Here is a list of questions and answers for booking hotels on Priceline.com. This is based on questions posted in HotelDealRevealed.com's Priceline Forum. These are not official Priceline policies and only represent the general understanding of Forum Members who use Priceline. If this page does not answer your question, feel free to search the Priceline Forum for additional Priceline help.
How does Priceline work?
When making a travel reservation (e.g., hotel, flight, cruise, car rental), the actual supplier is not revealed until after you purchase and finalize your reservation. For example, when reserving a hotel on Priceline, the name and exact address of the hotel remain hidden until you buy. The advantage of Priceline is that hotels and other travel providers can sell off excess capacity at low prices without diluting their brand. As a consumer, you benefit by getting great deals on travel. This is one of the great Priceline advantages.
What makes Priceline unique compared to similar sites (e.g., Hotwire) is that with Priceline, you name your own price. In other words, you provide Priceline with the price you are willing to pay for a hotel that meets your criteria. You find out the name and exact location of the hotel after your 'bid' is accepted.
Can you cancel a Priceline hotel reservation?
According to their policy, you cannot chance or cancel a Priceline hotel reservation after you have booked. Of course, if you have separate cancellation insurance, you may be able to cancel under your own policy. A lot of people get tripped up by this despite that it is fairly prominant in the booking process. Do not let this happen to you.
What if I accidentally made a mistake or a typo when making a reservation?
It is best to call Priceline as soon as possible and explain the error you made. Any evidence you can supply to support the error will help. For example, if you demonstrate that you booked a flight for 6/10 but booked a hotel for 10/6, it might help your situation. However, be warned that Priceline's policy can be very strict. Good luck.
How can HotelDealsRevealed.com help me save money on Priceline?
This website has gathered actual hotel reservation information from Priceline Forum members and put them into Priceline Hotel Lists. This can be used to help you identify the hotel you may potentially receive if your bid is successful. Revealing the name of you hotel does not always work, but it goes a long way in taking the risk out of bidding. The Priceline Forum is also a good resource to determine how much you should bid. Many forum members post their winning bid information on Priceline, including their bid price.
Why can I no find a Priceline hotel on HotelDealsRevealed.com's Hotel Lists?
This website relies on information from forum members to produce the Priceline Hotel Lists. The information provided by members may not be accurate or may be old and out-of-date. Hotels are added to and dropped from Priceline all the time, and hotel ratings (e.g., 3-star, 4-star) change often. We try to keep our lists as current as possible.
I booked a hotel on Priceline that I am not happy about. Is there anything I can do?
It is extremely difficult to do anything after you have purchased your hotel room. This is definitely not one of the Priceline advantages. However, the best way to avoid disappointment is to try to identify your hotel ahead of time using the Priceline Hotel Lists on this site. You can usually narrow it down to a couple of candidate hotels. Then, research those hotels on TripAdvisor or elsewhere before making your reservation. Remember that hotels on Priceline change all the time, as do hotel ratings and amenities. There is always a chance you get different hotel than the one you though you might get. If you are not prepared to take a chance, you should probably book on a different website or through the hotel directly. As much as I love Priceline, there are times when I will not risk getting a hotel I do not want.
Why type of bed will I get?
This is up to the hotel. After you book, you should try to call the hotel if you want a particular bed size.
How many people will my room sleep?
Your room is guaranteed to accommodate a maximum of 2 people. Many hotels will accommodate more but there is no guarantee, and quite honestly, this is one of the major disadvantages. If you absolutely have to have a room for 3 or more people, consider using Hotwire instead.
How do I get a non-smoking room from Priceline?
There are no guaranteed non-smoking rooms. Many hotels will accommodate your request if you phone them prior to your arrival. In fact many hotels are switching to non-smoking alltogether. But again, there is no guarantee.
How do I get a Priceline pet-friendly hotel?
To our knowledge, there is no way to guarantee a pet friendly hotel on Priceline's Name Your Own Price. However, Priceline did recently introduce a new, Hotwire-like service that lists hotel amenities, including Priceline pet-friendly hotels. It's called Priceline Express Deals. For folks who like to travel with their pet, you are in luck. It is possible to get a Priceline pet friendly hotel through Express Deals.
Is there any truth to stories that the hotel gives Priceline customers its worst rooms? E.g., those with poor views, located near the ice machine, etc.
I do not know for certain. I have asked staff at many different hotels and they are all consistent - there is no difference between rooms booked on Priceline or elsewhere. Personally, I have not noticed any difference between the rooms I've booked through Priceline or elsewhere. Sometimes I get a good view and sometimes I don't. I would think that hotels would want to make all their customers happy since their reputation is on the line.
There is, however, one exception to the above. On 4 separate occassions I have booked the Doubletree Seattle Airport on either Hotwire or Priceline and all 4 times I received a room at the very back of the hotel in a separate building connected by a maze of hallways. The room faced the parking lot. Coincidence? I doubt it. I suspect the hotel is flogging the cheap rooms that nobody wants on Priceline.
As a general rule, you will get the cheapest room category.
Where can I go for additional Priceline help?
If you have a question that is not answered in this Priceline FAQ page, try our Priceline Help Forum. If you still need help, it is best to visit the Priceline official site.
More Resources To Help Bidding For Travel
Priceline Essentials: Learn the basics of Priceline. Essential reading for anyone considering using Priceline's Name Your Own Price for hotel and other travel reservations.
Advanced Rebidding Techniques: Learn how to instantly rebid on Priceline up to 8 times OR MORE.
Determining A Starting Bid Amount: Don't overpay for your hotel, using this technique to determine how much you should bid using Priceline's Name Your own Price.
Ten Tips For Better Bidding On Priceline: Here is a quick summary of the best tips for saving money on Priceline and getting the hotel you want.
Priceline Forum: Join our forum and discuss Priceline strategies, find out how much others paid for hotel reservations, seek help identifying a hotel, or discuss anything travel related.
Priceline Blog: Blog articles written about hotel bidding on Priceline.