Learn how UK hospitality businesses can use Google Ads to boost bookings, cut OTA costs, and reach guests at the right time.

If you run a hotel, B&B, or any hospitality business in the UK and you’re wondering how to use Google Ads effectively in the hospitality sector, you might just be onto a game-changer. The web is crowded, but the right ad strategy can help you reach people who are actively searching for stays and book directly on your site—and you get to keep more revenue. For an idea of how this works in practice, check out this firm that helps UK businesses with hospitality marketing.

Here’s how to make Google Ads work for your hospitality business—step by step 👇

Why Google Ads matters for hotels and B&Bs

Using Google Ads gives you visibility at the exact moment someone is searching for a stay. With search ads or hotel-type campaigns, your property can show up when travelers type in “hotel in London”, “B&B near Edinburgh center,” or “pet-friendly hotel UK.” That puts you right where demand begins. SiteMinder+2

You also get a chance to compete directly against large travel agencies (OTAs). Instead of paying high commission fees to those platforms, you steer users to your own website and get bookings directly—keeping more profit in your pocket. HOC Digital Solutions PPC

If you plan carefully, you can target the right audience—say, people searching from a particular city, or people looking for “family friendly,” “luxury,” “budget stay,” “romantic getaway,” etc. This precision helps avoid wasting ad spend on people unlikely to book. 

Last: you can control your budget and timing. You pay per click or per booking, decide how much to spend daily, and even schedule ads to show at times when travelers often search. 

How to Use Google Ads Effectively in the Hospitality Sector

Choose the right campaign type & goals

Before doing anything, decide what you want. More direct bookings? Boost off-season occupancy? Promote event or conference space? Knowing the goal helps shape your campaign. 

For most hotels, using a “hotel” campaign type inside Google Ads — or, if available, a dedicated hotel-ads setup — brings hotel-specific benefits. 

Also choose how you pay: you might go with pay-per-click (PPC) or cost-per-acquisition / booking if your setup supports it. 

Use smart keywords — long-tail, local, and relevant Keywords for Google Ads

Don’t only bid for “hotels London” (too broad, expensive, and highly competitive). Instead, use long-tail keywords like “pet-friendly hotel near London Heathrow”, “budget B&B Edinburgh Old Town”, or “family hotel near Manchester city centre”. These are more specific and usually cheaper — and attract people more likely to book. 

simplotel.com

Also, use negative keywords to filter out irrelevant traffic. For example, if you don’t offer “hostel beds” or “shared rooms”, add those as negative terms so you don’t pay for clicks that won’t convert. 

Don’t forget local and geo-targeted keywords. People often search with location modifiers: “hotel near Bath spa”, “B&B Cornwall coast”, “hotel near Manchester airport”. These help narrow the audience to relevant searchers. 

Craft ad copy + ad extensions that highlight what makes you special

Your ads need to stand out — talk about what makes your hotel or B&B different. Maybe you offer free breakfast, pet-friendly rooms, late check-out, spa, local experiences, or best-rate guarantee. Use those as unique selling points in your ad copy. 

Also use ad extensions. Extensions let you add extra info: contact, location, amenities, special offers, call buttons, links to room types or packages. These give potential guests more reasons and easier ways to connect or book. 

That builds trust and helps convert visitors into bookings.

Design a landing page geared for conversions

Once someone clicks your ad, where do they land? If your landing page is messy, confusing or slow — you might lose them. Make sure the page:

Matches what your ad promised (e.g. “pet-friendly” → shows pet-friendly rooms) 

Has clear photos, amenities listed, easy booking options or enquiry form. 

Works well on mobile — many travellers search from phones. 

If you run different ad groups (e.g. “luxury rooms”, “budget rooms”, “weddings & events”), consider making different landing pages — each tailored to that theme. 

Target the right audience, device & timing

Use the targeting features in Google Ads smartly. For a UK hotel, set location targeting so your ads show to people physically in relevant areas (or searching from regions that often travel to you). This prevents wasteful spend on global traffic who won’t come. 

Also pay attention to devices: many travellers search on phones, but conversions might be higher on desktop — or vice versa. Monitor which device gives better results, and adjust. 

Schedule your ads to show when booking searches peak: maybe evenings, weekends, or certain seasons. Hotels have high seasonality — so adjust bids and budget accordingly depending on travel demand. 

Use remarketing & smart follow-ups

Not everyone will book the first time they click. Use remarketing to show ads again to people who visited your site but didn’t complete booking. This reminds them of your offer and gives them a second chance to convert. 

Also track conversions carefully: not just clicks, but bookings, inquiries or phone calls. That helps you know which campaigns, keywords or ad sets are working — and then you can lean more into what works, and pause the rest. 

⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid

Leaving location settings too broad — ads might show to people outside your catchment area and waste budget. 

Ninety8 Media

Using only broad keywords often brings irrelevant traffic and poor conversions. 

Relying on generic landing pages for all ad-groups — this reduces relevance and hurts conversions.

Setting and forgetting ad budget — hospitality demand changes with seasons, events, and holidays. You need to review and adjust periodically. 

Ignoring mobile friendliness / slow site or poor UX — that can kill conversions even if ads perform well.

📌 Example: How it might work for a UK B&B

Say you run a cozy B&B in Bath. You might:

Create a Google Ads “hotel” or “search ads” campaign targeting “Bath B&B”, “pet-friendly B&B Bath”, “romantic B&B near Bath city centre” — long-tail + local keywords.

Use ad extensions: call button, location map, link to room photos, and link to “special offers”.

Set your location targeting to the UK and perhaps neighboring countries (if you accept overseas travellers).

Build a nice landing page showing photos, amenities, guest reviews, and an easy booking or a contact form.

Use remarketing for people who viewed rooms but didn’t book.

Boost bids during peak seasons: summer holidays, holiday weekends, Bath events or festivals.

Track bookings and monitor which keywords/ads drove actual bookings — adjust accordingly.

Over time, you can shift more budget into high-performing ads and cut waste.

Conclusion

• Google Ads can be a pow⁠e​rful tool for‍ hote⁠ls​,‌ B&Bs or any‍ hospi​tali‌ty serv⁠ice in⁠ the UK‌ — if used the r‌ight w‍ay.
• When you pick the ri‍ght‍ ke‌y​word‌s, target the right people, buil⁠d strong landin‌g page​s, and optimiz‌e continu‍ously, you reac‌h guests r‍ea​dy to book.
• You al​s​o g‌et t​o skip expens​ive third-part‍y‍ co‌mmis⁠s​ion fee‍s and build a dir‌e​ct connection w​it‌h‍ your gu​ests.
• Avoid c‍omm‍on mistakes like broad‍ targeting or‌ generic c⁠amp⁠aigns.
• In sho‍r‍t: s⁠mart⁠ setup +‌ c⁠areful mon⁠itoring + good user exp‍erience⁠ = b‍et⁠ter bookings and profits.

TL;DR

Google Ads helps hotels and B&Bs reach travellers when they search, letting you skip OTAs and get direct bookings.

Use precise, long-tail and local keywords.

Make ad copy and landing pages that highlight what makes you special.

Target properly — location, device, timing — to avoid waste.

Use remarketing and track real conversions (bookings).

Avoid overbroad targeting or generic campaigns.

Ready to get more bookings and better visibility?

Visit Digileap UK today and let a trusted team set up high-performing Google Ads for your hospitality business.