Best Practices
Posted By leonardo

Why Hotels Should List Area Attractions on Their Website (And 5 Tips to Do It Right) 


Your hotel website isn’t a digital brochure. It’s your front door online and your chance to show off everything that makes your hotel unique. And one of those things is your specific location and nearby local attractions. Establish yourself as an expert at having an amazing time in your destination. Showcase area attractions on your hotel’s website to enhance the guest experience, boost direct bookings, drive additional revenue and strengthen your relationships with local businesses. Here’s why it matters—and five tips to do it effectively. 

Why Highlight Local Attractions on Your Hotel Website? 

  • Enhance Guest Experience – Guests appreciate insider tips on what to see and do during their stay, making their trip more enjoyable and hassle-free. Establish yourself as a local expert by providing specific, curated advice based oin your brand voice. If your hotel caters to younger leisure travelers, you could provide a list of nearby places to eat and drink that stand out. If you want to attract family groups, provide guides to kid-friendly attractions, with the option to easily pre-book planned activities.  
     
  • Improve SEO and Visibility – Search engines favor content-rich websites with relevant keywords, backlinks, and engaging resources. Increasing the number of other websites that link to your website, also known as backlinks, can help your search visibility. One of the best ways to get more links to your website is to link those partners yourself and ask that they link back to you—and a list of area attractions is a great place to start.
     
  • Increase Direct Bookings –Showing off your knowledge of your area helps establish trust. You’re positioning yourself as an expert that’s tuned into local goings on and the best things to do. When travelers find all the information they need on your website, including curated advice and ways to have fun, they’re more likely to book directly instead of using third-party platforms.  
  • Drive Ancillary Revenue – Ancillary revenue is a great way to increase your profit per guest, or Revenue Per Available Guest (RevPAG). This is any revenue outside the room booking, such as additional services or on-site amenities like F&B, wellness, and so on. You can build a specific package offering related to a local stay into your booking engine, or integrate a third-party tour operator to your website that provides you a portion of the revenue, such as TourDesk.
     
  • Encourage Longer Stays – Guests may extend their trip when they discover unique attractions or experiences near your hotel. This is also why it’s key to link out to easily bookable attractions and tours near your hotel right on your website. Make yourself the one-stop-shop for travel planning and guests will want to stay longer and spend more!   
  • Support Local Partnerships – Collaborating with local attractions, restaurants, and tour operators strengthens community ties and opens the door for cross-promotions. This is essential to any hotel, and especially hotels looking to increase group blocks. Encouraging guests to visit and experience local businesses will make them more likely to list you as a preferred partner for group travel.
     

5 Tips to Showcase Local Attractions Effectively 

Now that we understand why your hotel website should be showing local attractions, let’s discuss how to do it right. A boring list and how far they are away from your hotel is not enough! 

1. Create a Dedicated Attractions Page

Dedicate a section of your website to showcasing nearby attractions, organized by category—museums, parks, restaurants, entertainment, and more. Having a dedicated page, or specific pages per attraction, allows you to optimize for transactional keywords like hotel near (attraction)! Provide descriptions, high-quality images, and relevant details like opening hours and pricing. Include insider tips, relevant recommendations using the unique perspective that only your hotel can provide.  

For local restaurants, consider recommending a famous item from their menu. Sending people to a nearby shopping district? Cite your favorite shops and the unique souvenirs guests can get there. Make it personalized and relevant to your target traveler.

2. Use Backlinks to Boost SEO & Engagement

Include backlinks to the official websites of featured attractions. This not only provides guests with up-to-date information but also improves your site’s SEO ranking. Consider reciprocal links with local businesses for added exposure. 

Creating an attraction page has lots of SEO benefits when done correctly. Optimize for transactional, relevant keywords that your competitors may have missed, and provide links to other businesses that should in turn link to your site. Follow SEO best practices or trust the experts to do so.  

3. Partner with Local Businesses for Exclusive Deals

Forge partnerships with local attractions and restaurants to offer exclusive discounts or packages for your guests. Promote these deals on your website and encourage cross-promotions with your partners. 

Local partnerships are essential to increasing group bookings for seasonal events, weddings, conferences, and so on. Listing these attractions on your website is a great way to showcase that you’re an active member of your community, and even better if you can offer a relevant, bookable deal. 

4. Integrate TourDesk for Seamless Bookings

Enhance guest convenience by linking directly to local tours and activities through a solution like TourDesk. This integration allows visitors to browse and book experiences without leaving your website, creating a frictionless user experience. It also generates additional revenue for your hotel at no additional cost, as you receive a share of any tours booked through your website. This solution is provided as part of every Leonardo website package.  

Having this listed on your website as an offering increases your service level to guests, providing a concierge experience without additional effort on your staff’s behalf.

5. Keep Content Fresh & Engaging

Regularly update your attractions page with seasonal information, new openings, and trending activities. Ensure that any information you’re providing, such as opening hours, pricing, or insider tips are relevant and accurate.  

Consider interactive elements to keep the content engaging, such as a map that showcases your amazing location or a recommended itinerary for guests to get the most out of their visit.  

What to do next 

A well-crafted attractions page does more than just inform—it inspires. Showcase the best of your destination, integrating helpful tools like TourDesk, and foster local partnerships. All of these strategies will make your website more engaging and valuable for guests. In turn, this drives bookings, enhances guest satisfaction, and strengthens your hotel’s presence as a trusted local resource. 

Ready to enhance your website with local attractions? Start implementing these tips today and watch the benefits roll in. Or, work with a trusted expert like Leonardo. We have a proven track record of building high-performing websites. We leverage search engine optimization best practices to get your website seen by more travel shoppers. Learn more, see pricing and our portfolio.