How to Find the Cheapest Time to Book Hotels Using Google and Other Tools

Finding the cheapest time to book hotels can save travelers hundreds of dollars. Just like Google Flights helps track airfare trends, there are several tools—including Google Hotels—that help you pinpoint the best hotel deals.

Method 1: Use Google Hotel Search with Calendar View

1. Go to https://www.google.com/travel/hotels.
2. Enter your destination and travel dates (or leave dates flexible).
3. Scroll down to see a price calendar that highlights the cheapest nights in green or shows lower prices in comparison to average rates.
4. Use the “Track prices” toggle to get alerts via email when hotel prices drop for specific dates or properties.
5. Click “Price trends” for the selected hotel to see how prices change over time.

Method 2: Use Google Explore for Flexible Destinations

1. Visit https://www.google.com/travel/explore.
2. Choose a starting point and leave the destination open to explore where hotels (and flights) are cheapest.
3. Use the filter to show only hotel prices within your budget and preferred travel dates.
4. Zoom in on the map to see deals and historical price patterns across multiple regions.

Method 3: Use Kayak Price Forecast and Explore

1. Go to https://www.kayak.com and click on “Hotels.”
2. Search for your destination and dates.
3. After results load, Kayak shows a price forecast under some listings—this tells you whether to book now or wait.
4. Use Kayak’s “Explore” tool to find the cheapest destinations by price and filter by hotel cost ranges.

Method 4: Set Alerts and Use Filters on Hopper

1. Download the Hopper app on iOS or Android.
2. Search for your hotel destination and select “Watch a Hotel.”
3. Hopper will monitor price changes and notify you of the cheapest time to book.
4. It uses AI-driven forecasts to recommend whether to book now or wait.

Method 5: Use Trivago’s Calendar Comparison

1. Go to https://www.trivago.com.
2. Enter a location and leave the dates open or flexible.
3. Trivago will suggest date ranges with lower-than-average prices.
4. You can also click on individual hotels to see price changes over time from different booking platforms.

Method 6: Track Prices with Google Alerts

1. Set a Google Alert for hotel price drops in a specific city, such as: "hotel price drop in Tokyo site:booking.com".
2. Go to https://www.google.com/alerts and create a new alert using the phrase above.
3. Choose how often you want to receive alerts and your preferred delivery email.

Method 7: Use Booking.com’s Flexible Date Search

1. Visit https://www.booking.com.
2. Enter a destination and select “I’m flexible with dates” or experiment with nearby dates manually.
3. Booking.com will highlight dates where nightly rates are significantly lower.

Method 8: Use HotelsCombined for Cross-Site Price Comparison

1. Go to https://www.hotelscombined.com.
2. Input your target destination and check-in/out dates.
3. It aggregates hotel prices from multiple sites (Booking, Expedia, Agoda, etc.) to help you spot trends and cheapest dates.

Method 9: Use Expedia’s Calendar and Rewards Tools

1. Visit https://www.expedia.com/Hotels.
2. Input your search and then use the “Lowest Price” and “Flexible Dates” options when available.
3. Sign in to see member-only pricing and get price-drop alerts via the app or website.

Method 10: Check Hotel Price History on Trip.com

1. Go to https://www.trip.com.
2. Search for your hotel and dates.
3. Some hotels show a “Price History” tab that charts daily and monthly price fluctuations.
4. Use this to adjust your travel dates to the lowest-priced windows.

These tools combined can help you track hotel prices with the same flexibility and intelligence as Google Flights does for airfares.