Why Hotels Should Embrace Virtual Tours: The Benefits of Bringing Your Accommodation to Life



Virtual tours are a powerful marketing tool that can help hotels showcase their accommodations in a way that traditional photography cannot. With a virtual tour, potential guests can experience a hotel room or resort from the comfort of their own home. This can be especially useful for travelers who are unable to visit a hotel in person before booking their stay.

A virtual tour allows guests to explore the hotel room or resort at their own pace, giving them a sense of the space and layout. They can see exactly what the room looks like from every angle and get a better sense of the amenities and features of the hotel.

Benefits of Virtual Tours for Hotels

There are numerous benefits to using virtual tours as a marketing tool for hotels. One of the primary benefits is that virtual tours can increase bookings. When potential guests can see a hotel room or resort in detail, they are more likely to book their stay. Virtual tours can also reduce the number of inquiries from potential guests who want more information about a hotel's accommodations. By providing a virtual tour, hotels can answer many of these questions before they even arise.

Virtual tours can also help hotels differentiate themselves from their competitors. With so many hotels to choose from, it can be difficult for guests to decide where to stay. A virtual tour can give a hotel an edge over its competitors by providing potential guests with a more immersive and engaging experience.

Virtual Tours vs. Traditional Photography

While traditional photography can be useful for showcasing hotel accommodations, it has its limitations. With traditional photography, potential guests can only see a single image of a hotel room or resort. They cannot see the space from different angles or get a sense of the layout. Virtual tours, on the other hand, provide a more immersive experience. Guests can move through the space and explore every corner of the room or resort.

Another advantage of virtual tours over traditional photography is that they can be easily updated. If a hotel undergoes renovations or makes changes to its accommodations, a virtual tour can be updated to reflect these changes. With traditional photography, hotels would need to re-shoot all of their images, which can be time-consuming and expensive.

How Virtual Tours Can Showcase Resort Accommodations

One of the best ways to use virtual tours for hotel marketing is to showcase resort accommodations. A virtual tour can take potential guests on a journey through the resort, highlighting the amenities and features that make the resort unique. For example, a virtual tour of a beach resort might include views of the pool, the beach, and the various dining options available on the property.

Virtual tours can also be used to showcase individual hotel rooms. This can give potential guests a sense of what it would be like to stay in a particular room. They can see the layout of the room, the view from the window, and the amenities that are included.

The Impact of Virtual Tours on Customer Booking Decisions

Studies have shown that virtual tours can have a significant impact on customer booking decisions. According to a study by Best Western, hotels that provide virtual tours have a 48% higher booking rate than hotels that do not. Another study by Expedia found that hotels that provided virtual tours had a 46% increase in bookings compared to hotels that did not.

The reason for this is simple: virtual tours provide potential guests with a more immersive and engaging experience. They can see exactly what a hotel room or resort looks like, which can help them make a more informed decision about where to stay.

Virtual Tour Technology - 360-Degree Hotel Room Tours

One of the most exciting developments in virtual tour technology is the use of 360-degree hotel room tours. With a 360-degree tour, guests can explore every corner of a hotel room, from the bed to the bathroom to the balcony. They can see the room from every angle, giving them a more complete sense of the space.

360-degree hotel room tours can be especially useful for hotels that want to showcase their unique room features. For example, a hotel with a stunning view might use a 360-degree tour to highlight this feature. Guests can see the view from the balcony and get a sense of what it would be like to stay in that particular room.

How to Optimize Virtual Tours for SEO

Virtual tours can also be used to improve a hotel's search engine optimization (SEO) efforts. By optimizing virtual tours for SEO, hotels can increase their visibility in search engine results pages (SERPs) and attract more organic traffic to their website.

One way to optimize virtual tours for SEO is to include descriptive text and keywords in the tour. This can help search engines understand what the tour is about and rank it more effectively. Hotels can also include virtual tours on their Google My Business page, which can improve their visibility in local search results.

Examples of Hotels Successfully Using Virtual Tours

Many hotels have already embraced virtual tours as a marketing tool and have seen great success. The Ritz-Carlton, for example, offers virtual tours of its properties around the world. The virtual tours showcase the luxury accommodations and amenities that the Ritz-Carlton is known for.

Another hotel that has successfully used virtual tours is the Four Seasons. The Four Seasons offers virtual tours of its hotel rooms and suites, as well as its resort properties. The virtual tours give potential guests a sense of what it would be like to stay at a Four Seasons property and highlight the luxury amenities that the brand is known for.

Conclusion - Why Hotels Should Embrace Virtual Tours as a Marketing Tool

Virtual tours are a powerful marketing tool that can help hotels increase bookings, differentiate themselves from their competitors, and provide potential guests with a more immersive and engaging experience. With the rise of virtual tour technology, hotels can now showcase their accommodations in ways that were previously not possible.

If you're a hotel owner or manager, I strongly encourage you to consider using virtual tours as a marketing tool. By embracing this innovative technology, you can attract more guests, improve your SEO efforts, and stand out in a crowded marketplace.

So why not take the first step towards embracing virtual tours today? Contact Walk-Us-Through LTD, the 360º virtual tour photographers based in Stroud Gloucestershire, to learn more about how we can help you bring your accommodations to life.