Traveller reveals refundable lodge reserving hack that saved them £100
A traveller has shared the clever tactic that saved them £100 on a hotel booking – and it required very little effort.
The holidaymaker made the impressive saving on a three-night break in Lisbon, all by choosing the free cancellation option when booking – and keeping an eye on changing prices over time.
Reddit user @the_guide_1 wrote: ‘Just a small tip that saved me some money recently.
‘I booked three nights in Lisbon about six weeks before my trip. Total was around $780 (£577). I chose the free cancellation option just in case my plans changed.
‘A few weeks later I randomly checked the same hotel again. Same room type, same dates. The total had dropped to about $690 (£510).
‘I cancelled and rebooked.
‘Checked one more time a few days before the cancellation deadline and it had dropped again to $642 (£474). Ended up saving roughly $140 (£103) for maybe five minutes of checking.
‘I think a lot of people assume once you book, the price is locked in and that is that.
There are plenty of booking hacks that could save you lots of money on hotels
‘But hotel prices seem to move around a lot based on demand and cancellations.
‘Now I always book refundable rates and check at least once or twice before the free cancellation window closes.
‘Curious how many of you actively recheck hotel prices after booking, or if most people just set it and forget it.’
Many flocked to the comments section to share their thoughts, with some impressed by the trick.
One wrote: ‘Good tip, thanks for sharing.’
Meanwhile another added: ‘Fantastic tip – thank you, I always thought rates went up. I have an upcoming trip to a few cities so I’m definitely going to try this!’
Another chimed in: ‘I just did this for an upcoming trip to Jordan and saved $280 (£207)! I’ve been able to rebook past hotels for cheaper as well so I totally agree it’s worth the time to check as it adds up if it’s multiple hotels on a trip.’
One reader also advised: ‘Awesome! I have been doing it for years, until I came across hotelpricetrack.com, it tracks it for me and alerts if there is a price change. And it’s free. Easy peasy.
By choosing refundable rates, you could find yourself making impressive savings (stock)
‘Bonus section: most of the time a few days before the reservation you can cancel and rebook in the non-refundable rate (way lower), the site I listed gives you a reminder to do that too.’
Plus, another wrote: ‘I do this with airplane tickets as well!’
Another Reddit user commented: ‘I know a lot of people don’t want to spend the time, but I’m going to sit and scroll anyways, I can look at the price difference of upcoming hotels to see if we can save money.
‘This is part of why I am the person who books things in my household and every friend group I travel with.’
