Key findings
- 4 of 10 hotels had a lower total price from another country than from the UK, by 1.5% to 33.6%.
- The biggest gap: a 4-night stay at White House Hotel Istanbul cost $1,066 searched from the UK and $708 searched from India, $358 (33.6%) less.
- Booking all 10 hotels at the lowest location instead of the UK price would have cost $7,349 instead of $8,028: $679 (8.5%) less.
- No single country was lowest. The lowest price came from India, Mexico, New Zealand and the US for different hotels.
- For one Singapore hotel on Google Hotels, the lowest seller was 20.8% (US), 25.7% (UK) and 25.5% (India) below the hotel's own website, and the highest seller charged more than twice the lowest.
Short answer
Often, yes. The same room on the same dates can carry a different total price depending on the country you search from and the site you book through. In our data it happened for 4 of 10 hotels, and the gap reached 33.6%. It is not universal: for 6 of 10 hotels the UK price was already the lowest we found, or within 1%.
Why the price changes by country
Hotels and booking sites agree rates, room allotments and promotions market by market. Each country gets access to different inventory, sales channels, local rates and promotions, so the total shown to a traveller in one country can differ from the total shown in another. Taxes, fees and currency conversion add further differences.
Independent research points the same way. NordVPN's 2024 study found travellers searching from the US paid up to 70% more for some holiday bookings than when searching from the destination country (NordVPN, April 2024).
10 hotels, 2 to 7 search locations each
For each hotel we searched the same stay from the UK and from between 1 and 6 other locations, and recorded the total price in US dollars.
| Hotel | Locations checked | UK price | US price | Lowest price found (location) | Lower than UK by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ostay Vermillion Namba, Osaka, Japan | 5 | $148 | not checked | $148 (UK) | 0.0% |
| The Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai, India | 5 | $1,210 | $1,149 | $1,066 (New Zealand) | 11.9% |
| White House Hotel Istanbul, Turkey | 3 | $1,066 | not checked | $708 (India) | 33.6% |
| Ravel Hotel Trademark Collection by Wyndham, New York, USA | 3 | $948 | not checked | $783 (Mexico) | 17.4% |
| Grand Mercure Puka Park Resort, New Zealand | 2 | $621 | $622 | $621 (UK) | 0.0% |
| Hotel NYX Cancun, Mexico | 7 | $558 | $632 | $558 (UK) | 0.0% |
| Hyatt Regency Koh Samui, Thailand | 2 | $670 | not checked | $670 (UK) | 0.0% |
| Vibe Hotel Sydney Darling Harbour, Australia | 3 | $791 | $779 | $779 (USA) | 1.5% |
| The Crane Resort, Barbados | 2 | $836 | $873 | $836 (UK) | 0.0% |
| The Westin Maldives Miriandhoo Resort, Maldives | 2 | $1,180 | $1,191 | $1,180 (UK) | 0.0% |
Stays were for 27-31 May 2024 (one night on 27 May for Ostay Vermillion Namba). Prices are totals for the stay in USD as shown at the time of the search. Download the full data (CSV).
The US results ran in both directions: the US search was the lowest location for Vibe Hotel Sydney Darling Harbour, and 11.7% above the lowest for Hotel NYX Cancun ($632 against $558).
The hotel's own website was not reliably lower either. Searched from the UK, it was higher than the UK booking-site price for Ostay Vermillion Namba ($161 against $148) and The Taj Mahal Palace ($1,395 against $1,210), and lower for White House Hotel Istanbul ($802 against $1,066) and the Ravel Hotel ($892 against $948).
One hotel, many sellers
In October 2024 we searched one hotel, Dusit Thani Laguna Singapore, on Google Hotels from 32 locations and recorded every seller's nightly price for 2 guests. Three markets show how wide the spread is inside a single country:
| Search location | Hotel's own site | Lowest seller | Highest seller | Lowest vs own site |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $207 | $164 | $391 | 20.8% lower |
| United Kingdom | £191 | £142 | £300 | 25.7% lower |
| India | ₹20,881 | ₹15,550 | ₹32,830 | 25.5% lower |
In all three markets the highest seller asked more than twice the lowest seller's price for the same room. We do not convert these to one currency for a country-to-country ranking, because Google Hotels can display prices with or without taxes and fees depending on the market and seller.
How we collected the data
- Same hotel, same dates, same number of guests for every search location.
- Searches were run by Arbitrica's research team with a VPN set to each location, in May 2024 (10 hotels) and October 2024 (one hotel, 32 locations).
- We recorded the total price shown for the stay, in US dollars where the site displayed dollars, and the seller's price as listed on Google Hotels for the single-hotel check.
- A location only appears in the table if we recorded a price for it; blank locations were not checked or not available.
Prices change constantly, so each figure is what one search returned at the time. Some local rates require residence or a local payment method, so compare cancellation terms, meal plan and the final total before you book.
What to do before you book
- Compare the final total, not the nightly rate, and make sure taxes and fees are included.
- Check the same room from more than one country and more than one seller, including the hotel's own site.
- Book a rate with free cancellation where you can, and check again after you book: if the price drops, rebook and cancel the original.
Doing this by hand means many searches for every stay. Arbitrica is a personal AI agent that searches the same hotel from 195 countries at checkout, checks that the room and the total match, and keeps searching after you book until the cancellation window ends.
Frequently asked questions
Do hotels charge different prices depending on what country you're in?
Often, yes. In Arbitrica's check of 10 hotels searched on the same dates from 2 to 7 locations each, 4 hotels showed a lower total price from a country other than the UK, by 1.5% to 33.6%. The other 6 showed the same or a higher price elsewhere. Independent research by NordVPN in 2024 found gaps of up to 70% for travellers searching from the US.
Which country gives the lowest hotel price?
No single country. In this data the lowest price came from India for a hotel in Istanbul, from Mexico for a hotel in New York, from New Zealand for a hotel in Mumbai and from the US for a hotel in Sydney. The lowest location changes with the hotel, the dates and the seller.
How big is the price difference for the same hotel?
The largest gap in Arbitrica's check was 33.6%: a 4-night stay at White House Hotel Istanbul cost $1,066 searched from the UK and $708 searched from India. Within one country, the same room on Google Hotels showed seller prices ranging from about 21-26% below the hotel's own site to more than double the lowest price.
Is the hotel's own website always the lowest price?
No. In this data the hotel's own website was higher than the UK search price in 2 of 4 cases (up to 15% higher for The Taj Mahal Palace) and lower in the other 2.
Does using a VPN get you a lower hotel price?
Sometimes. Changing your location can show a different price, but you have to check many countries and sellers by hand, and the lowest location changes from hotel to hotel. Arbitrica searches the same hotel from 195 countries at checkout instead.