Rule #1 — If the hotel is full, you’ll get the worst room, and if it’s oversold, you’ll be first to be relocated to another hotel (after all, you didn’t choose the hotel in the first place, did you?). Flip side, if the hotel is empty, you might be able to sweet-talk your way to a suite.
Rule #2 — Smoking and bed types are never guaranteed. Priceline advises you to call the hotel and make these requests, but usually the only person to read them is the clerk who checks you in. Nothing is reserved or set aside. You may have booked on Priceline six months ago, but if another guest reserves on the hotel’s site the day before, he gets the priority for smoking and bed type preference. This is especially true if he has status in the hotel’s loyalty program.
Rule #3 — Hotels consider Priceline a necessary evil. Hotels only get a fraction of the cheapo rate you received because Priceline takes a huge chunk as commission. Priceline does help occupancy numbers and maintains employment for hotel staff during slow seasons (generally, Priceline rates at least cover the hotel’s cost to maintain rooms).
Rule #4 — Priceline guests are not viewed as being loyal. Well duh — you didn’t choose the hotel; you were assigned it. Where is the incentive to make you want to return if you don’t pick your hotels in the first place?
Rule #5 — Beware of the hidden costs. You may have to pay for breakfast; you may not. Same goes for parking, internet, airport transportation, and the list goes on. But once you’ve booked, there’s no option to select another hotel where the extras are included.
Bottom line — if you can settle for a room with a bed, aren’t sensitive to smoke, don’t mind water from the handicap shower all over your floor, and like to be surprised by your experience in the same way you are surprised by your hotel, Priceline can save you a lot of money. But if you’re picky, try your luck elsewhere and use it to pay for peace of mind.
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