Getting started with Sandbox

Access and set up sandbox mode to safely test your API

Accessing the Sandbox feature

Log in to the Expedia Group Console and select an account. The first time you access the Sandbox feature, we will create a sandbox account that mirrors the partner account from which you accessed it.

There are two ways to enter sandbox mode.

1. Use the global toggle

Go to the partner account menu by clicking your account name in the bottom left corner.

On the account flyout, click the Sandbox mode toggle to turn it to On.

Go to the product catalog to add the product you'd like to try. Note: In sandbox mode, only sandbox-enabled products appear in the product catalog.

Once the product is added, you can create a sandbox-specific API client and use those credentials in our API Explorer, Postman, or other tools to check that the results are as expected. In sandbox mode, the API credentials you create won’t affect your production application, so you can fine-tune your configuration before it goes live.

When you’re ready to go back to live mode, turn the toggle in the account flyout to Off again.

2. Try a product from the product details page

Go to the product catalog and find a product you’re interested in. The products that are sandbox-enabled will be marked with a badge.

Click the product card for a sandbox-enabled product, and you’ll be taken to the product details page. Click the Try product button at the top of the page to switch into sandbox mode. You’ll be prompted to configure the sandbox account to align it with your Expedia Group account.

Create a sandbox-specific API client for the product you’d like to try and use the credentials in our API Explorer, Postman, or other tools to check that the results are as expected. In sandbox mode, the API credentials you create won’t affect your production application, so you can fine-tune your configuration before it goes live. Note: In sandbox mode, only sandbox-enabled products appear in the product catalog.

When you’re ready to go back to live mode, click a Go to live mode link or go back to the account flyout to switch the global toggle.

Configuring products on the sandbox

Initial configuration

Click Try product on the product details page of a sandbox-enabled product to launch configuration in sandbox mode.

Updates

1. Use the global toggle to open your sandbox account.
2. Go to the product details page of the product you want to update.
3. Open the context menu (the three vertical dots at the top right corner) and select Update configuration to launch the configuration flow.

Note: This context menu is also available for your live account, so be sure to switch to your sandbox account to avoid error. You will need to manually update your live configuration with your sandbox choices.

API client creation

To use the Expedia Group travel platform APIs, whether in sandbox mode or live mode, you must create one or more API clients, which are like password-protected user accounts. Essentially, an API client establishes that the software making an API request belongs to you (authentication) and allows you to limit the types of API requests each client can make (authorization). There are two ways to create an API client:

• Click the context menu on the product details page and choose Create API client.
• Click Create API client in the left navigation.

On the Create API client page, enter a name and description that will help you and others in your organization remember the products it includes. In the list of available products, select the scopes (API request types) you want to include. Note: Checking the box at the top level will select all of the child elements.

Click Create.

Once your API client has been created, you’ll see a confirmation screen that includes your credential ID and secret. These are only displayed once. Be sure to copy the credentials and secret and save them to a secure location. Do not store your client ID or secret in publicly accessible areas such as GitHub, client-side code, etc.

Products and scopes

All API clients operate within a single partner account. When you add products to the account, they will be available to include in an API client. You can create a single API client and grant it access to one or more products.

Each product includes a set of scopes that grant access to certain request types. The scopes you assign will control what the client is authorized to do. If you have multiple software services making API requests, we recommend that you create a separate API client for each service, and select only the scopes that each API client will need.

Viewing and tuning a sandbox API client

Once you’ve created an API client for your sandbox product, go to the API Explorer page of the product you want to test in the Developer Hub. Change the API server URL to point to your sandbox and plug in your secure credentials.

With our API Explorer, Postman, or other API tools, you can see the results your API client settings will return. Use this early on to make sure that our APIs are right for you, and to test any changes to your settings before you push one of our products to a production application.

Taking the API live

Once you’ve completed your sandbox testing, you can create a live version of the API client to use on your production application.

1. Log into the Console.
2. In the product catalog, go to the product details page for the product you want to add.
3. Click Add product (or, if the product requires approval, click Request to add).
4. Configure the product. Often, the live settings will mimic many or most of the settings you used in your sandbox testing.
5. Click Submit.
6. Create your live API client: Click Create API client in the left navigation.
7. Generally, you’ll use the same scopes as your sandbox.
8. Click Get credentials.

Note: When you add a product, the Expedia team may reach out to you for additional information.

You can also request to go live directly from a sandbox—look for the Go to live mode links.

To learn how to embed an API client in your software, read API authentication and authorization.