Hotel SEO for beginners: How independent hotels can rank higher on Google

If guests can’t find your website, they’ll book elsewhere. And for independent hotels, that often means higher commission and fewer direct bookings.

When a traveler is looking for accommodation in your city or region, your hotel should appear front and center in the Google search results. For many independent hoteliers competing against big Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) and well-known chains, that’s easier said than done.

At Lighthouse, we often get asked by owners how they can make their property more visible on Google and attract more website visitors.

The good news is, you don’t need to be an expert web developer to implement Search Engine Optimization (SEO) or spend obscene amounts on ads (Search Engine Advertising or SEA). In fact, making your hotel website rank higher in search engine results goes beyond SEO strategies and SEA campaigns.

Whether you’re opening a new property, have just launched your new website or simply want more organic website traffic and direct bookings, this guide lays out the key steps to make your hotel easier to find for potential guests. Discover achievable hotel SEO strategies and other practical tips that you can start applying today.

Key takeaways

1. Claim and fully optimize your hotel’s Google Business profile.

2. Show real-time rates, availability and booking links on Google Hotel Search.

3. Collect, manage and respond to guest reviews consistently.

4. Make sure your website adapts to mobile devices, offers user-friendly navigation and matches search intent.

5. Strengthen local SEO with destination content and partnerships.

6. List your hotel on a variety of platforms and keep details consistent everywhere.

7. Stay active with fresh website content, photos and videos.

Why online visibility matters for independent hotels

Imagine you’re planning an upcoming trip. Where do you start? You might have a dream travel destination on your bucket list, but maybe you haven’t decided on the exact location yet. Or perhaps you don’t really know where to go, but you’re looking for a specific experience instead.

Before travelers are ready to book their accommodation, they’re usually researching destinations. For hotel owners, this early stage in the booking process is crucial to consider. You don’t just want travelers to choose your property, you want them to choose your destination first, before they even start looking for a hotel, B&B or holiday home.

In a lot of cases nowadays, the travel planning and booking process starts on a search engine like Google. This creates an immense opportunity for you to secure direct bookings, if your website appears high enough in the search results – ideally on the first page. The better your hotel’s search engine rankings, the more potential guests you can reach and convince.

Optimize your hotel’s Google Business Profile

Regardless of the size of your property, a complete and well-maintained Google Business Profile for your hotel is a must to be found easily on Google Search and Maps.

If you haven’t yet, claim or create your profile and verify your business details. Pay special attention to your hotel’s name, address and phone number. These need to be formatted identically on every channel and listing to signal trust to both search engine crawlers and potential guests.

Next, complete your profile and keep it updated:

• Select the category that fits your accommodation type the best: hotel, motel, hostel, bed and breakfast, inn, …

• Ensure practical info like opening hours and contact details are always accurate and consistent with your other channels.

• Write a clear, detailed description that is both accurate and compelling. Include location-specific phrases guests typically search for (for example “boutique hotel in central Lyon”).

• List all amenities and services you offer (Wi‑Fi, parking, breakfast, …).

• Highlight any attributes that set you apart (for example pet-friendly hotel, contactless check-in, rooftop bar).

• Upload high-quality photos and videos of your property, rooms, amenities and places of interest nearby.

Once you’ve completed your hotel’s Google listing, it will appear on Maps and Search, and you can react to guest reviews and photos.

Drive sales with booking links on Google Hotels

Google Hotels is not an OTA (Online Travel Agency) but a metasearch platform, which means it refers users to other sites to complete the booking. To drive reservations through Google, your real-time rates and availability on different channels need to be sent to the platform. This integration is possible with a Google-certified connectivity partner: either a channel manager, booking engine, Central Reservation System (CRS) or Property Management System (PMS).

In order to compete with OTAs and reduce commissions, you should also add a direct booking link through a compatible website booking engine. This allows your direct rates, availability and booking link to appear alongside OTAs in Google’s hotel search modules, allowing travelers to easily book direct and giving you a fair chance to get hotel bookings without paying commission.

Reach out to your current hotel software provider to help you with the technical setup.

Actively collect and manage reviews for your hotel

It’s not just travelers who rely on online reviews. Google’s algorithms use review scores, volume and recency as key ranking signals. In simple terms: hotels with more recent, detailed and well-managed reviews tend to appear more often and rank higher in search results.

Consistent review management is essential to your hotel’s success, helping you become more visible on Google and convince travelers to book. Here’s how to do it effectively:

• The timing matters: Ask each guest to leave a review during check-out or right after – in person, via email and/or a messaging app like WhatsApp.

• Offer options and make it super easy: Send guests a direct Google review link, place a scannable QR code that links straight to the right web page in the room and provide one at your front desk or check-out area.

• Optimize the message: Avoid generic templates, but make it personal and show clients you care about improving their experience. Encourage guests to include details about the location, breakfast, room and services. These simple prompts also give them some guidance and inspiration on what to write, removing another potential barrier.

• Respond to every review: Replying to reviews shows both Google and potential guests that you’re active and attentive. Thank guests for their feedback and respond calmly and professionally to negative comments. Sometimes, how you handle feedback matters more than the rating itself.

For more tips on how to increase and improve your reviews, check out our full guide on reputation management for hotels.

Apply key SEO strategies to your hotel website

Your hotel website doesn’t need flashy features, but it does need to meet Google’s basic expectations. Google is more likely to show hotel websites that are fast-loading, easy to navigate and relevant to users’ real search intent.

Focus on the SEO fundamentals first and build from there:

• Google tracks bounce rates, page speed and how users interact with your site. If visitors leave the page immediately (bounce) or need to hunt for information, your keyword rankings can suffer. For an optimal user experience, your website should be mobile-friendly, easy to navigate, load quickly and clearly show how to book with eye-catching “Book now” buttons. Use internal links in a logical way to make it easier for Google and visitors to understand your website structure.

• Use important, location-specific keywords in your page titles (headings), meta descriptions and other website content. Keyword research tools like Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs or SemRush can help you discover phrases travelers actually search for. Aim for a good mix of short-tail (“hotel Munich”) and long-tail keywords (“family hotel near Munich central station”).

• Avoid vague descriptions or simply listing characteristics, amenities and services. Go into detail and explain the benefits, for example what makes your breakfast special or your location convenient.

• Add schema markup for hotels to your website. This is a form of structured data – a small piece of code – that helps Google better understand your hotel and show extra details, so-called ‘rich snippets’, like prices or star ratings in search results.

Some of these tactics also help you appear in AI-generated answers. Learn more about optimizing your hotel website for AI search engines here.

A well-optimized website doesn’t just rank better, but converts more visitors into direct bookers.

Use local SEO to win high-intent local searches

Local SEO is what helps your hotel appear when travelers search for accommodation in a specific area, for example within Google Maps. It puts you in front of a high-intent audience: guests who are ready to book.

To strengthen your local SEO:

• Publish engaging content tied to your destination. Cater to different interests guests might have, by writing about nearby attractions, events and experiences or sharing dining recommendations and travel tips. Articles like “Where to eat near our hotel” or “Best kid-friendly walks around [your town]” attract travelers early in their planning phase.

• Build local partnerships online. Partner with nearby restaurants, tour operators or event venues, asking them to mention and link to your hotel on their website. These local mentions signal relevance and trust to Google.

Looking for more visibility-boosting tactics? Discover our in-depth guide on local SEO for hotels.

Expand your hotel’s online presence beyond your website

In order for your hotel to be easily found on Google, you need more than a website. Google cross-checks information across different sources to determine how relevant and trustworthy your hotel is.

Expand your online presence by getting your property featured on as many reliable channels as possible, with backlinks to your website:

• Booking platforms (OTAs)

• Metasearch platforms like TripAdvisor

• Local tourism or destination websites

• City or regional hotel associations

• Social media platforms

• Online forums

Public social posts and threads on popular forums can appear in Google search results. Encourage guests to tag your official account and location on Instagram or other platforms. You can even spark conversations on platforms like Reddit when relevant. Both types of channels are important sources of information and inspiration in travelers’ booking journey.

The key rule here is accuracy. Keep your details consistent everywhere to avoid confusing both Google and potential guests.

Refresh your hotel website regularly

Google favors websites that show activity. A site that hasn’t changed in years can slowly lose visibility, even if the information is still correct.

Don’t just keep practical info up to date, but regularly refresh photos and create quality content. Small updates can already make a difference:

• Refresh photos regularly, especially room and exterior images

• Update seasonal content, packages or local recommendations

• Publish testimonials from guests, travel directories and “things to do” articles

• Upload short videos to showcase rooms, views, food …

If you want more tips on hotel SEO and content marketing, explore our guide on how to apply marketing tactics on your hotel website.

Ready to turn visibility into direct bookings?

Your SEO performance makes up an important part of your hotel marketing strategy. However, being visible on Google is only the first step. For your SEO efforts and other digital marketing tactics to truly pay off, travelers need to see accurate rates, book easily and prefer your direct channel over an OTA.

Lighthouse helps independent hotels achieve exactly that, with one simple platform that connects pricing, distribution, direct bookings and payments. Explore our complete solution and see how Lighthouse can help your hotel get found and booked, all while saving time.

Rather hear it from fellow hotel owners? Discover what they think about our platform for independent hotels.