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The way people search for vacations and hotels is fundamentally changing. Instead of entering keywords into Google’s search bar, travelers now submit detailed prompts to AI assistants.

Recent studies show that AI-driven assistants such as ChatGPT are rapidly becoming the starting point for online search behavior:

  • AI-based search in 2025 has reached nearly 8%, compared to less than 1% at the start of 2024. ChatGPT dominates the space with over 78% of all AI search traffic.

  • ChatGPT processes an estimated 1 billion search prompts per day, with daily query volume growing faster than traditional search engines.

  • According to McKinsey, half of all consumers now use AI assistants for information gathering, especially during the research phase of travel, retail, and tech purchases. They expect AI platforms to influence $750 billion in consumer spending by 2028.

  • Reuters Institute reports that weekly usage of AI tools (like ChatGPT) doubled from 18% to 34% globally in one year.

  • Google’s market share fell below 90% for the first time, and click-through rates dropped sharply whenever AI overviews were shown in search results.

  • MMGY Travel Intelligence states that 42% of American travelers now use AI tools when planning their trips.

For hotels and resorts, this means you are no longer competing for the top position in Google — you are competing for a place in the AI-generated answer.
Content is still essential for visibility, but the way you optimize that content has changed significantly.

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is the process of structuring your content so that Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT or Google Gemini can recognize, interpret, and integrate it into their answers. For hotels, this presents both a challenge and an opportunity: your content must inspire with rich visuals and storytelling while also being factual, practical, and detailed about rooms, facilities, and location.

Below we explore how hotels can make their content AI-friendly. Three criteria matter most:

  1. relevance

  2. quality

  3. AI-friendliness

What Is Relevant Hotel Content?

Relevance means that your content directly answers the questions travelers are likely to ask. While technology shifts, traveler interests remain relatively stable.

What has changed is search behavior. Instead of short terms like “hotel Amsterdam center”, people now ask:

“What are family-friendly hotels in Amsterdam with parking, EV charging, breakfast included, and within walking distance of the Rijksmuseum?”

AI systems typically break such prompts into smaller sub-questions. Content that explicitly answers these sub-questions stands a strong chance of being included in AI-generated results.

To identify traveler interests, you can still use Google Keyword Planner. While it focuses on classic search queries, it still reveals underlying information needs.
  • Common information categories relevant for hotel SEO/GEO:People searching for your hotel name — you must remain the primary source (not an OTA).

  • Geographic searches, such as “hotel in Sydney” or more specific variants like “hotel near Kensington Gardens London.”

  • Facility-driven searches, especially combined with destinations:
    “resort in Gran Canaria with a water park” or “hotel in central Berlin with private parking.”

  • Event-driven searches:
    “hotel near Lady Gaga concert Barcelona”
    “stay during Albuquerque International Balloon Festival.”

Writing content around these scenarios boosts your chances of being featured in AI answers.

How Does an AI Decide Which Hotel to Recommend?

You are not the only hotel trying to rank in ChatGPT or Google’s AI mode. Competition is fierce. Key strategies include:

  • Create unique content. LLMs prefer original, detailed, and information-rich content.

  • Ensure consistency. Conflicting information across your website, OTAs, and profiles harms credibility.

  • Build authority. Use reviews, travel magazine mentions, backlinks, and partnerships.

  • Stay up to date. Outdated content lowers your chances of being selected.

These principles align with Google’s E-E-A-T framework: Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness — guidelines increasingly used by AI systems to decide which sources to cite

How to Structure Hotel Content for LLMs

Even high-quality content will be ignored if the structure is poor. AI systems rely heavily on readable formatting.

Key recommendations:

  • Write with the question in mind. Each paragraph should answer one clear traveler question.

  • Make your content “chunkable.” Use short paragraphs, headings, and bullet points so AI can extract relevant fragments.

  • Use FAQs. Questions like “Is breakfast included?” or “Is there a shuttle to the airport?” work exceptionally well for LLMs.

  • Implement structured data. Use schema.org/Hotel so AI systems can technically parse your content.

  • Account for pricing & availability. LLMs increasingly show real-time hotel pricing via metasearch feeds (e.g., Google Hotel Ads). Make sure your feeds are correctly connected and up to date.

How to Get Started with GEO Today

To become discoverable in ChatGPT or Google AI mode:

  • Enrich your website content with detailed information and FAQs

  • Optimize both visible content and structured data.

  • Build authority through reviews and external mentions.

  • Ensure information is consistent across platforms.

  • Connect your real-time pricing and availability to metasearches like Google Hotel Ads.

Hotels that invest now in structured, reliable, and relevant content will gain visibility in a world where AI increasingly determines who gets booked.