A guest at check-in asks where the spa is. You don't have a spa. "ChatGPT told me," they reply. Or a friend sends you a screenshot of an AI answer describing your hotel as "closed for renovation", with prices from three years ago and a restaurant you closed in 2022.
AI assistants sometimes get things wrong — and do so with great confidence. For a hotel it's not a detail: wrong information can cost a booking or create disappointed expectations. Let's look at why AI describes a hotel incorrectly and what you can actually do.
Why AI gets it wrong
- Old information: AI may rely on text published years ago that's still online somewhere.
- Contradictory sources: if your website says one thing, Booking.com another and a directory something else, AI may pick the wrong one.
- Confusion with other hotels: similar names (there are dozens of "Hotel Sole" in Italy) can mix up information.
- Missing information: when data is missing, some systems tend to "fill in" with plausible but false guesses.
- Outdated reviews: comments about services that no longer exist.
Step 1: document the errors
Ask several assistants (ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Copilot, Claude) the same questions and note:
- what they get wrong;
- which sources they cite, if any;
- whether the error repeats across tools.
See how to check whether ChatGPT and other AI assistants know your hotel.
Step 2: find the source
When the assistant cites sources (as Perplexity or Google's AI Overviews often do), it's easy: go to the page and check. When it doesn't, search for the wrong information yourself:
- search Google for your hotel name together with the wrong information (e.g. "Hotel Sole Rimini spa");
- check OTAs, Tripadvisor, directories, old articles, your old website in web archives;
- check your Google profile, including attributes and suggested edits.
Step 3: fix it at the source
- On your website: update or remove old information; if a service no longer exists, say so clearly ("The restaurant has been closed since 2022; breakfast is still served every morning").
- On your Google profile: update attributes and amenities. See wrong photos, amenities and location on Google: how to fix your hotel's presence.
- On OTAs: correct descriptions and amenities.
- On directories and portals: request correction or removal of outdated listings.
- In reviews: reply, politely clarifying the correct information.
Step 4: reinforce the correct information
Removing the error isn't enough: you need to make the right information clearer and more present.
- pages and FAQs stating explicitly how things are;
- consistent data on every channel;
- content updated with dates ("updated March 2027").
See what information to publish to help AI assistants understand your hotel.
Step 5: use feedback channels
Many assistants let you flag a wrong answer (thumbs down or a feedback form). It's neither immediate nor guaranteed, but it helps. For Google's AI Overviews, use the feedback option in Search.
Step 6: re-check over time
Corrections aren't reflected immediately. Some systems update information from the web in real time, others take longer. Repeat your tests every 2–3 months.
Prevention: one "official version" of your hotel
Keep an internal document with all the official information (amenities, times, rules, rooms, distances) and use it as your reference whenever you update a channel. See how to keep hotel information consistent across website, OTAs and maps.
Frequently asked questions
Can I ask OpenAI or Google directly to correct the information?
You can flag wrong answers with feedback tools, but there's no procedure to "edit" your hotel's description. The most effective route is still fixing your online sources.
How long does it take for AI to update?
It depends on the system: those that search the web in real time can update quickly, others much more slowly.
Should my website also say what I don't offer?
When there's recurring confusion, yes: a clear sentence ("We don't have a spa, but we partner with the wellness centre 300 metres away") helps guests and AI.
Want to check what AI says about your hotel?
With our free marketing audit we test the main AI assistants' answers about your hotel, find the sources of errors and tell you what to fix.
