Google is testing a price guarantee program for Google Flights that will pay you money if the price of a flight drops after you book it through the service. The feature is currently available as a “pilot program” in the US (have it?) for specific flights, according to a Monday blog postbut that might be a compelling reason to use Google’s tool next time you’re looking for a flight.
When using Google’s tool, some flights will have a small shield icon with a dollar sign. If you book this particular flight through Google Flights, the company says it will “monitor the price daily until departure”. If it goes down, you get the difference back.
Currently, its price guarantees are only for flights departing from the US, and you can only get them if you have a US billing address and phone number. The company also says it’s “only available for flights where we’re confident the price won’t drop.”
There are lots of asterisks. A long google help document explains that you can only recover $500 per calendar year and that you will not be reimbursed if the price difference is less than $5. You also get the refund via Google Pay, which you’ll need to set up within 90 days of receiving notification that it’s available. Also, of course, you have to book your tickets through Google Flights.
The company says you should receive the difference within 48 hours of checking out, assuming you’ve already set up Google Pay.
A price guarantee is not unique among travel sites; Price line And Orbit both promise partial refunds under certain circumstances, as do some individual airlines. But usually they require You to fetch a better price instead of constantly watching for themselves.
Google’s blog post also mentions another feature the company is rolling out: the ability to explore hotels in an area through a “swipe-up story format,” which displays a slideshow of a hotel on which you can swipe to view another hotel. The stories are come All these daysand it looks like Google Maps is no exception.