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The ABCs of SEO for hotels

At Simplotel we have built websites for over 2,000 hotels, and every single time we have been asked about how we drive traffic to a website. We have been asked by those who are usually suspicious of SEO because they paid for such services in past and may or may not have seen results. And we have been asked by our customers who see a 3x plus growth in their website traffic after coming to our platform – as to how we do it. While SEO can be a deep subject, today we will attempt to outline how one must think about SEO in this post.

At a high level SEO depends on three things –

Technology and layout of the website
The content on the website
Things happening outside your website

Technology and layout of the website

In order to determine the relevance of a website for a search term (also known as a keyword) search engines have a piece of software called a Bot (derived from the word Robot) that crawls (think of it as reads) content on your website. The Bot then stores the keywords that a website is most relevant for. This is known as indexing of a website.

Unlike users, bots see the code of the website and not what users see on a website (you can view the code of most websites by right clicking on a webpage and selecting view page source). The easier this code is for the search engines to understand, the better chance you have of conveying your content to the search engines and making sure that your content gets indexed correctly. Here again there are hundreds of things that matter. These include the load time of a website, the structure of website code, mobile friendliness, proper tags and sitemaps. Detailing these is a topic for a future blog.

The layout of your website also plays an important role in search engine optimization. Clean and simple navigation, easily readable content – they all add up towards SEO friendliness.
To get these things right a website must be built for SEO from the ground up – retrofitting these things can often mean redoing the website. The good news is that Simplotel, out of the box, takes care of all this for your hotel website.

The content on your website

Now that we have gotten the technical aspects covered, the next most obvious thing about SEO is the content of the website. If your website’s content is about ice cream cones then your site will be indexed for ice cream cone searches and not for hotels. If your content is about a luxury hotel, then you won’t be indexed for budget hotels and consequently it is unlikely that you will show up for searches related to budget hotels.

Content also comes in many shapes. It includes the text on the website, the images that you put, the links you provide and the various tags (page titles page descriptions etc.). Each one of these have a significance and how and where you place them also matters. Content that is higher up on a page matters more than the content that is below. On things like page titles, the content that is to the left matters more than the content that is to the right. How you structure your content with various Headers (much like a word document) matters. How you name your images, how you name the links – they all matter.

All content on your website should be original content – copying of content from another website hurts your traffic – as the search engines and users skip past you believing you have nothing new to say. Adding fresh and relevant content has also shown to impact the SEO of a website.

There is also data about your hotel (meta data) that you can provide on your website, it is not visible to your customers but tells the bots the location, name, etc. of your hotel. Once again, Simplotel does this out of the box for your site. Our experts write the content for your hotel website so that it is all set up well. This is another reason why our customers see a 3x plus growth in traffic.

Things happening outside your website

After the technology and the content on the website, there are things that happen outside your website that impact search engine optimization. These include your guest reviews, your listing on Google Maps and local listing sites, your mention in travel blogs, etc. – they all matter. Here are some suggestions,

Verify and own your Google My Business (GMB) page and make sure that the map marker is accurate.
Ensure that your hotel’s name, address and contact info is exactly the same on all online channels – your social media pages, local listings and classified listings.
Get good reviews by taking care of customers and encouraging customers to write a glowing review. Also, respond to your reviews on various review channels time to time.

There are few silver bullets in SEO – so you must skin it with a thousand paper cuts. Please let us know your comments, questions and feedback at hello@simplotel.com.

Home > Blogs > You Shouldn't Be Paying for This: The Truth About Free Booking Links for Hotels

You Shouldn't Be Paying for This: The Truth About Free Booking Links for Hotels

In a world where travellers are glued to Google, it's wild to think that many hotels still pay hefty commissions or ignore direct opportunities right in front of them. If you're still spending to appear on booking platforms that already profit from your hard-earned bookings, it's time to hit pause.

Here’s the thing: free booking links are real. They exist. And if you're not using them, you're leaving visibility (and money) on the table.

Let’s break it down: what free booking links are, how they work, and why they’re essential for your hotel’s digital strategy in 2025 and beyond.

What Are Free Booking Links?

In simple terms, free booking links are listings for your hotel that appear on Google, allowing guests to book directly without you having to pay for every click or booking. These are shown below paid listings in the Google Hotel Finder and Google Search.

And the best part? They link straight to your hotel’s website, giving you commission-free bookings.

They’re a game-changer for independent hotels, small chains, and even big brands who are tired of competing (and paying) for visibility on OTAs.

Why Should You Care About Free Booking Links?

Because visibility today is digital. When travellers search for hotels, they’re not going straight to your website, they're going to Google. If you're not showing up there with a direct booking option, you're losing out to OTAs or competitors who are.

Here’s what you gain with free booking links:

More direct bookings: Guests find your hotel and book directly without going through an OTA.
Zero commission: You’re not sharing a chunk of your revenue with a third party.
Better guest ownership: Direct bookings mean you control the communication, the upsells, and the experience.

And no, you don’t need a massive marketing budget. Just the right setup.

How Do Free Booking Links Actually Work?

Google aggregates hotel pricing from various sources including OTAs and your own website. Free booking links show up underneath paid ads, marked as "Official Site" if configured properly.

To qualify, your hotel needs to:

Be listed on Google Business Profile
Have a booking engine that integrates with Google’s Hotel Center (Simplotel does!)
Share real-time rates and availability

That’s it. Once this is done, your hotel’s direct booking link becomes visible on Google Search, Maps, and Travel. And every time a traveller clicks it? You pay nothing.

Who Can Use Free Booking Links?

Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to be a global chain or tech wizard. Here’s who can benefit:

Independent hotels looking to cut dependency on OTAs
Boutique stays that want to own their guest experience
Resorts & lodges in tourist-heavy destinations
Even budget hotels aiming to improve margins

In fact, Google has levelled the playing field with this feature. Whether you're in a metro city or a mountain town, free booking links let you compete with the big guys.

What Do You Need to Get Started?

Setting it up can sound technical, but it boils down to:

Google Business Profile:This is where your hotel details live on Google.
A Google-approved Booking Engine: Your rates need to be shared with Google through a partner. (Simplotel is one!)
Rate & Availability Feed:A real-time feed that updates Google with your pricing.
A Decent Website:Because what’s the point of a booking link if your site can’t convert?

You’ll need to work with your tech provider or a Google partner to get this configured. But once it's done, it's set-and-forget.

Common Myths Around Free Booking Links (Busted!)

Let’s address a few myths we hear all the time:

“They don’t drive bookings.”Actually, hotels using them have seen up to a 30% boost in direct traffic.
“Only large hotels can get listed.”Nope. If your booking engine supports the integration, size doesn’t matter.
“They’re not visible enough.”Guests look for the best deal. And when they see “Official Site – Best Rate,” they’re clicking it.

The only catch? You have to be present for them to choose you.

Best Practices to Make Free Booking Links Work

Having the link is great. Making it work harder for you is even better. Here’s how:

Highlight 'Best Rate Guarantee':Make sure your direct rate is as good or better than OTAs. If not, they’ll win the click.
Mobile-optimised Website:Most searches happen on mobile. A clunky site = a lost booking.
Fast Load Time:Every second counts. Google even ranks you higher for speed.
Clear CTAs:Make your ‘Book Now’ button obvious and easy to find.
Track with UTM Parameters:So you know exactly how much traffic and bookings you're getting from these links.

So… Are You Still Paying When You Shouldn’t Be?

The world of hotel tech is full of expensive tools and confusing platforms. But free booking links are the rare unicorn, high impact, zero cost.

If you're still paying for visibility you could get for free, it’s time to rethink your distribution strategy.

If you’re struggling to set up free booking links for your hotel, Simplotel is here to help. We’ve helped hundreds of hoteliers unlock more direct traffic and simplify their digital journey.

Just contact us here and we’ll walk you through it.