Trip.com: How to Find Good Deals Step by Step
Short answer: Set a price alert before you book a flight. Watch the 7, 14 and 30-day trend graph. For hotels, book a room with the Best Price Guarantee label. Then claim any lower price before the deadline on your order page. Turn on Use Trip Coins at checkout. Coins are worth about US$1 per 100.
Trip.com shows a lot of prices, banners and badges on one screen. Most of them aren’t the deal. The savings come from four tools that sit a little out of view, and each one has its own rules.
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This guide goes through them in the order you’d actually use them, from the first search to the day after checkout. The rules come from Trip.com’s own help and guide pages, read on October 29, 2026.
The Steps
- How do you set a Trip.com flight price alert?
- How do you read the price trend graph?
- How does the hotel price match work?
- How much are Trip Coins worth?
- Where are the current Trip.com deals?
- A pre-payment checklist
How do you set a Trip.com flight price alert?
A Trip.com flight price alert is set from the Price Alert button below the flight search bar, by entering the route and dates, dragging a slider to a target price, and turning the alert on.
- Sign in to a free Trip.com account. Alerts are tied to it.
- Open the Flights tab in the app or on desktop.
- Tap Price Alert, just below the search bar.
- Enter the origin, destination, trip type, dates and cabin.
- Drag the price slider to your target. The colored indicator shows how likely that price is.
- Choose push notification or email, then tap Turn On Alert.
Trip.com’s price alert guide says alerts stay active until the travel date passes or you cancel them. You manage them in Personal Center, under Flights, then Price Alerts.
Push alerts need notification permission on your phone. Turn that on, or the alert goes to email only.
How do you read the price trend graph?
The Trip.com price trend graph on the flight search page shows fares over 7, 14 or 30 days, and Trip.com’s guide reads a steady decline as a reason to wait and a rising line as a reason to book.
When I checked the guide closely, I noticed that it calls the graph the most reliable cue, more than the alert itself. That makes sense. An alert only fires at your target. The graph shows which way things are moving.
| What the graph shows | What Trip.com’s guide suggests | What to do with your alert |
|---|---|---|
| Steady, gradual decline | Wait | Keep the alert on at your target |
| Rising trend | Book soon | Book, then cancel the alert |
| Flat or jumpy | No clear signal | Compare a few nearby dates |
A price alert is not a promise of the lowest fare. Fares can change fast, so act when an alert arrives instead of waiting for a second one.
How does the hotel price match work?
Trip.com’s hotel price match refunds the difference in Trip Coins when you find a lower public price for an identical booking, but only on hotels showing the Best Price Guarantee or price match label, according to Trip.com’s September 2026 price match article.
- Book a room that shows the Best Price Guarantee or price match label.
- Look for a lower public price for the exact same room, dates and conditions on the hotel’s site or another qualifying platform.
- Take a screenshot or copy the link.
- Submit the claim from your order page before the deadline shown there.
- Wait for review, then check your Trip Coins after the stay.
Here’s where people get tripped up. Trip.com’s price match article says the price is checked at review time, not when you submit. If the cheaper price disappears before review, the claim can fail.
| Rule | What Trip.com’s article says |
|---|---|
| Eligible bookings | Individual hotel bookings with the price match or Best Price Guarantee label; trial in limited regions and languages |
| Deadline | Varies by region: noon or midnight local time the day before check-in |
| Match required | 100% identical booking details |
| Payout | Trip Coins only, no cash; a per-booking cap may apply |
| Claims per booking | One |
| Not eligible | Modified, canceled, group or package bookings |
Don’t change the booking after you claim. Trip.com says any modification after submission invalidates the request.
How much are Trip Coins worth?
Trip Coins are worth about US$1 per 100 coins according to Trip.com’s July 2026 Trip Coins article, which also says the value can vary with promotions and exchange rates and that there is no minimum for redemption.
To use them, go to the payment page and switch on Use Trip Coins before you pay. The discount shows up right away. The option only appears on qualifying orders.
I worked out what the review rewards on Trip.com’s Trip Coins page come to at that rate. It’s small, but it isn’t nothing.
| Trip Coins source | Cap listed by Trip.com | Value at 100 coins = US$1 |
|---|---|---|
| One hotel review | Up to 150 coins | Up to $1.50 |
| Hotel reviews in a month | Up to 1,200 coins | Up to $12.00 |
| One attraction review | Up to 30 coins | Up to $0.30 |
| Attraction reviews in a month | Up to 600 coins | Up to $6.00 |
| Trip Moments posts, lifetime | Up to 1,820 coins | Up to $18.20 |
Coins from bookings only count once you complete the stay or flight. Trip.com says they’re deducted if the trip is canceled, and bookings paid with Trip Coins or promotions don’t earn new coins.
So stacking isn’t free. Using coins on one booking means that booking earns nothing back.
Where are the current Trip.com deals?
Current Trip.com promotions are collected on the Trip.com Deals page, where Trip.com collects its current sales and promo offers.
Offers there change often and differ by country site. Read the terms on each offer before you count on it. Many apply only to certain payment methods, dates or first bookings.
Honestly, the alert and the price match do more for most trips than any banner on that page.
If you’re also comparing activity sites, our guide to KKday Deals: How to Find Good Prices Step by Step follows the same steps for tours and tickets.
A pre-payment checklist
- Flight: is an alert running, and does the trend graph say wait or book?
- Hotel: does the room show the Best Price Guarantee label?
- Hotel: have you noted the price match deadline on the order page?
- Payment page: is Use Trip Coins switched on, if you want to spend them?
- Cancellation: have you read the room’s or fare’s cancellation terms before paying?
For a Japan hotel in particular, compare against Rakuten Travel: How to Find a Good Japan Hotel Deal before you pay. And if the trip needs mobile data, sort out the eSIM early. Our guide to Airalo Refund for an Unused eSIM: How to Request It covers what happens when plans change.
Tips
- Sign in before you search so alerts and Trip Coins attach to your account.
- Screenshot the cheaper price with the room name, dates and total visible.
- Set alerts for a few nearby dates, not just one.
- Check the Trip Coins balance after each completed stay.
Warnings
- Hotel price match pays Trip Coins, not cash, and only on labeled bookings.
- Flights have no formal post-booking price match, per Trip.com’s article.
- Coins from a booking are removed if the trip is canceled.
- Rules come from Trip.com’s guide pages read on October 29, 2026, and vary by region. Check the app before you book.
FAQ
Does Trip.com refund the difference if a flight gets cheaper after I book?
Not as a rule. Trip.com’s price match article (September 2026) says there is no formal post-booking price match policy for flights, adjustments are reviewed case by case on an extremely limited basis, and any approved adjustment is paid in Trip Coins.
Do Trip Coins expire?
Trip.com’s July 2026 Trip Coins article does not state an expiry period, and other regional Trip.com pages describe different rules. Check the Trip Coins balance screen in your account, which shows the current terms for your region.
Can I use a promo code and Trip Coins on the same booking?
It depends on the booking. Trip.com’s Trip Coins article says the Use Trip Coins option only appears on the payment page for qualifying orders, and that bookings paid partly with promotions or Trip Coins earn no new coins.
Sources
- Trip.com: How to Get Trip.com Price Match Refund? (September 23, 2026)
- Trip.com: How to Set Price Alert and Save on Cheap Flights (March 4, 2026)
- Trip.com: How to Earn and Use Trip Coin (July 2, 2026)
- Trip.com: Deals, Promo and Discount Codes
Next step: set one price alert for your next route today, then come back to the checklist when the alert fires.
Fact-checked against Trip.com’s help and guide pages as of October 29, 2026. Rules and offers change by region; the Trip.com app shows what applies to your booking.
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