The Google Travel takeover and what it means for SEO
Google Flights and Google Hotels have dominated travel-related Google search terms in recent years, which has been seen as a threat by many travel operators. However, if approached properly, the growth of Google Travel represents an opportunity for those who adjust their strategy.
SEO expert Lily Ray shared the Google Travel graph below on a LinkedIn post a few months ago. It only takes a quick glance to see significant month-over-month growth of Google’s/travel/ directory across travel-related search terms.
This is despite the fact, as Lily points out, that Google Travel results don’t appear to be the most comprehensive or helpful, which are presumably key criteria when it comes to organic visibility.
In fact, in many cases, when you search for a city-specific phrase on the main Google Travel page, it simply takes you to a Google search results page for the city, where your search begins anew.
Google-dependent travel companies look at the rapid growth of Google Travel and see one thing: a threat to their existence.
