Automate hotel price comparison with multi-platform scraping and email reporting

This is a production-ready, end-to-end workflow that automatically compares hotel prices across multiple booking platforms and delivers beautiful email reports to users. Unlike basic building blocks, this workflow is a complete solution ready to deploy.

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✨ What Makes This Production-Ready

✅ Complete End-to-End Automation

• Input: Natural language queries via webhook
• Processing: Multi-platform scraping & comparison
• Output: Professional email reports + analytics
• Feedback: Real-time webhook responses

✅ Advanced Features

• 🧠 Natural Language Processing for flexible queries
• 🔄 Parallel scraping from multiple platforms
• 📊 Analytics tracking with Google Sheets integration
• 💌 Beautiful HTML email reports
• 🛡️ Error handling and graceful degradation
• 📱 Webhook responses for real-time feedback

✅ Business Value

• For Travel Agencies: Instant price comparison service for clients
• For Hotels: Competitive pricing intelligence
• For Travelers: Save time and money with automated research

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🚀 Setup Instructions

Step 1: Import Workflow

1. Copy the workflow JSON from the artifact
2. In n8n, go to Workflows → Import from File/URL
3. Paste the JSON and click Import

Step 2: Configure Credentials

A. SMTP Email (Required)

Settings → Credentials → Add Credential → SMTP

Host: smtp.gmail.com (for Gmail)
Port: 587
User: [email protected]
Password: your-app-password (not regular password!)

Gmail Setup:

1. Enable 2FA on your Google Account
2. Generate App Password: https://myaccount.google.com/apppasswords
3. Use the generated password in n8n

B. Google Sheets (Optional - for analytics)

Settings → Credentials → Add Credential → Google Sheets OAuth2

Follow the OAuth flow to connect your Google account

Sheet Setup:

1. Create a new Google Sheet
2. Name the first sheet "Analytics"
3. Add headers: timestamp, query, hotel, city, checkIn, checkOut, bestPrice, platform, totalResults, userEmail
4. Copy the Sheet ID from URL and paste in the "Save to Google Sheets" node

Step 3: Set Up Scraping Service

You need to create a scraping API that the workflow calls. Here are your options:

Option A: Use Your Existing Python Script

Create a simple Flask API wrapper:

# api_wrapper.py
from flask import Flask, request, jsonify
import subprocess
import json

app = Flask(__name__)

@app.route('/scrape/<platform>', methods=['POST'])
def scrape(platform):
    data = request.json
    query = f"{data['checkIn']} to {data['checkOut']}, {data['hotel']}, {data['city']}"
    
    try:
        result = subprocess.run(
            ['python3', 'price_scrap_2.py', query, platform],
            capture_output=True,
            text=True,
            timeout=30
        )
        
        # Parse your script output
        output = result.stdout
        # Assuming your script returns price data
        
        return jsonify({
            'price': extracted_price,
            'currency': 'USD',
            'roomType': 'Standard Room',
            'url': booking_url,
            'availability': True
        })
    except Exception as e:
        return jsonify({'error': str(e)}), 500

if __name__ == '__main__':
    app.run(host='0.0.0.0', port=5000)

Deploy:

pip install flask
python api_wrapper.py

Update n8n HTTP Request nodes:

URL: http://your-server-ip:5000/scrape/booking
URL: http://your-server-ip:5000/scrape/agoda
URL: http://your-server-ip:5000/scrape/expedia

Option B: Use Third-Party Scraping Services

Recommended Services:

• ScraperAPI (scraperapi.com) - $49/month for 100k requests
• Bright Data (brightdata.com) - Pay as you go
• Apify (apify.com) - Has pre-built hotel scrapers

Example with ScraperAPI:

// In HTTP Request node
URL: http://api.scraperapi.com
Query Parameters:
  api_key: YOUR_API_KEY
  url: https://booking.com/search?hotel={{$json.hotelName}}...

Option C: Use n8n SSH Node (Like Your Original)

Keep your SSH approach but improve it:

1. Replace HTTP Request nodes with SSH nodes
2. Point to your server with the Python script
3. Ensure error handling and timeouts

// SSH Node Configuration
Host: your-server-ip
Command: python3 /path/to/price_scrap_2.py "{{$json.hotelName}}" "{{$json.city}}" "{{$json.checkInISO}}" "{{$json.checkOutISO}}" "booking"

Step 4: Activate Webhook

1. Click on "Webhook - Receive Request" node
2. Click "Listen for Test Event"
3. Copy the webhook URL (e.g., https://your-n8n.com/webhook/hotel-price-check)
4. Test with this curl command:

curl -X POST https://your-n8n.com/webhook/hotel-price-check \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "message": "I want to check Marriott Hotel in Singapore from 15th March to 18th March",
    "email": "[email protected]",
    "name": "John Doe"
  }'

Step 5: Activate Workflow

1. Toggle the workflow to Active
2. The webhook is now live and ready to receive requests

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📝 Usage Examples

Example 1: Basic Query

{
  "message": "Hilton Hotel in Dubai from 20th December to 23rd December",
  "email": "[email protected]",
  "name": "Sarah"
}

Example 2: Flexible Format

{
  "message": "I need prices for Taj Hotel, Mumbai. Check-in: 5th January, Check-out: 8th January",
  "email": "[email protected]"
}

Example 3: Short Format

{
  "message": "Hyatt Singapore March 10 to March 13",
  "email": "[email protected]"
}

---

🎨 Customization Options

1. Add More Booking Platforms

Steps:

1. Duplicate an existing "Scrape" node
2. Update the platform parameter
3. Connect it to "Aggregate & Compare"
4. Update the aggregation logic to include the new platform

2. Change Email Template

Edit the "Format Email Report" node's JavaScript:

• Modify HTML structure
• Change colors (currently purple gradient)
• Add your company logo
• Include terms and conditions

3. Add SMS Notifications

Using Twilio:

1. Add new node: Twilio → Send SMS
2. Connect after "Aggregate & Compare"
3. Format: "Best deal: ${hotel} at ${platform} for ${price}"

4. Add Slack Integration

1. Add Slack node after "Aggregate & Compare"
2. Send to #travel-deals channel
3. Include quick booking links

5. Implement Caching

Add Redis or n8n's built-in cache:

// Before scraping, check cache
const cacheKey = `${hotelName}-${city}-${checkIn}-${checkOut}`;
const cached = await $cache.get(cacheKey);

if (cached && Date.now() - cached.timestamp < 3600000) {
  return cached.data; // Use 1-hour cache
}

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📊 Analytics & Monitoring

Google Sheets Dashboard

The workflow automatically logs to Google Sheets. Create a dashboard with:

Metrics to track:

• Total searches per day/week
• Most searched hotels
• Most searched cities
• Average price ranges
• Platform with best prices (frequency)
• User engagement (repeat users)

Example Sheet Formulas:

// Total searches today
=COUNTIF(A:A, TODAY())

// Most popular hotel
=INDEX(C:C, MODE(MATCH(C:C, C:C, 0)))

// Average best price
=AVERAGE(G:G)

Set Up Alerts

Add a node after "Aggregate & Compare":

// Alert if prices are unusually high
if (bestDeal.price > avgPrice * 1.5) {
  // Send alert to admin
  return [{
    json: {
      alert: true,
      message: `High prices detected for ${hotelName}`
    }
  }];
}

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🛡️ Error Handling

The workflow includes comprehensive error handling:

1. Missing Information

If user doesn't provide hotel/city/dates → Responds with helpful prompt

2. Scraping Failures

If all platforms fail → Sends "No results" email with suggestions

3. Partial Results

If some platforms work → Shows available results + notes errors

4. Email Delivery Issues

Uses continueOnFail: true to prevent workflow crashes

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🔒 Security Best Practices

1. Rate Limiting

Add rate limiting to prevent abuse:

// In Parse & Validate node
const userEmail = $json.email;
const recentSearches = await $cache.get(`searches:${userEmail}`);

if (recentSearches && recentSearches.length > 10) {
  return [{
    json: {
      status: 'rate_limited',
      response: 'Too many requests. Please try again in 1 hour.'
    }
  }];
}

2. Input Validation

Already implemented - validates hotel names, cities, dates

3. Email Verification

Add email verification before first use:

// Send verification code
const code = Math.random().toString(36).substring(7);
await $sendEmail({
  to: userEmail,
  subject: 'Verify your email',
  body: `Your code: ${code}`
});

4. API Key Protection

Never expose scraping API keys in responses or logs

🚀 Deployment Options

Option 1: n8n Cloud (Easiest)

1. Sign up at n8n.cloud
2. Import workflow
3. Configure credentials
4. Activate

Pros: No maintenance, automatic updates Cons: Monthly cost

Option 2: Self-Hosted (Most Control)

# Using Docker
docker run -it --rm \
  --name n8n \
  -p 5678:5678 \
  -v ~/.n8n:/home/node/.n8n \
  n8nio/n8n

# Using npm
npm install -g n8n
n8n start

Pros: Free, full control Cons: You manage updates

Option 3: Cloud Platforms

• Railway.app (recommended for beginners)
• DigitalOcean App Platform
• AWS ECS
• Google Cloud Run

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📈 Scaling Recommendations

For < 100 searches/day

• Current setup is perfect
• Use n8n Cloud Starter or small VPS

For 100-1000 searches/day

• Add Redis caching (1-hour cache)
• Use queue system for scraping
• Upgrade to n8n Cloud Pro

For 1000+ searches/day

• Implement job queue (Bull/Redis)
• Use dedicated scraping service
• Load balance multiple n8n instances
• Consider microservices architecture

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🐛 Troubleshooting

Issue: Webhook not responding

Solution:

1. Check workflow is Active
2. Verify webhook URL is correct
3. Check n8n logs: Settings → Log Streaming

Issue: No prices returned

Solution:

1. Test scraping endpoints individually
2. Check if hotel name matches exactly
3. Verify dates are in future
4. Try different date ranges

Issue: Emails not sending

Solution:

1. Verify SMTP credentials
2. Check "less secure apps" setting (Gmail)
3. Use App Password instead of regular password
4. Check spam folder

Issue: Slow response times

Solution:

1. Enable parallel scraping (already configured)
2. Add timeout limits (30 seconds recommended)
3. Implement caching
4. Use faster scraping service