Artificial intelligence has moved from the periphery of travel planning to its very core. The travel experience begins long before booking, and travelers are increasingly turning to generative AI for an enhanced search experience. These tools quickly summarize vast amounts of information into highly personalized recommendations. Their conversational interface makes both discovering and learning about a new dream destination simple and engaging. As a result, the way hotels appear in AI-generated recommendations has become a pivotal factor in how travelers choose where to go and where to stay.
However, much like a travel agent, these AI tools can only recommend hotels that they can find information on. Consider a traveler asking an AI assistant, “What’s a fabulous beach town in Spain with boutique hotels? The response will be generated using details that it can find from all over the web—as long as the content is readable for AI. If your content is unclear, outdated, or inconsistent, the AI-generated response will lack quality information, and travelers may remain unaware of your hotel’s features or even its existence entirely.
As conversational search is driving discovery, being visible in those AI responses is essential to land more bookings.
It’s time to start asking: will your property show up in AI search?
Enhancing GEO and SEO
While there’s no crystal ball to see exactly how the algorithm behind these models will continue to evolve, there are ways to ensure your brand is present in the conversation. Generative Engine Optimization, generally known as GEO, refers to the strategies that help ensure your brand is meaningfully referenced in AI-generated recommendations, driving bookings and getting heads in beds.
The good news for hoteliers is that many of the traditional SEO practices already in place, including regular content updates and strategic keyword usage, also significantly benefit GEO. Both forms of search depend on structured and authoritative content to generate responses.
Marketing and PR teams should partner with trusted media solutions providers to assess and then improve their GEO, ensuring they reach travelers who are looking for their next visit. Working with an external partner brings an objective perspective, making it easier to identify gaps, discover opportunities, and refine a GEO strategy that builds on existing SEO tactics, following four basic steps.
Four key steps to improve GEO
1. Audit your hotel presence
A comprehensive GEO audit is a great starting point for understanding how your property or destination currently appears across major AI platforms. Assessing the sources AI pulls from and benchmarking against competitors offers insight into where your organization may be missing opportunities. Once this data is mapped out, you can take informed, strategic actions to improve discoverability.
2. Optimize your website
Much like consumers, AI will use brand websites as a key source of information. AI models prioritize content that is recent, factual, and written in narrative-rich language that answers real traveler questions. Fixing redirects and broken links ensures that AI can navigate the site, and including structured data like FAQ-style content can be particularly impactful, as it reflects the conversational structure of queries that travelers now pose to AI tools.
3. Use trusted media
AI often relies on reputable, in-depth third-party sources when generating its responses. Being mentioned in editorial travel guides, in-depth features, respected blogs, and traditional media increases the likelihood that AI will reference your brand. Therefore, having a sustained media presence reinforces your relevance and credibility to chatbots.
4. Monitor and adapt
GEO is not a short-term project. AI models are constantly changing, and trip-planning is adapting along with them. For this reason, maintaining oversight of how your brand appears in AI-generated content is a crucial element of success. Keeping content updated while continuously monitoring and adjusting your GEO strategy ensures sustained visibility and relevance.
Staying Discoverable as Search Continues to Evolve
Search is undergoing its biggest transformation since the creation of the modern Search Engine. For travelers, AI is enabling a seamless planning experience, with comprehensive results that help take the stress out of organizing a trip. For hoteliers and destinations, AI offers a powerful new channel for inspiring visitors and converting interest into bookings
To take full advantage of this transformation, travel providers should work with the right technology partners and search experts to help position their brands in this changing landscape. Ensuring your content is picked up by AI engines will place your property top of mind for travelers and influence their booking decisions. The question for every destination, property, and airline marketing team is clear: as AI shapes the itinerary, will your brand make the list?
