Vacationers booking holidays through Canadian websites pay hundreds of dollars more than overseas customers, NordVPN research shows. This price difference was discovered for several types of bookings — from car rentals to hotel stays — with Canadians paying up to 35% more. Let’s look at these findings and how you can book a cheaper holiday with a VPN.
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Researchers used a VPN (a virtual private network) to make it look like they were searching for holidays from different locations, including Canada and overseas.
Using a VPN hides your IP address, making it look like you’re browsing from your chosen location. By connecting to a server in a specific country, you can hide your virtual location to gain more internet privacy and freedom.
For this study, researchers first looked at how much a particular hotel stay or car rental would cost if booked from Canada. Then, they connected to the server of the country they would be traveling to, making it look like they were browsing from there. Researchers looked at holidays in the U.S., the UK, Mexico, France, and Italy.
By doing so, they discovered that booking a vacation from Canada costs much more than booking the same deal from the destination countries. Let’s take a closer look at these findings.
NordVPN researchers uncovered significantly lower prices from providers like Hertz, Expedia, Booking.com, and Sixt when booking from outside of Canada.
They found that Canadian vacationers could save as much as $805 on a 7-night stay in Miami for a family of four if they booked it from the U.S. (or while connected to a U.S. server). They could also save hundreds of dollars on car rentals. Let’s look at the biggest price differences in more detail.
Holiday prices vary by country for many reasons, some of which are:
Marijus Briedis, chief technology officer at NordVPN, says, “Never assume you’re seeing the same price as everyone else. Companies use all kinds of complex algorithms to cater to the purchasing power of different countries. They will routinely show different prices on different website domains, and it can even differ depending on where you’re visiting from.”
There’s no need to overpay for a holiday abroad. Using a VPN can save you a lot of money – and it’s easy to get started.
Make sure you choose a reliable VPN provider that takes your privacy and security seriously. Though looking for a free option may be tempting, it’s best to stay clear of free VPNs. Here’s how to save on holiday bookings with a VPN:
Even though this process might take a little longer than you’re used to, you’re likely to find some great deals to make it worthwhile. This method will work for finding cheaper flights, hotels, car rentals, and even general online shopping.
Yes, it is. Using a VPN protects your privacy and enhances your online security. It’s perfectly acceptable for users to buy tickets and book holidays while connected to a VPN server.
The research was commissioned by NordVPN and conducted by an external agency between March 24 and 31, 2023. Researchers conducted simultaneous searches for identical products sold by the same vendor using different country servers.