Travelling is one of the few universal experiences that everyone enjoys. But booking a holiday is also one of the most expensive things people can spend their money on. Even with all the “offers” and “discounts” that booking sites and travel agencies offer.
Many people might not know this, but travel companies make flights and accommodation even more expensive based on where their clients live. Making it tough to find a budget-friendly price.
Luckily, there’s an easy solution: using a VPN to search for deals. It can save you hundreds of dollars. Here’s how it works.
Why Booking Trips in Australia is More Expensive
Travel agencies, airlines, and booking sites use various algorithms to track the people who use their platforms. They look at a person’s location, what locations they are interested in, and how frequently they visit the site. Based on this information, they then determine the price for each individual. Some know this practice as “price discrimination,” and while it’s not illegal, it can still be frustrating.
What makes it worse is that these sites can track people’s online activities and change their pricing based on that. They then like to jack up the cost when they see someone shopping around for specific flights or destinations.
These are the methods travel websites use to track people:
– Cookies. Almost every website out there uses cookies to track and store data about their visitors. These cookies record people’s every click and move to tailor their browsing experience. The newly instated GDPR influences what they can collect and how they use that data to some extent. But this doesn’t help travelers much.
– IP Address. Every device, website, and the network has an IP address. It’s what the internet uses to determine who’s who. But it also contains information that websites use, like a person’s physical location.
– GPS data. Websites, but more often apps, can use the GPS information on a person’s device to determine where they are from.
Travel websites make certain inferences about a person’s financial abilities when booking trips from countries like Australia. They then push up the price as much as they think they can get away with.
What Does a VPN Do?
Virtual private networks exist to help internet users gain more anonymity online (https://nordvpn.com/what-is-a-vpn/). These services have servers situated all over the world that people can connect to in order to hide their real location. It works by routing a device’s network connection through a distant server first, where it masks users’ real IP address before connecting to the website.
On top of that, VPN services use encryption methods to keep websites from latching onto the connection to gather any personal data.
How to Get Cheaper Bookings With a VPN
Using a VPN in Australia while booking overseas trips can help people save a lot of money. This way, they get to undo the unfairness of having to pay more than someone else for the exact same flight, rental, or booking.
1. Clear the Device’s Browsing History
Cookies are the enemy of a good bargain. Disable them in the browser settings and delete any past cookies. Then only browse travel websites in the browser’s private or incognito mode. Or even better, use an entirely different browser’s private mode to avoid any leftover cookies that might still be sticking around.
That said, private mode won’t stop websites from tracking a user’s IP address.
2. Browse Booking Sites From the IP Address of a Low-Income Country
Look at some flight prices for a certain destination and period of time while using an Australian IP address. Then turn on a VPN and set the device’s IP address to a lower-income country like Brazil or India and see the difference. It might not be hundreds of dollars, but those expenses add up – especially when hotels and car rentals come into play too.
Changing the IP address multiple times can also throw websites off from hiking up prices when someone’s shopping around for a specific deal.
3. Use the Same IP Address as the Airline’s Home Country
Many airlines offer cheaper tickets for people in their home country and at certain times of the week. Australians can use that to their advantage by using a VPN. Just switch the IP address to the same country as the airline and look for bargains. For instance, if it’s a Turkish airline, then choose a VPN server in Turkey.
Get Ready For Better Bargains
Retailers and travel agencies have their own methods of divvying up the world into segments and pricing tiers. There’s no way to stop them, but that doesn’t mean people have to play by their rules.
VPN technology is generally used for privacy and security purposes, but it’s a great tool for avoiding price discrimination too. It’s fully legal to shop around for better deals using a VPN, so why even bother doing it without one?
