Hotel Web Design: 6 Examples That Inspire Guests to Book

Many things that are true throughout all areas of life and business are also true about hotel web design. Like with any other industry, the goal of a hotel chain is to sell a service or product. And, with most other things in life, it’s critical to make an excellent first impression.

When a potential guest comes to your hotel’s website, there are a number of questions they are looking to answer: Where is your hotel located? What do your rooms look like? How much is a room per night?

Hotel web design means optimizing your site both visually and navigationally. You want to draw your reader in while delivering a smooth and organized experience that allows them to find what they need quickly and easily.

Inspiring your guests to book with your hotel over another is about more than just covering your bases. You need to go above and beyond to capture their attention and convince them that you’re the best hotel option for their needs.

You can hit your booking goals by drawing inspiration from some of the most visually captivating hotel sites to drive web traffic and increase engagement.

Basic Website Elements

Before we get into the great examples of hotel website design, let’s explore features about the top websites that users like to see.

Easy Navigation

A cluttered, complicated website will drive readers away, but a structured, organized platform is appealing and user-friendly. By arranging your site’s pages in a clear and smart way, you can ensure a stress-free experience that will lead your readers right where they need to go.

A site visitor shouldn’t have to work hard to navigate through a website. The fact of that matter is that the website was made specifically for them: the consumer. You may like the way you’ve set up your site, but if the organization isn’t there, your opinion doesn’t really matter.

Fancy animations, tons of drop-down menus, and hidden toolbars might look kind of cool, but they make it harder for visitors to find what they’re looking for.

Furthermore, a well-structured website can actually boost your SEO. It lets search engines like Google better identify and index your site so people can search and find your hotel and the packages you offer.

Good Speeds

Nothing is more frustrating than clicking on a website that takes forever to load. Speed goes beyond quality internet providers, and there are actually things you can do to make sure your website is as fast as possible.

For example, if you have optimized images, your website will load faster.

Obtaining good speeds for your website has to do with a lot of different factors, such as the widgets, images, and add-ons you use and the website builder you’ve chosen. Other things, like videos that play automatically or a built-in live chat feature, can impact your speeds.

Users are smart; if they click a website that isn’t loading correctly or quickly, they will simply hit the ‘back’ button and try a different site.

Quality Content and Readability

People love to scan articles. And on top of that, most successful websites have a readability level at about 8th or 9th grade.

That’s not to say that your customer base isn’t intelligent enough to read at a higher level – that’s just not what they’re here for. They can cozy up with a novel during their free time, but right now, they want to get information as quickly and efficiently as possible.

Quality content is original, readable, well-organized, and to the point. And in order to improve scannability, it’s best to write in short sentences with small paragraphs. Stick to three to five lines per paragraph. Also, try to include one main idea for each topic. Outline your pages with subheadings to break up the content.

Your content is also where you can include keywords for SEO. Some websites like to completely flood their pages with keywords; however, that’s not actually the best way to get recognized by search engines.

Include keywords, but don’t overdo it. Three to five main keywords per page is sufficient, with secondary keywords appearing only once or twice.

Essential information like room sizes, availability, and pricing shouldn’t be hidden deep in an article several clicks into the website. Make sure this information is readily available and easy to find.

Images and Videos

In a time crunch, a website user is much more likely to watch a quick video for answers than to read a full article. Likewise, pictures can make or break their experience.

Since most people judge a new website based on appearance first, high-quality pictures and videos are an excellent way to boost your appeal.

No one wants to book a hotel without seeing it first. Explicit photos of rooms, the facility, and the property are the best way to entice and inspire potential guests. Use photos to show off anything that sets your hotel apart, like a beautiful oceanfront view or an outdoor pool and spa.

Scrolling pictures right on the landing page are perfect for capturing the attention of your site visitors. They can immediately see what your hotel looks like and decide if they’re interested before browsing the rest of your site.

Call to Action

A hotel website host should do everything in their power to secure a booking from a site visitor. One of the best ways to accomplish this is to have a constant call to action with a booking link.

Your design might be beautiful and captivating, but if it’s not made clear where a client can book, they can easily become frustrated or discouraged from choosing your hotel. Use a simple and clear ‘book now’ button to let guests know exactly where to click.

6 Hotel Web Designs We Love

Inspiration is all around us – we just have to look for it. Fortunately, we searched the web and found some of the most beautiful and inspiring design examples for you to check out for your own ideas.

1. Clos Canarelli 

Clos Canarelli’s villas and winery boasts an elegant and captivating design that immediately invites site visitors with a gorgeous landscape header and an intuitive homepage. The menu is simple and organized, leading every guest exactly where they need to go.

The site opens with a brief history of the estate, adding extra appeal to visitors from around the world.

As users scroll through the pages, subtle animations create a responsive design, setting the site apart from others. Helpful links are dispersed throughout the pages to answer user questions.

At the bottom of the landing page, there’s a convenient slideshow featuring images of the various villas available for booking. For each picture, you can choose to read more about what you’re seeing.

We love this site because it combines simplicity with modernized tools to give users an innovative and interactive experience for a beautiful location.

2. Cheval Blanc

The web design does an excellent job of showcasing a hotel chain with various locations, starting with Cheval Blanc’s header greeting you immediately on the landing page. Simply scroll over each location name to see a gorgeous image displayed in the background.

Aside from a fantastic first impression, this hotel’s website features short blurbs throughout the pages with descriptive headings, making it easy for users to navigate and scan for information. All the while, breathtaking and helpful photos are placed strategically along the margins to break up the text.

No matter where you scroll or click through the site, there’s an anchored menu at the bottom. It blends in nicely with the design so as not to distract the reader, but it also ensures you have constant access to the booking portion of the site.

Another drop-down menu sits unobtrusively at the top of the site so you can explore the various locations and read more about the corporation.

3. Constance Hotels & Resorts

Constance Hotels and Resorts takes on a traditional approach to menu items, listing various pages horizontally across the top bar of the page. This kind of navigation is perfect for letting site visitors know upfront where they can find information.

However, the more your scroll, the more modern the design becomes.

The site is visually appealing, featuring large, colorful photos of beaches, restaurants, bars, and more. A short integrated video at the top of the homepage leads guests through the hotel and resort’s beautiful sites, various locations, and enticing accommodations.

Through the well-organized drop-down menu, you can easily find specific hotels and resorts, available experiences, and exclusive offers like event planning.

4. Little Palm Island

Upon loading the homepage, website visitors get a glimpse of paradise with a beautiful beach photo and a short and exciting description of the resort and spa.

What’s unique and helpful about this website’s design is that one of the very first things you see is a camera icon linked to a photo gallery. When choosing a hotel, resort, or spa, many guests like to know how the place looks and the quality of the architecture.

The photo gallery is easy to access and is well organized, allowing you to jump from rooms to dining to spas in just a click.

Scrolling through the homepage, you see several eye-catching images with strong headings and short paragraphs describing the various features. Each heading adds an enticing element, directly followed by some examples of trip packages the resort offers.

Anchored to the bottom of the page throughout the entire website is the ‘book now’ button along with a link to a phone number and a map. Additionally, as you scroll down to the bottom of the page, you’ll find the resort’s address, it’s hotel and room reservations phone numbers, and a series of awards the company has earned.

5. Babington House

The Babington House website certainly entices visitors from the start with a magnificent image that makes you feel like you’re already there. The bright, high-quality shot of the property is inviting with a subtle yet visible menu across the top.

Right away, you see three things: a gorgeous image of the location, the ‘book now’ button, and a menu item for ‘important information.’ All of these elements tie together to make potential guests comfortable and confident that they will find what they need here.

Scrolling downward, the site gives viewers a close look at what the property includes. Not only can you scroll across to see various elements of the destination, but you can click below each photo to learn more about that particular feature.

The short descriptions are certainly succinct enough to scan quickly, while still getting a full picture of the hotel’s offerings.

The very bottom of the homepages features stories and blog posts about the surrounding area, locals, and history, but you can find everything you need on the menu anchored to the top of the page.

There’s not a lot of bells and whistles with this design, but its simplicity and user-friendliness go above and beyond to showcase everything a potential guest needs to know.

6. Elivi Hotels 

Some hotel websites put an emphasis on simplicity, while others make their mark with an appealing color scheme that really goes all-out. Elivi Hotels employs the latter, with a touch of the former.

The site opens up to a dynamic sky-high image looking over the Greecian island and the resort. The color scheme draws from the natural colors presented in this image and uses them throughout the site, giving it a unified and pleasant appearance.

Of course, you immediately see the call to action located at the top right corner in bold letters. As you scroll down, you’re presented with soft images in the pale and pretty color scheme. Right away, you can find a link for the resort’s accommodations, which is highly convenient.

Just beyond that, there’s actually an availability checker that allows you to input basic information such as desired dates and number of guests. This feature is useful because potential customers can check their dates before dreaming through the rest of the site.

A minor yet noticeable feature that this website has is a customized mouse icon. It’s a small detail, but it does add to the overall design and gives the site a unique touch.

It’s All About Design

Nowadays, if your hotel doesn’t have a website, you’re essentially out of the game. Online booking is the most prevalent way to plan a vacation and secure a spot in a resort. Very few people want to plan a luxurious vacation without actually seeing the place in which they are staying.

Use the examples above to compile thoughts, ideas, and inspiration for your hotel web design. Remember: first impressions are everything, and the user experience should be simple, easy, and quick.