Google Brings New Set of Trip-Planning Tools on Its Travel, Flights Services

Google is rolling out a new set of travel search tools to help users plan their vacations. The new features allow to customise searches and will provide a list of pricing and lodging choices. Google Flights will show prices for specific dates between two cities including notifications for when airline ticket costs dip, while with the Google Travel Explore tool users can browse locations with filters. Further, there will be a ‘Where to stay ‘ option under the search filters, to find hotels within the neighbourhood. Google has also added a bookmark feature to save the searches for easy reference.

The search giant on Monday announced the addition of a handful of new travel planning features for the Google Travel portal via a blog post. In the first of the new features, Google Flights price tracker is getting an update and it will show prices and deals for any dates between two cities. It will also send emails for when airline ticket costs dip in the next three to six months.

In Google Travel’s Explore tool, users will now see a pink dot and a bubble “Explore nearby” option that shows popular spots within the specified area. Users can select any destination to see details including average hotel prices, weather and other details.

With the latest development, Google Travel will show spots with the most options for dining, shopping or sightseeing within a selected distance from a particular landmark or address. The ‘Where to stay’ option under the search filters will provide a handy neighbourhood guide. Additionally, users can enter a certain landmark or address in the hotel or vacation rental search bar to see properties within a 15 or 30-minute trip by foot or car.

Further, Google has added a bookmark icon to keep track of properties that travellers are interested in during the planning process. The Saved tab on mobile or the right-hand panel on their desktop will display the saved properties.