One of the lesser known rules about Priceline, when using its Name Your Own Price to bid on a hotel room, is that the room you book is only guaranteed to accommodate a maximum of 2 people. Despite Priceline pointing this out during the bidding process, it is sometimes ignored by travellers who are upset when they arrive at their hotel and the hotel cannot provide a room with enough beds for more than 2 people.
Here is Priceline’s official policy:
All rooms will accommodate up to 2 adults. Requests for bed types (King, Queen, 2 Doubles, etc.) or other special needs (including preferences for smoking or non-smoking rooms) should be requested through your confirmed hotel and cannot be guaranteed.
They go on to state:
Rooms reserved through priceline are guaranteed to accommodate up to 2 adults comfortably. This includes rooms that may have:
- 1 double
- 1 king
- 1 queen
- 2 doubles
- 2 twins
Accommodations for additional guests are not guaranteed. If you require a specific bed type, please contact your hotel directly. All bedding requests are based on hotel availability and are at the discretion of the hotel. A fee may be incurred and is the responsibility of the customer. For specific room type requests (deluxe, suites, etc.) try our Shop and Compare option.
This is a fairly straightforward policy. If you book a hotel using Priceline, you may only get a room with enough beds for 2 people. This usually means 2 single beds, or a king or queen bed. Although some travellers aren’t are of this policy, others simply choose to ignore it and take their chances, lured by the lower price that Priceline usually offers. In most cases, it isn’t a problem when you show up to a hotel that you’ve booked on Priceline and ask for a room with 2 beds to accommodate your party of 3 or 4. However, there are some cases you might not want to take the risk:
1. In certain cities like New York City and San Francisco. When you book Priceline, many of the older hotels are quite small, meaning they might not have very many room (so all the double rooms are taken) or the rooms themselves are too small and fire regulations prohit more than 2 persons per room.
2. If you’re arriving late in the day. Remember, the hotel is saving you a room per your reservation. This means you get what is available when you arrive. The later you show up, the greater likelihood all the rooms with double beds will be gone.
3. During peak travel seasons when the hotel may be full. Generally, hotels want to keep their visitors happy by accommodating their request. But during peak travel times (such as the peak of summer, special holidays, or major conferences, the hotel may not be able to accommodate your request
Aside from these instances, most hotels are willing to give you a room with that will accommodate 3 or 4 guests, or find you a cott or pull out bed. These later 2 alternatives are less preferred but they will usually suffice in a pinch. On occassion, hotels have tried to charge hotel guests extra for an added guest. They will either require an extra charge per person, or charge for a room “upgrade”.
I don’t have precide data on the likelihood of getting a room for 3 when using Priceline, but I would hazard to guess that about 90% of the time, the hotel can accommodate more than Priceline’s official policy of 2 persons. So, that’s about 10% chance you could get stuck in a situation where you don’t have a bed for your third guess. Is it worth the risk? That depends on many factors. For me, I have kids young enough that we can make an ‘adventure’ out of haivng them sleep on the floor (using lots of blankets and pillows to make a fort).
Join the discussion: Here is a great thread in the Priceline forum discussing this particular topic. Find out what sort of experience other travellers have had with Priceline for 3 guests.