooms (and car rentals and airline tickets) in a particular city at a particular quality level. If your bid is accepted, your credit card is charged and your reservation is prepaid.
Yesterday, I was poking around looking for getaway arrangements for the weekend of the 17th. I was looking at Ottawa because they have the Winterlude festival going on. Also, I've never been to Ottawa even though it's a scant 90 minute drive from here. It looked like a fun weekend, skating on the longest skateway in the world (on the Rideau Canal) and enjoying the winter playground with slides, ice sculptures and sleighs. The Museum of Civilization also looks highly interesting.
Before you bid on Priceline, you should always check over at Bidding for Travel to see what hotel rooms are successfully bit at in the area and quality level you are seeking.
So I went and bid $55 for a 3 star property. (This is the level for your Hiltons, Marriots, Radissons, Sheratons and Hyatts) It was accepted. Then you go to the website of the hotel you just purchased to find that the "guaranteed lowest rate on the web" is more than double what you paid. (put another way, we paid 40% of "the lowest rate")
Then you do a dance of glee, and get down with your bad self.
I also noticed on the Radisson site (our hotel) that pets are "OK" and I am interested in bringing our Sara instead of foisting her on Spouse's mom again. But how does this work? Can you leave your pet in the room while you are out? Do the maids have to clean around the dog? What if the dog makes a "boo-boo"? Do they have a designated dog pooping area? These are the questions I'll be posing on the phone later today.
Any of you ever stay in a hotel room with your dog? If so, is it more hassle than it's worth?
16 comments:
I work in the industry. Some thoughts:
-sites like priceline do offer a low-cost alternative, but don't expect to earn points in the frequency program if you're a member. Ditto for mileage in one of their airline partners. (Somewhere, my friend Jason is cursing me out right now.)
-at my brand (a Starwood brand), pets are allowed and even welcomed. A form is signed when you check in (specifying, among other things, that our room attendants aren't required to enter a room with an unsupervised pet, and that we'll levy extra cleaning charges if Scraps makes a boom-boom).
-Starwood offers a guarantee (that will match any other online rate); perhaps Radisson does as well (again, this would only be important to you if you needed to log a stay in their frequency program)
Now that I've bored you to tears... I should haul ass to said job. Happy Groundhog Day!
omg
Madamerouge: "AAAAAHHHHH!!!!!"
Maybe he prefers paying $55/night with no points than paying $175/night and being a few points shy of free coffee service in the a.m.
-Jimmy (Jason)
I have had my dog in hotels, although I have never left him alone. If your dog is a barker, like if he barks at passersby and is protective of his "territory" then don't bring him! Mine did a low growl, bark attempt EVERY TIME SOMEONE LEFT THEIR ROOM. I got about twelve minutes of sleep! Good thing he is cute, or he would have had a size six shoe in his ass.
Happy travelling!
Sometimes hotels have weight restrictions on dogs is about all I can add.
While it pales to Montreal, Ottawa is a nice place. The gay scene along Bank Street and Sommerset is _really_ small (if you're interested, that is). You have to see the parliament and National Gallery. The canal is waaaay fun. I used to skate to Carleton from my downtown apartment (a good half hour, 45 minutes). It's romantic with booths along the canal selling hot chocolate and beaver tales so you can treat your sweetie.
Although not particularly pc, the Museum of Civillization has an astounding collection of pacific northwest first nations' arts. Other than that... eh. I can take it or leave it. The national gallery is way better. When you are downtown, check out the market area. Some good breakfast places in there.
If you're driving and want rustic charm, there are some really nice inns and restaurants in the Gatineau Mountains north of Hull.
Enjoy!
Cor, thanks for the hotel site tip. I'll give it a go when I'm in your neck of the woods...
Thanks for the link!
I haven't been to Ottawa in 22 years, but thought it was pretty boring even back then.
Still, for $55 it'll make a romantic weekend getaway.
getting a great deal on travel arrangements is one of the coolest things! makes me feel like i can splurge a little more on the fun stuff to do once i get there. and the room never matters that much to me, because i'm rarely in it, so who wants to pay top dollar? a getaway weekend sounds just about perfect right now. i'm literally swooning with envy.
Winterlude is great and so is skating on the Rideau!
I echo cll canuck's comments on the national gallery - well worth the trip and FREE. Well most of it - you have to pay for the special display but there's more than enough wonderful art to see without it.
ENJOY!! Jane
Jimmy, I'm coming to get you. We don't take kindly to the hijacking of Ms. Channing's likeness.
Never tried priceline - but now I will. I've been toying with the idea of flying to Seattle and driving down the coast to northern California. If it works the way you say, This trip could end up a lot less expensive than I'd planned for. thanks!
The other potential downside is that most third-party websites (where you blind-bid for a room) don't give you a solid guarantee of a particular room type. Rather, you are given what's known as "run of the house" accommodations when you check in. Translation: you may get a room that's different from what you're expecting.
I've always wanted to try that site but I'm always way too chicken to do it. I'm impressed though, thats a terrific deal!
I will be travelling to Canada this summer and I have been meaning to ask you some questions. You'll hear from me soon.
Definitely check out the Parliament Buildings, National Gallery and the Byward Market while you're here. All well worth a visit.
Some people get a kick out of Rideau Hall (grounds and building), and the newly opened War Museum is supposed to be excellent (haven't been there yet myself). Gatineau Park is well worth a visit too, if you're into skiing or snowshoeing, and you have a car.
The Canal is definitely the highlight this time of year, but unfortunately, the weather's been so warm lately it's only been open a total of seven days so far. So, keep your fingers crossed for cold weather and bring your skates just in case.
Have fun!
Wow, I just got home, and such a plethora of good info is waiting for me here. Thanks!
I don't think there are any loyalty programs that give you one night free for one night paid which is essentially what Priceline gives you every time. But you are right, if you are picky about your room, location etc. It's better to not go through priceline.
Let me know Dan, when you're ready, and I'll walk you through it. And Adam, it IS scary the first time, but after that it's just plain fun!
great bidding my friend! Ottawa is beautiful, so have a great time!nrjw
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