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Last week, Google announced a new beta search tool named Google Hotel Finder.
As I explained at Search Engine Land, the search features include Location Filters (with drawing shapes, dates for your stay, price point filters and hotel ratings & user rating filters.
Of course, webmasters who run hotel sites are not too happy. If this catches on, you can bet these hotel listings will be listed above the competition in the future. I am sure Google will be very careful how they do it, but typically, Google properties rank above non-Google properties - see latest report on that.
Anyway, here are the features:
Here is a screen shot of the side bar:
Once you type in a location, you can then position the map with your clicker and draw lines around the specific location you want to stay. Google will then show you hotels in that area.
Clicking on the hotel icons on the map will show you more details about the hotel. You can then book the hotel or add it to your shortlist:
Booking a hotel is driven by Google Hotel Ads:
If you are unsure, just add it to your shortlist and you can compare the hotels on your list. Google also shows you if the price the hotel is currently offering is a good price based on the average prices the hotel charges throughout the year.
Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld & Google Web Search Help.
Comments:
PHP Developers India
08/02/2011 05:42 am
Google is doing changes to make it more visitor friendly, they keep doing changes so that the visitors get what they are looking for without going to other sites. The shopping option, maps and now this hotel search option - this will definitely help the visitors.
Ramy Ghaly
08/04/2011 12:48 pm
Bing has the first hand in the travel and hotel search area - lets see how Google play out this new feature.
James Arnold
02/01/2012 08:45 pm
Google hotel finder is evolving into an impressive product. It seems like there is suddenly a wealth of hotel search engine growth and innovation. HipMunk are making a funky UI, and HotelSweep are going direct like RoomKey but using information extraction to cover all hotels not just partners.