Unlocking Hidden Gems: Strategies for Finding the Best Value on Booking.com

We’ve decided to go to Athens - June 2026. We’ll need return flights from the UK to Athens, and hotel accommodation in Athens. This post walks through the process I follow to book accommodation leveraging my Genius Level 3 status on booking.com.

We prefer to book well in advance to get best prices, and opt for a free cancellation rate. Booking.com is my go to website. We also generally prefer hotel stays.

TL;DR

In this post I walk through how I find properties that suit my requirements, and ensure that I am getting best price.

Let me share my process.

Before diving into the booking process, it’s essential to take some time to assess your travel needs. These will vary with destination, time of year, who you are with etc. Are you looking for a romantic getaway, a family-friendly environment, or perhaps a solo adventure?

Step 1 - Start with booking.com on a computer browser

I initially open booking.com on a browser on a large computer screen. This is for ease of use as opposed to working on a much smaller mobile phone screen.

My initial search criteria for are;

• Location - Athens

• Dates - My arrival and departure dates

• People - 2 adults

This brings back an unsurprisingly large set of potential results - 5366 properties!

I then use the filters down the left hand side of the booking.com screen to narrow the field to suit my wife and my requirements for Athens;

• Free Cancellation

• Hotels

• Guest reviews - 9+ (wonderful)

This narrows the field further - down to 146 properties.

For Athens pricing is quite competitive and has a broad range - I remove properties over £150/night and sort in ascending order.

I now have 41 properties that appear to meet my criteria - except its obvious that some are not hotels. I work through the list top down, ignoring non-hotels, and anything that has less than 100 reviews.

I quickly find this as a suitable hotel - plenty of reviewers scoring it well. The proximity to the city centre is ideal, together with the subway access.

Result of detailed search on booking.com

Step 2 - Confirm Reviews

I do a quick check on both google and Tripadvisor for consistency, and confirm the rating is similar.

Step 3 - Try booking.com on a mobile device

Hurray - there is a "mobile only price", of £337, as there is only 2 rooms left, and its a free cancellation rate, I decide to book a slighter larger room for £341, and confirm, so as not to lose the price.

The booking shows two discounts - £65.50 associated with my Genius status, and £37.12 mobile-only price. Note - the mobile-only price prevents using cashback sites - but I'm unlikely to get a guaranteed 10% back on any cashabck site.

Step 3 - Check Alternative Approaches

Google - Best price offered is £374 - NOPE

Opodo - Best price offered is £374 - NOPE

Tripadvisor - Not available to book - NOPE

Trivago - Best price offered is £374 - NOPE

Direct with the hotel - The large room is offered at £400 - NOPE

I'm happy that I've got the best deal.

Conclusion

Finding the best value on Booking.com doesn’t have to be a daunting task. By understanding your travel needs, utilising the platform's filtering and mapping features, checking cancellation policies, reading reviews, taking advantage of deals, and being mindful of extra fees, you can uncover hidden gems that meet your expectations and budget.

The next time you plan a trip, implement these strategies and enjoy the thrill of discovering great properties without overspending.

Happy travels!