Does Using an Icognito Window Save You Hundreds on Travel?

There’s a graphic going around that “will surprise you”.  It’s a screen shot someone took as proof that searching for travel in incognito mode saves a significant amount of money.

Here’s the picture:

(click to make larger)

It’s from Reddit, and while the photo is getting passed around and upvoted in general, the commenters on the website were too savvy to fall for this.

Look closely at the top of the graphic, then at the pricing details:

The first trip was planned for just one person.  The second trip was planned for two people and priced out per person.

Of course, splitting a hotel room with another person will lower the cost of the trip overall.  That has nothing to do with whether or not the trip is being searched for in incognito mode.

This doesn’t mean the method you search never changes your flight prices.  Some people in the thread commented that the manner in which they approached their search had affected flights (sometimes more expensive or less expensive).

And I’ve seen the same on US Airways.  The pricing for flights has literally changed on me depending on what airport code I put in as the destination when I’ve clicked “search nearby airports”.  Choosing Oakland over San Francisco could significantly change things for me.

But searching in incognito mode isn’t the magic solution people make it out to be.  But a definite way to lower the costs of travel is to travel with a friend ;).