How to get cheap hotels using a VPN in 2024

Did you know you may be overpaying for hotel bookings? Many travel websites use your IP address to determine your location and track your online activities as you hop across different platforms, comparing hotel rates. As a result, you may see higher hotel prices, and the rates may keep climbing every time you visit these sites.

The Cybernews research team and I did some tests and found a way to save money on hotel reservations using a VPN. Continue reading the article below to learn how to use a VPN to get cheap hotels, what are the best VPNs for looking for hotels, and other ways to find great deals.

How to use a VPN to book cheap hotels

1. Choose a reputable VPN. I recommend NordVPN, now 74% off
2. Download the VPN app and install it on your device
3. Connect to a VPN server in a low-income country
4. Visit travel sites like Booking.com and check hotel prices
5. Clear your cookies and repeat the process to compare hotel prices on other booking sites.

How can a VPN help you get cheaper hotel rates?

Several factors determine the hotel prices on booking websites and apps, including your location and browsing history. Travel sites track your online behavior and use this information to personalize the prices you see. This is why you will usually see a price rise if you visit a booking site multiple times within a short period.

A VPN prevents this invasive user profiling by hiding your IP address and making it more difficult for online travel sites to track you. So, instead of personalized prices, you’ll see unbiased results and potentially lower hotel prices. I’ve tested this technique and can confirm that it works on all the top booking sites, including Booking.com and Expedia. It’s one of the top ways travel experts recommend to save money.

While a VPN can help you save money on hotels, not all VPNs are suitable for this. Some VPNs don’t keep you anonymous online, so you won’t see any price difference when booking hotels. For the best results, I recommend using a reliable VPN like NordVPN.

Get cheap hotels with NordVPN

NordVPN is the world’s leading VPN provider. Its massive fleet of 6400 servers in over 111 countries is sure to help you find the best deal on a cheap hotel stay.

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Best VPNs to get cheap hotels in 2024

Our research team and I tested 41 leading hotel VPNs to find the best ones for booking cheap hotels. I assessed and ranked them based on their server network, speeds, prices, and ability to keep users anonymous online. The three VPNs below are among our overall best VPN services, and they’re guaranteed to help you find the cheapest hotel prices.

1. NordVPN – best VPN to get hotels cheap

Get cheaper hotels with NordVPN

Based on our tests, NordVPN is the best VPN to get hotels cheap. Its vast network of 6400+ servers in 111 countries allows you to spoof your location and find incredible hotel deals. And, thanks to its top-notch security, you can browse through different websites and compare hotel prices without being tracked.

I did some tests to see if I could get cheap hotel deals with NordVPN. I connected to a server in Brazil, and found a hotel that’s $32 cheaper than the one I see without a VPN.

In addition, NordVPN features Threat Protection, which shields you from malicious ads and blocks intrusive trackers. NordVPN is pretty affordable, too – starting at $3.09 per month. Even though there’s no free plan, you can try out NordVPN before committing fully – either through its 7-day free trial or 30-day money-back guarantee.

2. Surfshark – budget-friendly VPN to save on hotel bookings

Get cheaper hotels with Surfshark

Surfshark is a great VPN for finding cheap hotel deals. It’s also one of the cheapest VPNs available today, at only $1.99 per month. With over 3200 servers in 100 countries, Surfshark allows you to save on hotel bookings anywhere in the world.

I had no problems finding cheaper hotels using Surfshark. Connecting to a server in Brazil helped me find the same hotel at a cheaper price, saving me over $70.

Like NordVPN, Surfshark keeps you anonymous online with the highest standard encryption and cutting-edge protocols. It also blocks annoying ads on sites, and its GPS spoofing feature masks your location, ensuring hotel booking sites can’t determine your location or track your online activities.

Surfshark offers a 7-day free trial and a 30-day money-back guarantee. So you can try it and see if it works for you entirely for free.

3. IPVanish – reliable VPN to book hotels cheaper

Get cheaper hotels with IPVanish

While it isn’t as popular as NordVPN or Surfshark, IPVanish is an excellent alternative for finding cheap hotels. With 2400 servers in over 55 locations, you are sure to find the best hotel deals.

I used IPVanish to connect to Argentina and found the same hotel at a lower price. Without a VPN, the hotel cost $508, but when the VPN was turned on, the same hotel cost $410 – that’s almost a $100 difference.

IPVanish uses the standard AES-256 encryption and supports multiple security protocols, including WireGuard. Like NordVPN, its Threat Manager blocks ads, trackers, and malicious websites, ensuring a secure connection.

IPVanish is quite affordable, starting at only $2.19 per month. You can try it out for 7 days before making a purchase, and if you decide you don’t like it, there’s a 30-day money-back guarantee to fall back on.

How to book cheap hotels with a VPN: detailed guide

I did my own research to determine if a VPN can help me get hotel reservations cheaper on Booking.com. Here’s how I did it and how you can do it, too:

1. I visited Booking.com and searched for hotels in Paris to check the prices without a VPN
2. I downloaded the NordVPN app and installed it on my computer
3. I connected to NordVPN servers in Bangladesh and searched for the same hotels in incognito mode to get unbiased results
4. I noticed a clear difference in the pricing. One hotel was $194 cheaper on a Bangladesh server than a US one. The prices were generally lower when I was connected to a Bangladesh server
5. Even though I was using incognito mode, I regularly cleared cookies, cache, and browsing history so that previous searches didn’t influence the search results

Find cheap hotels with NordVPN

It’s important to remember that hotels are aware of this strategy and may be blocking VPN users from accessing cheaper prices. Opt for a reliable VPN with thousands of servers to increase your chances of getting a great deal.

8 cheapest ways to book a hotel

There are a few ways to get cheaper hotel prices on your next trip:

1. Use a VPN

A good VPN stops booking sites from tracking your online activities. As a result, you’ll see unbiased search results rather than personalized prices. This is the easiest way to find cheaper hotels. I recommend connecting to a VPN server in a country with relatively low spending power to see the best prices.

Find cheap hotels with NordVPN

2. Browse in Incognito mode

When you browse in Incognito mode, your browsing history, cookies, and site data aren’t saved on your device. So, booking sites can’t access this information to personalize the hotel prices based on your location and other information they have about you.

3. Clear your cookies, cache, and browsing history

Clearing your cookies, cache, and browsing history is an alternative to using Incognito mode. It prevents booking sites from accessing data about your online activities and personalizing hotel prices. I recommend clearing your cookies in between searches for hotels.

4. Compare prices from different booking sites and apps

Comparing prices is an excellent way to save on hotel bookings. It’s best to check prices on different booking sites and apps when looking for cheap hotels. You’re likely to find a price difference on some platforms.

5. Book directly with the hotel

Another way to get better hotel prices is to book directly with the hotel you want to stay. Booking sites usually have commissions that raise the prices of your reservation. You don’t have to pay this commission when you book with the hotel directly, so you’re likely to get a better price. You can also use a VPN when doing this to get an even better price.

6. Try different travel dates

Hotels usually charge lower prices on some days than others. For example, you’ll have to pay more for a booking during the peak holiday season than in the off-season. The price difference varies from one hotel to another. I recommend checking different dates to see which is cheaper.

7. Take advantage of discount deals

Hotels often have discounts at particular times of the year, like Black Friday, that you can take advantage of to save on your reservation. Some hotels also offer discounts to veterans, students, and seniors.

8. Try different hotels

Some hotels are way cheaper than others. So, consider choosing a more affordable hotel to save on your hotel booking. If you’re working with a tight budget, couch surfing is also an option worth exploring.

Hotel price comparison

To show how hotel prices vary depending on the country you’re booking from, I used NordVPN to check the average cost of hotels in Spain from different countries. Here’s what I found.

Overall, low-income countries like Brazil or Bangladesh offer slightly lower prices; while this doesn’t seem like a lot at first, you can save a lot of money if you stay in a hotel for a longer period of time. I travel quite often, and this workaround helped me save around $20 on each trip.

Cheap hotel apps overview

There are dozens of hotel booking sites, but I’ll focus on the most popular ones, namely:

• Booking.com
• Expedia
• Trip.com
• Hotels.com

Booking.com and Expedia have a more extensive catalog of hotels than Trip.com and Hotels.com. This means you’ll likely find properties on these sites regardless of your budget.

While hotel prices vary depending on several factors, Expedia and Hotels.com tend to have higher prices than Booking.com and Trip.com. I recommend looking through the options on different sites before settling on one.

Cheapest country to book hotels from with a VPN

There’s no single cheapest country to book hotels with a VPN. Hotel prices change due to the number of bookings the hotel is receiving and other information the hotel has about you.

Changing your VPN location can help you find cheaper accommodation. I recommend connecting to a different country and comparing hotel prices before making a reservation. For example, if you’re looking to book rooms in New York, connect to a NordVPN server in the United States and Turkey to compare the prices.

Does a free VPN work for booking cheaper hotels?

Technically, you can use a free VPN to find and book cheap hotels, but you’re unlikely to get the best deals, as free VPNs only have a handful of servers. Also, free VPNs aren’t very secure and may not keep you anonymous online – or worse, leak your data to advertisers or bad actors. As a result, you’ll continue to see personalized results when checking different hotel booking sites.

If you want to cut costs, take advantage of a free trial to book a cheaper hotel. Here’s what I recommend:

• NordVPN – try out the world’s leading VPN provider starting from $3.09 per month. NordVPN offers a 7-day free trial to help you decide. Alternatively, if you need more time to finalize your booking, you can opt for its 30-day money-back guarantee.
• Surfshark – check out one of the most affordable VPNs on the market. Starting at $1.99 per month, Surfshark also offers a 7-day free trial and a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can get your money back if you’re unsatisfied with the service.

Final thoughts on cheapest ways to book hotels

Hotels can be expensive, but you don’t have to empty your bank account to find a great deal. There are different ways to save on your reservation, like booking directly with the hotel or taking advantage of discounts. Still, there’s no guarantee you’ll find a cheap hotel every time.

I’ve found that the best way to find cheap hotels is to use a VPN to compare the prices from different locations. A good VPN, such as NordVPN, will allow you to connect to any country in the world, blocking booking sites from tracking you and helping you find the cheapest hotels.

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