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How to Use Google's New Flight and Hotel Search to Save More Money

The vacation planning process is about to get a little easier (and cheaper).

Since 1971, Travel + Leisure editors have followed one mission: to inform, inspire, and guide travelers to have deeper, more meaningful experiences. T+L's editors have traveled to countries all over the world, having flown, sailed, road tripped, and taken the train countless miles. They've visited small towns and big cities, hidden gems and popular destinations, beaches and mountains, and everything in between. With a breadth of knowledge about destinations around the globe, air travel, cruises, hotels, food and drinks, outdoor adventure, and more, they are able to take their real-world experience and provide readers with tried-and-tested trip ideas, in-depth intel, and inspiration at every point of a journey.

While Google's flight and hotel searches already offer travelers great comprehensive tools for searching for airfares and room options, updates announced Tuesday could make it easier to save money and time.

The new flight features, available on mobile immediately and rolling out to desktop later this year, give travelers more ways to compare prices for different dates, airports, and hotel locations for their desired destination.

The features are especially helpful for travelers who have some flexibility when it comes to their travel schedule.

Airfares in Google Flights will appear in a calendar view and in a price graph, showing travelers the cheapest and most expensive airfares for a wide range of travel days. (This is an expansion on the previously available dropdown calendar view.)

Travelers can also easily consider nearby airports for a better deal. According to Google, choosing an alternate airport results in a cheaper price for more than 25 percent of flight searches. Google Flights will now feature an interactive map showing travelers the distance between each airport and their final destination, as well as the varying flight prices between these nearby airports.

Google's hotel searches are getting an upgrade, too. Not only will users be able to see nightly hotel rates in an easy-to-scan calendar view, but they’ll also be able to explore price trends for specific hotels they’re interested in, watching how rates change throughout the season.

Most notably, hotel prices will now appear directly on Google’s interactive map, a user-friendly feature allowing travelers to quickly scan the areas they’re interested in and select hotels based on exact location and price.

The changes are relatively small, but they could mean significant savings for travelers who can now more easily compare dates, rates, and locations before they book a trip.

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How To Use Google Flights To Find Cheap Prices, Discover Destinations (& More)

Michael McHugh

Former Content Contributor

63 Published Articles

Countries Visited: 15 U.S. States Visited: 32

Keri Stooksbury

Editor-in-Chief

34 Published Articles 3147 Edited Articles

Countries Visited: 47 U.S. States Visited: 28

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Before the Google Flights platform launched in 2011, the process to search for all of your travel needs across a variety of websites was extremely cumbersome. Today, Google Flights has everything you need in 1 place to easily plan travel — it’s a robust website that helps you evaluate all of your Trip, Flight, Hotel, and Travel Package options.

In true Google fashion, the Google Flights platform is once again pushing the envelope with its price guarantee function, which we dive into below. In addition to its price guarantee function, Google added a feature that allows you to see your travel itinerary/itineraries on google.com/travel when logged into your Google account. Additional features include hotels, restaurants, and things to do recommendations from Google based on your destination.

New Features for Google Flights

Google Flights has recently added a new feature that gives users the ability to guarantee the lowest price possible.

When the multicolored guarantee badge appears, it means that Google is very confident that the price won’t get any higher before you fly. If a guaranteed price does go up, you can get an automatic refund of the price difference through Google Pay.

One of the newer features of Google Flights that is especially helpful in today’s climate is the ability to view and track any COVID-19 travel advisories or restrictions for the destination you’re searching for. This will include details like whether you’ll need to quarantine upon arrival or provide proof of test results or immunization records.

Better yet, you can also track these advisories and receive updates straight to your inbox. So if restrictions are added, lifted, or reduced, you will know about it right away and can make adjustments to your travels as necessary.

Those who have been using Google Flights for a while know that the Google Explore feature used to just show flight prices to a variety of major destinations from your home airport.

But now, you’ll see significantly more destinations on the map, including smaller cities and national parks, hotel rates, info on tours, activities, and attractions. You can also filter destinations that appear based on your interests (outdoors, beaches, skiing), the duration of the trip, the airlines that fly there, and more.

How Google Flights Can Save You Money

The first thing you might notice is that Google Flights isn’t quite as flashy as some of the online travel agencies like Expedia , Priceline , or Orbitz . Have no fear — it’s still a powerful search engine with lots of options!

Start by entering your basic search criteria, just as you would on any other site. Google Flights allows you to do multiple searches at once — up to 7 departures and 7 destinations in the search box! — saving you tons of time when you are doing a flexible search.

As an example, let’s say you want to fly from New York City to Europe but without a specific city in mind. In the departure box you can enter New York City, which will search all of the New York airports (LGA, JFK, EWR) — or you can select the airports individually, including other nearby airports like Islip, Long Island (ISP) or Philadelphia (PHL).

For your destination city, start typing in cities you are interested in visiting like Paris (CDG), Barcelona (BCN), Berlin (BER), etc. Google Flights will search for the best options all at once, instead of looking up the price of each route individually !

Your results list will display options including all of the cities added to your search. In the example below, we can see the cheapest flight is a nonstop flight from New York (JFK) to Paris (CDG).

Bottom Line:  If you have some flexibility in your travel plans or don’t know exactly where you want to go, Google Flights can save tons of time by combining multiple searches into 1. You can input up to 7 departure cities and 7 destination cities all in 1 search to see, quickly and easily, what the cheapest option will be. 

You now know you can search multiple departure and arrival cities, but how can you find out the cheapest dates to fly?

After inputting your departure and arrival cities, look at the dates to the right side of the search box. Clicking the calendar icon will display a calendar view showing prices for the whole month. Days that offer lower prices will be shown in green. As you can see, the majority of dates for this route in September and October have pricing for business class in green.

Hot Tip: You can adjust the duration of your trip by using the arrows at each side of the calendar box.

Flight Insights

Google Flights has updated its Flight Insights section, found on the right side above your flight search results. A new Prices section is shown below your search results . With this new format, you’ll only see the Prices section when searching between 2 city pairs and not when searching for multiple destinations.

Hot Tip: We always use a rewards card that earns bonus points   on travel purchases. For example, the Chase Sapphire Preferred ® Card earns you 2 points for every $1 that you spend with the card on travel or dining purchases. If you’re a business owner, we’d strongly recommend using a rewarding business credit card (we recommend Chase business credit cards ) when making a travel purchase, otherwise, you’re missing out on points, miles, or cash-back!

For deeper insight on the cheapest days to fly, click on the Date Grid . This will open up a grid showing the cheapest days to fly in green and the most expensive days to fly in red.

You can see even more pricing details by using the Departure and Return arrows on the top and right side of the Date Grid section respectively. For those with flexible travel dates, this can be a great way to save some cash!

The Price graph shows 2 months’ worth of prices in a visual graph form to easily see price trends by day. Scroll further in the future with the arrow to the right of the graph or change the duration of your trip using the -/+ buttons by your selected dates.

How To Use Google Flights

Although this tool lets you search for, compare, and purchase flights, it’s not technically an online travel agency like Travelocity or Priceline . Rather, it’s a highly effective metasearch engine that saves you the step of searching each airline and website individually.

Scroll through the Best Departing Flights results and click on a flight that interests you. Flights listed in the Other Departing Flights section will typically be more expensive and/or include less than ideal layovers.

When you find the flight you want, you’re prompted to choose your outbound flight first, followed by your return flight (assuming you’re booking a round-trip flight). Keep in mind that the price shown on the initial results screen is the lowest possible price for that itinerary. The return flight you pick could alter the cost, so make sure to pay attention to the prices of each return flight.

When you’ve chosen your flights, Google offers a few options for booking — generally, these are the cheapest options it can find. You’re given the option to book directly with the airline operating the flight (often cheapest), through the airline’s partners, or with whichever online travel agencies offer the best deals.

Click the Select button next to the price of your flight and you’ll be redirected to that website to book your flight. The travel details are already set, so all you need to do is confirm them, enter your personal information, and pay.

Bottom Line:  While the other features that Google Flights offers are useful, its basic flight search functionality is the heart and soul of this tool. It’s not quite perfect and doesn’t have full access to every airline — for example, it can’t access prices for Southwest Airlines — but otherwise, it’s the best way there is to search for flights.

Google has a tool that lets you track flight prices — once set, you’ll receive an email if prices increase or decrease. To set an alert, look above the booking sites after you’ve chosen an itinerary and click the Track Prices button. If you’re logged in to Google, the alerts will be sent to your Gmail; otherwise, enter an email address.

You can access any flight price alert set by clicking on the 3-line menu icon in the upper-left corner of Google Flights and clicking Tracked Flight Prices . You can also see a graph with price changes from the day you set the price alert going forward.

Google also has an option to share a chosen itinerary before actually booking the flight. This tool can be extremely helpful when searching for flights for someone else or making group travel plans.

The Share button is directly above the Total Price of your flight with 2 options for sharing — 1) email the itinerary to yourself, or 2) share the itinerary with another person.

To email the itinerary to yourself, click the Send To Yourself button on the left. Similar to the Track Prices feature, the itinerary will be sent to your Gmail if you’re logged into your account, otherwise, you’ll need to enter your email address for the itinerary to be emailed to you.

To share the itinerary with another person, click the Share button on the right. A window pops up with options to share via Email, Facebook, Twitter, or Copy Link.

Bottom Line:  Google Flights is one of the most effective ways to search for flights. The platform has powerful tools to help make the flight search process easier than it otherwise would be. 

Explore Destinations

On the Google Flights homepage, you’ll notice an Explore Destinations button directly below the area where you select the dates of your travel. This tool is very interesting because it’s the perfect way to find some travel inspiration! There are 3 main ways you can search: Place, Date, and Price.

The Explore Destinations Places section lets you input a place that you’d like to travel, and then populates a map on the right side of the page with markers showing the different places that you can go. You can scroll through the search list under the Price section or search destinations directly on the map.

Another way that you can use Explore Destinations is to search for potential trips by Date. Enter Specific Dates or Flexible Dates and the Explore Destinations map will update the results based on these filters. Similar to Places, when the search results are populated, you can scroll through the list of destinations on the left side or click the destination directly on the map.

If Price is your filter of choice, slide the blue Price circle to the left or right to see what destinations populate based on your price parameters. Once you select the maximum price you are willing to pay, the map and list below the Price section will populate.

When you select the flight for your trip, a new section on the right side appears showing you the cost of your different flight options. By clicking View Flight , you will be directed back to the main Google Flights homepage where you can book the flight.

We have found that the best way to use the Explore Destinations tool is when you want to take a trip and have a general idea of when you can travel, but you don’t know exactly where you want to go. In our experience, results have been more helpful when you keep the search criteria more general — for example, picking a month and duration rather than specific dates.

Not to be confused with Explore Destinations in the Flights section, Google Flights has a section titled Explore with recommendations of popular destinations. You can also enter a destination in the search tab directly below the word Explore.

When you click on a destination, Google Flights will take you to the travel guide for that city. For example, if you click Austin in the picture above, you will be directed to the Austin travel guide. Once here, you will find Things To Do, Suggested Day Plans, Plan A Trip, When To Visit, Travel Articles, Travel Videos, See More While You’re There, and Other Places To Explore sections.

The Travel section of Google Flights is another interesting area to check out. When you enter a flight, hotel, or destination, Google Flights will direct you to the Explore, Flights, Hotels, or Packages section of the platform.

Directly below the search area of Travel, Google Flights lists your Upcoming Trips pulled from your Gmail, Potential Trips that you can take, Popular Destinations , and Past Trips that you’ve taken (also pulled from your Gmail).

Bottom Line:  The Trips section helps to direct you to the area of Google Flights that fits your search criteria. 

To book a hotel, start your search with the Hotels section of Google Flights. Simply enter your destination in the Where To? section and your dates in the dates section and you will see both a list and map of hotels for your destination. Narrow down your results using filters such as Number of Guests, Price, Hotel or Vacation Rental, Guest Rating, Amenities, and/or Brands.

Similar to Flights, you can set price alerts to track hotel prices. By setting an alert and entering your email, you will be sent price alerts and travel tips directly to your email.

The Vacation Rentals feature is a great tool for those who want to book a vacation rental instead of a hotel, based on a few criteria, and want to view all of their options across multiple vacation rental platforms.

You can enter your Destination, Date, Budget, Rating, and/or Number of Travelers, and Google Flights will populate the top options based on the criteria entered.

Special Features

Google’s been improving the Flights tool since it launched in 2011 by making it faster, adding new functionalities, and adding airlines and options. Price tracking is just one of those newer features.

As we’ll cover in more detail below, Google Flights will show you whether the price of the flight you’re looking to book is high, low, or typical. This is extremely helpful to ensure that you get the best flight deal.

Google is testing this new feature with a trial period, which is only available on certain flights. You can search for flights on Google Flights to see if your route happens to be one of the routes Google is using during this trial period. As an example of how the new function works, if you book a flight during the trial period, Google will guarantee the price will not drop. If it does, Google pays you the difference. How could you not love that?

As mentioned, the price guarantee function is not fully rolled out just yet. During the roll-out phase, the feature is only available on select flights originating in the U.S.

An additional feature Google Flights has added focuses on your trip itinerary. If your trip confirmation (i.e. flight) is delivered to your Gmail account, Google will show that trip itinerary in your google.com/travel list in a timeline format, similar to what you’ll see with TripIt. It’s an easy-to-read list that shows you everything that you have booked.

After your flight is booked, Google will help you with your next set of travel needs.

When you click on an itinerary shown in your Google Trip list, you’ll see options for hotels, flights, restaurants, and things to do. For example, when you click on Search hotels in XX city for , Google will redirect you to its Google Hotels page. From there, everything you need to know to book a hotel will be at your fingertips.

With respect to restaurants, when you click the Top restaurants in XX city  tab, Google will redirect you to Google Maps. On this page, you’ll see the top-rated restaurants in that city.

But wait, there’s more! When you click on a restaurant, the restaurant’s Google Maps page pulls up. You’ll then be able to click Reserve A Table  to book a reservation. How could it get any easier?

Google Flights will also predict delays to inform your purchase decision. In your search results, Google Flights will provide a note indicating flights that are often delayed.

Google Flights has a flight results filter to show which options include access to an overhead bin for a carry-on bag.

Google Flights has a  free extension for the Google Chrome web browser that adds information about seats to your search results. When you search for an economy class ticket, you’ll see the particular flight’s pitch (distance from the back of one seat to the back of the next seat) on the right-hand side of each result.

Flights with a smaller pitch are highlighted in red, while flights with a more generous pitch are in green. If you search for a premium cabin, you’ll see the type of seat on the flight — for example, a recliner, angled-flat, or lie-flat seat.

This is a fantastically helpful tool! As airlines are still working to make their fleets uniform following mergers over the past few years, it’s helpful to know exactly what kind of seat you’re paying for, especially since it can vary based on which plane is being flown on the route.

Bottom Line:  New features continue to be brought into the software tool — whether officially through Google or through third parties.

Google Flights is built on software that Google acquired when it bought ITA Software in 2011. That software still powers Google Flights, and if you want complete control over your search — from routing and fare code to the tiniest detail — you can access this software’s advanced interface.

ITA Matrix can be quite complicated, but the tradeoff is that you can search with much more control. If you’re interested in learning more, check out this complete guide to ITA Matrix .

Google Flights is a first stop anytime when looking for flights. It includes most airlines, features great prices, and searches various online travel agencies and airline websites to save you time. Even if you plan to book through an online travel agency (OTA), you should always search Google Flights first.

There’s just one catch to be aware of: Google doesn’t have access to pricing for Southwest Airlines flights. Whenever Southwest operates a route, it’ll appear at the bottom of the flight search results, but you’ll have to click it to visit Southwest’s site and see the price for yourself.

For additional information on other OTAs and metasearch engines, you can check out this article on which websites are best for booking flights at the cheapest prices .

Frequently Asked Questions

What is google flights.

Although the tool lets you search for, compare, and purchase flights, it’s not an online travel agency like Orbitz or Priceline. Rather, it’s a highly effective metasearch engine that saves you the step of searching each airline and website individually.

You can compare routes, prices, times, airlines, and more to find the cheapest, most convenient, or preferred flight between any airports.

How does Google Flights work?

The software tool works by searching databases from each airline and online travel agency to find flight schedules, seats, and prices.

Behind the scenes, it works by using a program called ITA Matrix, which was originally developed for travel agents and reservation managers.

Can you book through Google Flights?

Not exactly as the tool itself is just a search engine. That means that unlike a travel agency, it’s not the one selling you the flight.

However, Google includes links with each result to the cheapest available place to book — usually directly with the airline, but sometimes through an online travel agency or one of the airline’s partners.

How reliable is Google Flights?

In theory, any service or search engine can make mistakes. However, the tool gets its information directly from the airlines. That means that if there’s a mistake or something incorrect, that’s because the airline likely did something wrong.

Are Google Flights reservations refundable?

Because you’re not booking directly through Google, you should be sure to check the policy of whichever website you purchase your airfare from, as well as any restrictions with the particular fare you’ve bought.

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About Michael McHugh

Born and raised in Mobile, Alabama, Michael took his first international trip in 2013 with friends to the Bahamas. Although he didn’t travel much in his younger years, on that trip, he caught the travel bug and has been hooked ever since.

Michael first caught wind of the points and miles game in 2014 while at a bar in Washington, DC where the conversation amongst friends was quickly derailed because of an alert on a friend’s phone about a mistake fare.  That’s where the love affair with points and miles began.

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Book hotels on Google

When you search for hotels on Google and select a hotel to book, you may have the option to stay on Google to complete your booking with a hotel or online travel agency. Google acts only as an intermediary to securely pass your info to the airline or travel agency and isn’t a party to the transaction. If you’re signed in to your Google Account, you can complete the reservation quickly with the contact and payment info stored in your Google Account.

Find & book a hotel

• Search for hotels on Google .
• Links to partners that let you book on Google say “Easy booking on Google.” If you select a partner that lets you book on Google, continue to step 3.
• Check your dates and number of guests.
• Select a room.
• If you’re signed in, the contact info stored in your Google Account is automatically entered.
• If you're not signed in, at the top of the page, click Sign in .
• Or you can manually enter your contact info.
• Click Continue .
• To select a stored payment method, click the Down arrow or enter a new payment method, and click Continue .
• Review your booking details to make sure they’re correct.
• Review and accept the applicable terms and conditions, and click Book this room .

All bookings are made directly wi th the relevant hotel or online travel agency: 

• Google doesn’t sell hotel rooms, and isn’t a party to your booking transaction.
• Google securely passes your reservation and payment details to the hotel or online travel agency that is selling the room. 
• The hotel or travel agency processes your booking and charges your card, and is responsible for the booking and all subsequent customer service. 

After your booking is processed, you get a confirmation email from the booking partner. You may also get a summary email from Google.

Payment methods & transaction details

Depending on the hotel or travel agency partner, your card may be charged when you book the reservation, at check in, or at check out. Some partners may place a hold on your card for the full cost of your stay, either at the time of booking or later.

You can pay with supported credit and debit cards, which are shown during the booking process.

Your statement shows a charge from the hotel or travel agency partner, not from Google. Google acts only as an intermediary and isn’t a party to your booking transaction.

Get info about your reservation

In the confirmation and summary emails you receive after booking a hotel, you can find:

• Details about your reservation
• The hotel or travel agency’s contact information

Tip : If you don’t find these emails within 24 hours, check your spam folder.

If you want to change or cancel your reservation, contact the hotel or booking partner directly for help. Google isn’t a party to your booking transaction and can’t change your booking.

It can take up to 24 hours for a hotel to find your reservation in their system. If the hotel can’t find your reservation after 24 hours from the time of booking, contact the booking partner or  let us know .

Ask questions or send feedback

First, try contacting the hotel or travel agency directly for help. If you already contacted the hotel or travel agency and still need help, contact us .

Terms & conditions apply to your booking

Reservations are subject to the Google privacy policy and any terms and conditions associated with the booking partner.

New ways to browse hotels and save money on flights — plus other tools for summer travel

Apr 03, 2023

[[read-time]] min read

These Search tools help you research hotels, confidently book your next plane ticket and discover things to do while on vacation

Summer will be here before you know it, and there’s no better time to start thinking about your travel plans. Here are some of the newest ways we’re improving the trip planning experience on Google.

A new way to browse hotels

Choosing the right place to stay can make or break a trip, but it’s not always a simple process. There are lots of factors to consider — from location to reviews to price. And that’s a lot to take in, especially if you’re trying to do all this research on your phone.

So this week, we’re introducing an easier way to browse and discover hotels on mobile. If you search for something like “Soho London hotels” and tap to view more, you’ll find a new option to explore each property in a swipeable story format.

From here, you can tap through photos of the hotel and get a sense of what to expect on-site. With a single tap, you can also save the hotel, pull up more details about the area, or view a summary of what people find notable about the property. When you’re done, just swipe up to continue browsing.

Save money on your next flight

No one likes to feel buyer’s remorse, and that’s especially true for a big purchase like plane tickets where the prices change from day to day. We’ve all thought to ourselves: Should I book now in case the price goes up tomorrow? Or should I wait in case there’s a better deal next week?

On Google Flights, you can already see whether current prices are low, typical, or high compared to historical averages. Now, we’re going a step further with a new pilot program for price guarantees in the U.S. If you see a flight with the price guarantee badge, it means we’re confident that the price you see today won’t get any lower before takeoff.

We’ll monitor the price every day until departure, and if it does go down, we’ll send you back the difference via Google Pay. Now you can book with the confidence that you’re not missing out on a great deal. During this pilot program, price guarantees are only available for ‘Book on Google’ itineraries that depart from the United States. Visit the Help Center for more details.

Discover unique things to do

Exploring a new destination is often the best part of a trip — whether you’re visiting top attractions or looking for something more off the beaten path. With Google, making these kinds of plans is easier than ever. Just look for an attraction or tour company on Search or Maps, and you’ll find prices directly on their listing, plus a link to book your ticket. For attractions, like the Tower of London, you’ll also find suggestions for related experiences, like a city-wide tour that includes multiple stops.

There’s so much more that Search and Maps can do to make your trip memorable — read our latest blog post for more travel tips !

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How To Use Google Flights To Find Cheap Prices

B efore you can go on your next work trip or dream vacation you must first figure out your travel dates and then find the best flight options out there . If you find the right travel or booking platform you’ll hopefully get the best flight price for your round trip or even split up your flight search into separate departure and arrival flights to help save money. Either way, the next time you fly, you might want to research the most affordable place to buy. 

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Google Flights: Quick Take

Unlike other travel agency websites, Google Flights acts as a conduit for global distribution, as it allows airlines to directly publish their airfares as well as shows fares from leading travel platforms such as Expedia, Kayak, Hotwire , Priceline or Orbitz. You can see price graphs, track flight prices and search multiple date grids to make sure you are getting the cheapest prices for the specific dates you need. 

Google Flights Pros and Cons

Booking flights with google flights: a step-by-step guide.

Though you will be given many filter options to help you find and book the flight that has everything you need at the lowest price it is still good to know the basics. Here are the steps you take when booking with Google Flights:

• Go to the Google Flights page and select the Flight Search option.
• Choose your departure city or airport, or select multiple airports close to you so you can compare prices. 
• Select your desired destination, or again, multiple destinations or airports within the same area so you can get the best price.
• Choose your specific dates of travel or multiple dates that could work for your trip.
• Select what type of trip you want such as one-way, round trip or multi-city.
• Add the number of passengers you’d like to book for and if they need any special requirements.

Google Flights Is Where You Find Flights–Not Book Them

It’s important to note all Google Flight bookings are made directly with the specific airline or online travel agency that has posted that airfare on Google. Your booking transaction or ticket sale does not go through Google so they would not be a point of contact for your flight information aside from where you originally found the listing. 

The Book on Google option, though it was largely discontinued outside of the United States, may still be an option for you but otherwise, you will book directly through the airline or online travel agency.

Final Take To GO 

The bottom line when booking flights no matter if you’re searching for the cheapest option or want to upgrade to business class, is that when you book you know you are getting the best deal for what you need. Next time you go book a flight before you break out your credit card with travel rewards , make sure you are getting the most bang, and bags, for your buck. 

• Choose your departure city or airport, or select multiple airports close to you so you can compare prices.
• Select what type of trip you want such as a one-way, round trip or multi-city.
• Add the number of passengers you'd like to book for and if they need any special requirements.
• Google Flights has its own landing page. As Google does earn money off of travel advertisements, they don't want to overly compete with its business partners so it makes the page less prominent. However, you can simply search Google Flights in Google itself and it will take you straight to the page if you can't otherwise locate it.
• Google Flights is still a great way to search for and find cheap flights, but Google discontinued Book on Google outside of the United States, which was a platform used to book hotels, in 2022.
• Google Flights should still be working through Google as a search engine used to find your flights from many different platforms including the airlines themselves. However, this is not to be confused with Book on Google which ended as a hotel booking option through Google for most countries outside of the U.S. in September 2022.
• Google Flights has a much broader search engine so it can cast a wider net to find almost all flights available for when you are looking to book. They also allow airlines to directly publish their airfares as well as online travel agencies to publish their flights so you can compare all your options and find the cheapest flight that works for you.

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com : How To Use Google Flights To Find Cheap Prices

Your guide to using Google Hotels

Google Flights has been a game-changer for finding and booking flights . But, you may be less familiar with Google Hotels , which has increasingly become a useful tool for searching, comparing and booking hotels. In this guide, we'll go through a sample search using Google Hotels before considering some specific ways in which Google Hotels can be useful.

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Sample search

You can start a search at google.com/travel/hotels . On this page, you enter the destination, check-in and checkout dates and number of guests.

You'll get results in the general area, but note that usually only some of the results will be shown. This is especially likely when you're searching in a dense destination like New York .

You can zoom in to see more results in a particular area, but you may still not see all of the results.

However, if you use filters to set price range, guest ratings, amenities and/or brand you'll eventually see all of the properties that fit your criteria.

If you click on a particular property name, a property overview page will open in a new tab on most browsers. This page has basic information about the property as well as photos of the property.

Each of the tabs along the top will take you to pages where you can see more information. The Prices tab allows you to compare prices across multiple booking options.

The Reviews tab aggregates reviews from many different sources and allows you to sort by travel site, traveler type and keywords mentioned in the review. In the case of the hotel I've used in this example, you can also read TPG Contributor Ethan Steinberg's review .

The Location tap provides ratings for the location, information about highlights and things to do in the area and information about getting to, from and around the hotel.

The About tab provides a deeper overview of the property as well as information about amenities.

Finally, the Photos tab shows photos from various sources. You can sort by source, format or photo subject.

If you decide to book the hotel, you can go back to the Prices tab and click on the site through which you'd like to book. Or, you can see if the same price is available after clicking through your favorite online shopping portal .

Related reading: The best hotels to book with points in New York City

Sorting to find the best fit

Whether you're looking for the lowest-priced option, a property with a pool or a pet-friendly property -- or all of these -- you may be able to use Google Hotels to help you narrow down your options.

Since some hotel brands don't offer robust sorting options on their websites, it can be useful to sort by hotel brand as well as the amenities you are searching for even if you plan to book directly with the hotel brand. As you can see, my choice would be easy if I was looking for a pet-friendly IHG property with a pool in midtown Manhattan costing less than $410 per night on these travel dates.

Or, if I'm just looking for the lowest priced place that's decently rated by guests, I can set my search area to where I want to stay, set the guest rating to three or higher and then sort by price. However, it's usually best to read recent reviews to ensure the property will fit your needs.

Related reading: How to avoid booking a bad hotel

Comparing prices for a particular property

If you're looking for the best price for a particular property, you may find that different websites report different prices. This can be especially true from properties that don't belong to a mainstream loyalty program since mainstream loyalty programs often offer a best rate guarantee .

When I was booking a trip to Japan to use my Ikon Ski pass at Niseko United , I found that the few properties in the Niseko area that belong to mainstream loyalty programs cost more than I was willing to pay. Plus, I liked the idea of staying at a property with a Japanese onsen on-site. So, I decided on the Niseko Grand hotel and then used Google Hotels to compare prices offered through various booking methods.

And, if you have flexible dates, you can check prices for a particular property across a variety of dates.

Related reading: Amex vs. Citi vs. Chase: Which booking portal is best for hotels?

Using the map to find a hotel in a remote location

Finding a hotel in remote locations can be difficult. For example, if you're going to a concert at the Gorge Amphitheater and don't want to camp, you'll quickly find there aren't many hotels or non-camping lodging options near the venue.

But, Google Hotels does show you a few options near the Gorge Amphitheater. Although Google Hotels currently doesn't have any information on how to book these properties, a quick internet search will often provide useful information.

And, when I was planning a trip to Liberia for PeaceJam last fall, I found that many properties were only listed on a few online travel agencies. So, Google Hotels served as a great hotel aggregator so I could see all of my options at once. This helped me determine the best way to book The Farmington Hotel and Libassa Ecolodge .

However, especially when booking directly with the hotel isn't listed as an option on Google Hotels, it's worth searching the property's name before booking to see if booking direct would be less expensive or provide other benefits. In the case of Libassa Ecolodge , booking direct ended up being much less expensive than booking through any of the online travel agencies.

Related reading: Score incredible value with high-end hotels that are off the beaten path

Bottom line

Google Hotels can be a useful resource even if you're looking to book direct or through a specific website. Whether you're looking for a hotel in a remote location or you're simply comparing your options, Google Hotels may help you find a property and booking method that fits your needs and budget.

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Google Maps will soon make it easier to take the train

Google's update will bring up train times when you search for flights and let you quickly book a seat.

• Tod Caviness
• April 26, 2024

Train travel isn’t always the first option people think of when it comes to planning a trip. Part of that is awareness, and Google is doing their part to raise it in a big way with a new update to their Maps app. Soon, some travelers will be able to see information on train routes at a glance when they search for directions.

Google announced the changes last week in an initiative aimed at helping commuters and vacationers find more eco-friendly ways to get around.

MORE: This Google Maps feature helps you plan your stops and share your travel plans

“When it comes to traveling and commuting, we want people to have the right information to make more sustainable choices,” said James Byers, Group Product Manager for Google.

In 38 countries, including the U.S., you can already find train routes when you search specifically for them, but Google will be bringing up those options along with bus travel times when you search for flights . You’ll be able to see the ticket prices and schedules along with those times, as well as links that let you quickly book a seat.

In 15 big cities around the globe, Google is taking those highlights a step further. When travelers search for driving directions, the results will bring up train travel times, bus routes and walking directions if those options are comparable. Berlin, London, Sydney, Montreal, Paris and Rome are among the metro areas where Maps users will see the changes in the next few weeks.

MORE: You can travel across the country by train for less than $500

By and large, train travel has a far lower ecological impact than flying by plane. Studies have long shown that a fully-booked train puts out roughly half the emissions that a plane does, and that accounts for older trains that run on diesel fuel. Those that run on electric rail (like most Amtrak routes in the Northeast Corridor) reduce those impacts even further.

Pro tip for eco-conscious flyers: Google already lets you see carbon emission estimates on flights so that you can sort your options sustainably.

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Cheap flights from Rutherglen to Gold Coast

Good to know, popular airports near rutherglen.

• Glasgow Airport (GLA) Glasgow 20 min 13 km
• Edinburgh Airport (EDI) Edinburgh 49 min 54 km
• Newcastle International Airport (NCL) Newcastle upon Tyne 2 hr 40 min 182 km
• Aberdeen International Airport (ABZ) Aberdeen 2 hr 48 min 196 km

Popular airports near Gold Coast

• Brisbane Airport (BNE) Brisbane 1 hr 5 min 75 km
• Gold Coast Airport (OOL) Gold Coast 35 min 19 km
• Sunshine Coast Airport (MCY) Sunshine Coast Regional 2 hr 8 min 159 km
• Ballina Byron Gateway Airport (BNK) Ballina 1 hr 27 min 92 km

Frequently asked questions about flying from Rutherglen to Gold Coast

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These suggestions are based on the cheapest fares to popular destinations in the next six months.

Prices include required taxes + fees for 1 adult. Optional charges and bag fees may apply.

• Lisbon RUB 15,172 Nov 1 — Nov 14 1 stop 14 hr 55 min easyJet
• Barcelona RUB 9,487 Nov 1 — Nov 16 Nonstop 2 hr 40 min Ryanair
• Dublin RUB 3,278 May 24 — Jun 6 Nonstop 1 hr 10 min Ryanair
• Amsterdam RUB 9,698 Oct 24 — Nov 6 Nonstop 1 hr 25 min easyJet

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