Complete Guide: How to Use Google Hotel Price Tracker

Understanding hotel price dynamics is like navigating a thrilling rollercoaster ride in the ever-changing travel landscape. Hotel rates can soar to great heights during peak seasons, leaving travelers gasping for breath, while at other times, they plummet to irresistible lows, offering a tempting invitation to embark on that dream vacation. With statistics revealing jaw-dropping fluctuations of up to 40% in hotel prices within a short span, it's essential to grasp the dynamics behind these price changes. And here is the most simple way to do so. 

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There are two types of travelers. One is "booking the hotel in pain," and the second is "waiting for the right moment." 

By that, we mean some people blindly book hotels at the price they see and play the "you only live once" card, and others track prices for their dream hotel, and when that price hits bottom - they will be the ones paying a fraction of the cost for it. 

So, let's get to the main reason we're here - how to use Google Hotel price tracker to get the best prices on hotels in 2023. 

If you're a newbie at the whole Google Hotels game, here's a simple guide on How to Use Google Hotels to Find Cheap Hotels in 2023 (with images). 😉

Setting up the Google Hotel price tracker

You can access the Google Hotel price tracker only through Google app on your mobile. So, no laptops for this, please. 

• Navigate to Google, and type in “google hotels nyc”. 
• Select the exact dates. In this case you can only track prices for specific dates, not for a certain period. 
• Make sure you have no filters on. 

• Scroll down the hotel list on the first Google Hotels page, and find “Turn on price alerts” button. 
• Turn it on. 

Well done, your alert is set up. 

Setting up the Google Hotel price alert is pretty easy and straightforward. However, there are certain specifics to keep in mind. 

Cons of the Google Hotel price tracker

• If you add at least 1 filter to narrow down your search, the price tracker won't work. 
• With the Google Hotel price tracker you cannot keep an eye on prices for a specific hotel. You can only track all hotel price changes in the destination you chose.
• You must have specific dates selected because this tracker does not apply on flexible dates. 
• Hotel price tracking toggle does not work in some countries. If you're from East Europe, you might want to switch your VPN to US or UK, to activate the toggle. 

Pros of the Google Hotel price tracker

• Save money. Easy. It's actually one of many features offered by Google to save big on hotel bookings in your desired destination.
• If you navigate to “Travel setting”, you can access your personal dashboard with all destinations where you have set up the hotel price alerts. 

Tracking prices after booking a hotel

So you've tracked prices for as long as you wanted, and finally booked a hotel. But what if the price drops again? Statistically, it's known and proven that from the day you've booked a room until the check-in day, the price for that room changes 18 times on average. 

What can you do about it? 

1. If you have a chance, always book a room with free cancellation. This will give you a chance to cancel for any reason. Although, bookings with free cancellation tend to be more expensive but when we're talking about in advance bookings a few extra euros/dollars are usually worth it. 
2. After you've booked a hotel, continue tracking prices. And if there's a price drop, doublecheck if your booking has a free cancellation. Then rebook the same room at a lower price. Only then cancel your old reservation to avoid being left with no reservation at all. 

As mentioned before, Google Hotels price tracker cannot be applied on specific hotels and rooms. Therefore, to continue tracking prices for the hotel you've already booked, use Ratepunk browser extension. You can set up the alert in your dashboard and whenever the price drops on the room you have reserved, you'll instantly get a notification via email or sms to rebook the same hotel at a lower price. 

Extra read: “Rebook your hotel if the price drops”

It's actually quite easy and useful, as hotel prices change constantly, and especially last minute. So to never miss out, we recommend Ratepunk. Plus, it's a free tool you can download from Chrome or Safari stores.