The TRUTH about PRICELINE.COM
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The TRUTH about PRICELINE.COM

Before you use Priceline.com, please read the following information. Priceline is NOT a good deal for all travelers, and you may end up losing if you are not careful...


Site UpdateI have had this site up for about five months now. I wamt to thank everyone who has taken the time to write me an email. In that time I have received three distinct types of letters. Expectedly, I got a lot of hate mail from Priceline employees ranging from threatening lawsuits to agreeing with most of the site. I also got many stories from people who had experiences ranging from tremendous success with Priceline, to some real awful problems with the service. As one person quoted, "If it sounds to good to be true, it probably is." Lastly, I have gottem many requests to provide alternatives to Priceline. I will soon be adding another page specifically addressing this request.

If you have your own experience with Priceline that you would like to share,please email me


What is Priceline? Priceline is a buying service, which allows you to "name your own price" for airline tickets. They have deals with certain airlines to enable lower air fares on certain routes. As long as the price you name is higher than the price of the ticket... they add on associated fees, then...you bought the ticket.

The Truth: Priceline has little boxes to check that let you indicate if you will be "flexible" in your ticket choices. Flexible means that you will fly on a hard-to-sell route such as to a different city, or a different day. Most often, this will include a multiple stop-over flight, possibly a "red-eye" all in the name of saving you money. The little check-box to indicate that you don't want to be as "flexible", it turns out, is subject to what Priceline finds flexible, not you... but you won't find out until after your credit card is irrevocably charged. For those travelers who don't minding spending a little more time doing diligence and have some patience, you will be able to find better deals than with Priceline. Most importantly, you will be able to see the route you take before your credit card is charged. I only had one bad experience, but I have since found that Pricline finds new ways to disappoint its customers. Please check the links below for some more information about priceline.com

My Story Click here for the detailed account on how Priceline charged my credit card for unusable tickets.

USE Priceline at your OWN RISK. Using Priceline can be like buying a "mystery bag." You may get nothing. You may get what you want. You may get a bad deal. The point is, once you surrender your credit card number, Priceline has complete control of the transaction.

This is not to say that Priceline is bad for everyone. I have recieved emails from people who are very happy with the service. It's just for people who don't mind accepting a little more risk and a little less convenience in their travel plans, with the hope of saving some money.

Links: For more information on Priceline.com

 Another customer's page on Priceline.com

Priceline.com's Drawbacks (ZDNet)

Know the abc's of Web bargaining

Sorry Bill, Priceline Needs Rethinking

Priceline: The Real Story (Esmarts.com)

Pricline.com Review (ZDTV)

Priceline Comparison (TravelBids.com)

The Priceline Line (BigWorld.com)

Make a Cyberbid, but don't pack your bags (Business Week)


Here is a response from a person at Priceline.com


Please email me with your comments or experiences.
I would also like to publish other people's experiences on this page, so please indicate if you do not want your experiences put up on this site.
Since July 20, 1999