Americans Often Pay More for Overseas Trips Booked on U.S. Sites, NordVPN Research Finds
A study by the VPN provider NordVPN found that car rentals and hotel stays cost U.S. travelers noticeably more than the same bookings made from the destination country.
By Jayden Sweiler ·
Travelers in the United States may be paying hundreds of dollars more for vacations abroad than people booking from other parts of the world, according to research released by the VPN company NordVPN.
The company found that Americans are shown different prices for rental cars and hotel stays than customers elsewhere. To test the idea, a researcher first searched for travel bookings from the U.S. and then changed their server connection to the country being considered for the trip, including Italy, France and the United Kingdom. Doing so revealed the content and prices that customers in those countries would normally see.
A VPN, or virtual private network, disguises a user's IP address and keeps their physical location private, which is what allows a person to appear to be browsing from another country.
"This method revealed a significant price difference — vacations booked from the U.S. were considerably more expensive than those booked from the actual travel destinations," the company said.
NordVPN reported finding savings across a range of well-known travel sites, among them Hertz, Hotels.com, Booking.com and Europcar. The most striking gap involved a one-week Enterprise car rental in the U.K. Booked from the U.S., it cost $1,249, while the same rental priced from the U.K. came to $737, a difference of 41%.
Prices can vary by search location for several reasons, according to the report. These include currency exchange rates, the cost of living and strength of the local economy, and where a company is based.
Marijus Briedis, NordVPN's chief technology officer, cautioned consumers against assuming everyone gets the same rate. "Never assume you're getting the same deal as everyone else. Your location, the number of visits you pay to a website, and how your search fits in with the school holiday schedule, can all influence the price you're offered," he said.
Briedis's comments suggest that factors beyond geography, such as how often a person visits a site and the timing of local school holidays, may also shape the price a traveler sees.
VPNs are legal in most countries, though NordVPN advises users to read the terms and conditions of any website they access while using one.
Source: FOX 5 Atlanta
