The travel industry is beginning to show signs of recovery as parts of the world reopen and vaccinations continue. Google searches for “where to travel”, “can I travel”, and “covid travel restrictions” are near all-time highs and Google says it is working hard to ensure travellers have the information they need to travel safely and cost-effectively.
Pick the best hotel for your stay
Whether it be “sandy beaches in Da Nang”, “night life of São Paulo”, “Korean barbecue from Seoul”, or “visit the city of Acerenzaare”, that you’re searching for—all top of mind for people planning vacations this year—Google has suggested readying your next trip by following these four tips to help you pick the best hotel for your stay.
1. Know when to go
If your travel dates are flexible, you can find the best times to visit, or typical hotel prices for specific dates, right above the hotel results on desktop at google.com/travel.
Try the “When to visit” tab to explore how weather, crowds, and pricing vary at different times of the year. Click “What you’ll pay” to search whether prices are low, typical, or high for the dates you’re considering—these are grouped by hotel star ratings. If you discover that costs are much higher owing to a conference or sporting event, you have the option to shift your travel dates accordingly.
2. Narrow down by neighbourhood
By clicking on “Where to stay”, you’ll pull up a summary of top neighbourhoods in your destination city and maximise the fun of discovering new and interesting places that you might have otherwise overlooked.
The home base for your trip needs to be a safe and secure location, though—you don’t want to take your chances in a sketchy neighbourhood. Google now rates locations with a score and then serves up the average cost of hotels there: select an area you’re interested in and you’ll see it highlighted on the map. When you have decided on an area, narrow your search by clicking “Apply” to update results to include hotels only in the area of your choice.
3. Personalised your results
Google can trawl your stay history and provide suggestions of hotels similar to ones you’ve stayed at before in other cities. Results will also call out hotels that are close to points of interest you’ve searched for. For example, if you’ve been researching Tokyo Tower, Google will highlight how far it is from hotels nearby.
4. Get the total cost for your stay
Often you are stung by hidden costs and fees not readily disclosed by venues. Once you’ve selected the hotel you like, and want to confirm the cost before booking, Google will calculate nightly and other charges and display the total price for your entire stay, including taxes and fees.
