Thanks to available consumer AI tools, online purchasing decisions are being made faster than ever. Customers can input their exact travel plans or sought-after experiences and within seconds, Google's Gemini or ChatGPT will return a customized list based on the customer's specific inquiry.
If you're missing any of the below local SEO optimizations, you might not end up on any of those lists let alone the Google Local Pack even if you offer the exact specifics for which the customer was searching.
If your live rates aren't showing, you’re invisible to budget-conscious planners. If your attributes are stale or out of date, you’re losing guests who need specific amenities. If your photos lack that captivating, high-res "wow" factor, users will scroll right past you to the closest competitor. And in an era where sustainability is a top-three booking question, missing an Eco-Certified badge is like leaving money on the table.
Managing these four pillars—Attributes, Photos, Live Rates, and Badges—can flip the switch from "Vacancy" to "No Vacancy".
In this guide, we’ll break down how to optimize each of these features to dominate local search and explain why a centralized management strategy is the only way to keep your data from expiring and fizzling out of relevance.
Each specific Google category includes certain relevant attributes to be included on your listing which provides additional, highlighted information on behalf of searchers who may be looking to book their stay depending on specific amenities. Lodging is a Google category that contains many additional attributes for qualifying locations.
Please know that Google defines lodging locations as businesses that can answer “yes” to the following questions:
If you answer “no” to any of these questions, your business is more likely categorized as a vacation rental or outdoor lodging. Additionally, different kinds of lodging categories and their specific offerings such as inns, resorts, or extended-stay hotels, can be found here.
That said, for locations that do fall into the “lodging” category, Google provides about 163 specific attributes available only for these kinds of listings. These include, but are not limited to:
These attributes can then be strengthened and even verified through user generated content including reviews and photos. Google's Gemini AI model will pull repeated mentions of certain amenities or common topics from sourced user reviews into a section shown below the star ratings on mobile and occasionally on desktop summaries they call “Place Topics”.
Place Topics and their clickable keyword tags are only created when your listing has a number of reviews with detailed comments mentioning the same topic. The number of reviews required for a place topic varies and is unknown as of 2026, although it likely depends on the average review volume of the listing. That said, without a catalogue of reviews mentioning specific attributes, your manually added attributes will need to do the heavy lifting.
For example, if you want the "Great Service" highlight, you’ll need a review management strategy that encourages that kind of specific feedback. (Hint: LocalClarity’s Review Response templates can help with that).
That said, these elements require monitoring. If an upset review from years ago is anchoring a topic like "Dirty Carpets" or "Old Elevators," it’s because Google hasn't seen enough high-quality, modern data to bump it out of the featured place topics. In these cases, you’ll need to outperform the old complaints by gaining an influx of new, positive reviews through service that organically inspires reviews or through review solicitation.
Attributes become even more important when we look at users’ intent and how their search intent is often driven by the want for certain amenities, experiences, or proximity to a specific location or event. These experiential desires drive customer spending patterns so to ignore them would be a financial loss.
As an example, this means that instead of writing that you are a "Hotel in [City]", it would be more beneficial to use more specific, experience-based local terms such as "Quiet boutique hotel near [Specific Landmark]".
Additional examples include:
To expand the reach of this experiential language, you could even create specific landing pages or sub-sections of your website for nearby landmarks, major local events, or amenities your lodging is known for or is especially proud to display.
In 2026, Google’s AI (Gemini) doesn’t just look for keywords; it looks for solutions. Guests are no longer just searching for a place to sleep—they are searching for a specific vibe or a solution to a travel problem. AI Overviews prioritize long-tail queries and because of this, it’s best to optimize for "Amenities + Activity". Said another way, ensure your content answers questions like, "Where is the best pet-friendly hotel with EV charging in [Neighborhood]?"
Since these attributes can be the difference between staying booked and being vacant, even if you don’t create specific landing pages, you can and should highlight your specific offerings or amenities to give your business a competitive edge and stay relevant to search engines.
In terms of listing photos, Google effectively scans the content of both user and brand photos in order to validate your listed attributes. Should your photos appear to be outdated, generic stock photos, or not match your listed attributes, Google’s AI search can push you listing down the rankings, instead giving preference to listings with visuals that confirm their attributes.
If your photos are several years old or look like generic stock images, Google’s AI may push your listing down in favor of properties with "Verified Visuals” or photos that confirm the attributes you include on your listing(s). They do this by effectively reading your images using advanced AI and machine learning, sometimes even referring to the photo’s file name itself (ex. outdoor-pool.jpeg), to determine if they align with your listed offerings.
As of July 30, 2025, Google has retired the ability to self-report hotel rates for your listings. They retired this function because, due to its manual nature, these rates were not always updated or accurate.
Going forward, in order to have live hotel rates presented alongside your Google listing, you will need to partner with a Google-certified partner such as a central reservation system, Internet booking engine or other partner. They act as the bridge that sends your rates and availability to Google in real-time, ensuring accurate pricing without manual updates.
Luckily, most common booking sites and engines have this ability allowing you to simply partner further with the engine or site you already use, although you may need to adjust your plan with them to include this price reporting element. You can verify if your current partner is certified using this link.
Going through this certified partner will also ensure that your Google listing displays the “Official Website” badge directly on your listing for searchers to see. This provides an additional level of trust to your guests and will give you more visibility within the Google Hotel Finder or search results than hotels without this official badge.
All of the above information attached to your business’ listing can feed into the direct presentation to searchers. This is especially true in how attributes, photos, and live rates can impact the badges available to display on your listing.
As of May 2026, these potential badges are:
By utilizing the possible optimizations techniques outlined above, you ensure that you won’t leave any money, or customers, on the table. Customers that are more aware of your complete offerings feel more excited and justified about their decision to choose your business.
These optimizations across multi-location businesses become even more crucial to maintain as your entity works to establish and preserve a united brand identity across all locations. A centralized management strategy for these data points is the only way to keep your data fresh, accurate, and enticing to your customers.
