I don't know if you've noticed...but it's expensive as all get out to travel these days! DH and I haven't had a vacation since our honeymoon so we decided we were going to do something for Valentine's Day. I thought about it and thought about it. Then it came to me. DH's parents live out of state but are only like 2 hours away. We live in Georgia they live in South Carolina. They don't get to see DS as often as we/they would like. So, I thought maybe we could take the weekend to stay in the city (Greenville) while DS stays with the grandparents. That would be great, close, and cheap! Well....I thought cheap. The hotels are super nice which equals super expensive. One hotel was $189 a night...of course it was a 4-star and I found that on Orbitz! There was no way I was even going to think about paying that kind of money!

In comes Priceline.com Priceline has a great concept! However,in the past, I've been scared of Priceline only because once you name your price it will find who will accept it, go ahead and charge you, and you won't know the specifics on what you're getting until it's too late. I have now found a solution to this problem. I'm just sad I didn't find it sooner. There is this site called www.biddingfortravel.com . It is a forum where your fellow person posts what deals they got accepted on Priceline. So now, you know what ballpark to be placing your bids. You don't want to pay too much. It also educates you in naming prices for airline tickets and car rentals. Also, when looking for hotels, it will tell you in what city what hotels are shopped and how many stars they have. What a great idea! That takes away some of the apprehension of shopping with Priceline.

So, now knowing what hotels were going to be shopped, I went ahead and placed a bid in the 3.5-4 star categories. I was able to get a 3.5 star hotel for $50 a night over Valentine's Day weekend! I went to the hotel's website and the normal price is $109...so that's about 50% off! I am so stoked that we will get a weekend in the city and be grownups! I have been told that you can get some great car rentals from Priceline too. It's worth checking out!

Of course, me, I would bid low. The worse they can say is no. Oh yeah, and if they can't find you what you need at the price you bid, your card isn't charged.