A traveller looking for accommodation compares several places before booking: price, photos, location… and reviews. On booking platforms as on Google, the rating and the way the host replies often make the difference. For hotels, holiday rentals and B&Bs, the Google profile has an extra advantage: it can lead straight to a booking on your own website, with no commission.
This guide covers what is specific to accommodation.
Why Google matters so much for accommodation
Many hosts focus their efforts on booking platforms. Yet Google is often the first point of contact: a traveller types the name of the town, “holiday cottage with pool” or the name of your property, and lands on your profile. If it is complete and reassuring, they click through to your website or call you: that is a direct booking, with no commission. If it is empty or poorly rated, they go back to the platform… or to a competitor.
What travellers look at in reviews
Accommodation reviews are often long and detailed. The most frequent themes:
- cleanliness, the number one criterion;
- bedding and quiet;
- welcome and the host’s availability;
- accuracy between the listing and reality;
- amenities: pool, Wi-Fi, parking, kitchen;
- location and nearby activities;
- value for money.
“Accuracy” is crucial: an amenity advertised but unavailable, an overly flattering photo, and a negative review is guaranteed. Your profile must faithfully reflect reality.
Replying to reviews: hospitality continues online
Your reply to a review is read by every future traveller. It extends your welcome:
- thank guests personally, picking up on a detail of their stay (“delighted you enjoyed the hike to the lake”);
- when facing criticism, acknowledge how they felt, explain what has been done and invite them to come back;
- never publicly dispute a guest’s word, even an unfair one: a calm tone reassures more than the best argument.
Our method to reply to a negative review fully applies, with particular attention to cleanliness and accuracy, which directly affect trust.
Getting reviews after the stay
The right moment to ask for a review is the end of the stay: at check-out, when the guest thanks you, or in the thank-you message sent the next day. A QR code in the welcome booklet or near the exit, a direct link in your message, a simple sentence: “if you enjoyed your stay, a review helps us a lot”. The usual rules apply: no incentive, no filtering of guests. See our guide to getting more Google reviews.
An accommodation profile has its own rules
For accommodation, Google works differently. Google’s help on managing your hotel information details these specifics. The main one: the property description is written by Google, not by you. It is your amenities, your photos and your reviews that feed it.
Hence the importance of filling in your amenities precisely (pool, spa, Wi-Fi, parking, pets, breakfast, accessibility, check-in and check-out times), specifying those that depend on the season. We devote a full article to it: filling in your accommodation’s amenities properly.
Seasonality: prepare your profile before the season
Many properties live to the rhythm of the seasons. Before each season:
- update your opening hours and opening periods;
- add recent photos (pool open, garden in bloom, end-of-year decorations);
- publish Google posts about events and activities in the area;
- check that your seasonal amenities are marked as such.
Our article on preparing for the tourist season details this calendar.
A concrete example
An estate with three holiday cottages received most of its bookings through a platform, with a significant commission. Its Google profile had 30 reviews and little information. The owner completed the amenities, added around twenty recent photos, replied to every review and systematically invited guests to leave a review at check-out. Within one season, the profile passed 120 reviews, and the share of direct bookings, coming from Google to the website, rose markedly.
Mistakes to avoid
- advertising amenities you no longer have, or without specifying their seasonality;
- replying defensively to criticism about cleanliness;
- leaving outdated reception hours or opening dates;
- forgetting the link to your booking website on the profile;
- only asking for reviews on platforms, never on Google.
How Replik helps accommodation providers
Replik replies to your reviews in your tone, picking up on the details of the stay, and alerts you to every new review. For accommodation, profile management includes accommodation amenities, with a button that spots in your reviews and on your website the amenities to declare. You also follow your Google insights (views, website clicks, calls) to measure your potential direct bookings. See also Replik for hotels and restaurants.
Frequently asked questions
Should I reply to Google reviews if I already reply on the platforms? Yes. These are different audiences, and travellers looking at Google see your replies on Google, not elsewhere.
A guest complains about broken equipment during their stay: what should I reply? Acknowledge the inconvenience, explain the repair carried out and, if relevant, the gesture offered on site. Future travellers mainly remember how responsive you were.
Can you ask for a review in the welcome booklet? Yes, with a QR code and a simple sentence, without any incentive. It is one of the most effective methods for a holiday rental or a B&B.
In short
For accommodation, the Google profile is a gateway to direct bookings. Make sure your profile matches reality, fill in your amenities precisely, ask for a review at every check-out, reply to all of them in a spirit of hospitality, and prepare your profile before each season. Start with the free audit of your profile.