5 trending travel hacks: do they actually work?
05 Feb 2026
Travel hacks are a dime a dozen online but while some can shave dollars off your holiday expenses, others can be clickbait. We’ve tested five popular tips for booking travel online to see which ones actually save you cash and which might cost you more in the long run.
1. Mobile-only discounts: win
- The claim: Booking on your mobile phone can be 5–10% cheaper than using a desktop. This is because hotels want to stop competitors from price scraping—using bots to track their rates. It is harder for bots to do this on mobile apps.
- Can it work? Based on our research, yes. We found Booking.com, Expedia, and Trivago offered up to 10% off on mobile browsers. HotelsCombined only offers these deals via its app.
- Potential traps: Always read the fine print before paying for your trip in case there are hidden fees or taxes. Make sure you’ve considered all your options and are purchasing within your budget to avoid impulsive buying or overspending.
Hotel pricing on desktop vs mobile browsers
The prices below are based on a three-night stay for four people in a Sydney hotel room.
← Mobile/tablet users, scroll sideways to view full table →
| Cheapest desktop price | Cheapest mobile browser price | |
|---|---|---|
| Booking.com | $432 | $389 (mobile-only price) |
| Expedia | $388 (sale price) | $375 (mobile-only price) |
| HotelsCombined | $321 | $321 |
| Trivago | $416 | $375 (mobile-only price) |
| TripADeal | $417 | $417 |
Prices taken from individual OTA websites as of 27/01/26. Prices are reflective of a one room, three night stay in a Sydney hotel room for two adults, one 10y/o and one 13 y/o from March 5 to March 8, 2026.
2. The day-by-day search: can save you (but a hassle)
- The claim: If a hotel is sold out for a stay of multiple nights, you can search each night individually to find available rooms in the hotel.
- Does it work? Technically, yes. Room availability at a hotel is based on the consecutive nights you want to book. Essentially, booking individual nights may show you a room that wasn’t available for a multiple-night stay.
- The potential trap: While this hack can work, the potential hassle involved can’t be ignored. You’ll likely need to change rooms mid-stay and may even need to check out and in again at the front desk. If you’re travelling with a family or have a lot of luggage, this could be more annoying than its worth.
3. The book, watch and re-book method: win
- The claim: This can be a winner for patient travellers. Book a room with free cancellation, then use tools like Pruvo to track the price or look out for cheaper options that may arise elsewhere. If the price drops, or you find something cheaper, cancel and re-book at the lower rate.
- Does it work? According to my colleague, Canstar Utilities Writer Jasmine Tait, her mum recently saved $300 this way. “She found a better deal, cancelled the original booking with no fee, and booked the new price,” Jasmine said.
- The potential trap: If you forget to cancel the original booking before the cutoff date (usually 24-48 hours before arrival), you’ll end up paying twice. Read the terms and conditions before you book to avoid any mishaps.
4. The VPN location swap: approach with caution
- The claim: Travel booking websites have different prices for flights and accommodation depending on your location. Using a Virtual Private Network (VPN) to hide your location can reveal ‘local’ prices.
- Does it work? We tested this by setting our location to the USA to book flights and hotels. We found that changing our location did not reveal cheaper prices and in some cases the prices were higher.
- The potential trap: Not only may you be charged more, the currency you’re shown will match the country your VPN is set to, which can be confusing. You could face extra taxes, international transaction fees on your credit card or your bank may flag the purchase as suspicious.
Hotel pricing with and without a VPN
Here’s what we found when we set our location to California, USA, and searched for a three-night stay at a hotel in Pennsylvania for four people in one room.
←Mobile/tablet users, scroll sideways to view full table →
| Price without using a VPN | Price while using a VPN | Difference after currency conversion | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Booking.com | $1,350 AUD | $946.12 USD ($1,351.82 AUD) | +$1.82 AUD |
| Expedia | $1,358 AUD | $946 USD ($1,351.64 AUD) | -$6.36 AUD |
| HotelsCombined | $1,351 AUD | $946 USD ($1,351.64 AUD) | +$0.64 AUD |
| Trivago | $1,350 AUD | $946.12 USD ($1,351.82 AUD) | +$1.82 AUD |
Prices taken from individual OTA websites as of 02/02/26. Prices are reflective of a one room, three night stay at The Pocono Mountain Villas, East Stroudsburg, USA. The booking is for two adults, one 10y/o and one 13 y/o from March 5 to March 8, 2026. A VPN was set to San Jose, California, USA when searching for hotel pricing.
Flight pricing with and without a VPN
To test a VPN for booking flights, we set our location to California, USA, and searched for a one-way ticket from Sydney to Los Angeles.
← Mobile/tablet users, scroll sideways to view full table →
| Price without using a VPN | Price while using a VPN | Difference after currency conversion | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Booking.com | $541 AUD | $397 USD ($567.23 AUD) | +$26.23 AUD |
| Expedia | $566 AUD | $410 USD ($585.81 AUD) | +$19.81 AUD |
| HotelsCombined | $506 AUD | $364 USD ($520.08 AUD) | +$14.08 AUD |
Prices taken from individual OTA websites as of 02/02/26. Prices are reflective of one economy seat on a one-way flight from Sydney to Los Angeles on March 5. A VPN was set to San Jose California, USA when searching for flight pricing.
5. Abandoned cart in incognito: miss
- The claim: A booking website, hotel or airline will send you a discount code if you leave your online cart unattended for long enough. This is a popular tactic in online retail, especially with clothing and lifestyle brands.
- Does it work? No, not for us anyway. We set up accounts with Booking.com, Expedia, HotelsCombined and Trivago in an incognito browser and added a trip to our cart before abandoning it. After several days, we hadn’t received any discount codes.
- The potential trap: Online booking prices are dynamic. While you wait 24 hours for a discount code, the base price of the flight or hotel could rise or your local currency could decrease in value.
What’s better than a hack?
Sometimes the best hack is doing things the old-fashioned way. Call the hotel directly and ask them to match a price you found online. They usually pay a 10-15% commission to booking sites, so they may give you a better deal or a free breakfast for booking directly. For flights, planning ahead is key. You may get the best price by booking your tickets early or strategically waiting for airline sales to really save your cash.
This article was reviewed by our Consumer Editor Meagan Lawrence before it was updated, as part of our fact-checking process.
