Google Adds New Travel Search Features

Google announced a bunch of new travel search features the other day across flights, hotels, destinations of interest and more. These new features aim at helping you “get inspired and research your options so you can book with ease when the time is right,” Google wrote. Here are those new features:

Track Flight Prices For Any Dates

For some time now, Google let you set up email alerts for when prices change for flights for specific date ranges. Now, Google is letting you set up the same price tracking for flights for “any” date range within a 3-6 months time frame. Just toggle the “any dates” on and wait for the email to come in with cheaper flights:

Google Maps Interest Layers

Google Maps added a new interest layers that you can toggle on to see areas have the most options for dining, shopping or sightseeing. This will help you visually see what is around your location and you can also tap “Where to stay” under the search filters for neighborhood guide.

Explore Nearby Pink Dot

Google expanded the explore nearby feature to show a pink dot on the map that lets you explore nearby that pink dot. Google said click the “pink dot and a bubble that reads “Explore nearby” to narrow your search to places you can drive to in a few hours, and select any destination to see helpful information including average hotel prices or what kind of weather to expect.

New Hotel / Rental Button in Hotel Search

You can now also enter that location in the hotel or vacation rental search bar and you’ll see a toggle to show properties within a 15 or 30 minute trip by foot or car. “This might be helpful if you’re going to an event, like a wedding or a conference, and want to stay near the venue,” Google said.

Forum discussion at Twitter.