One of the most popular website builders and content management systems in the world, Wordpress offers a lot of functionality that makes it a solid solution for any type of website. Wordpress’s website editor uses “blocks” that you can drag and drop to customize each page, so you can create a beautiful website without having to write any code. But, if you want to plug in your own custom code, you can do that too. The possible templates, integrations, and features of a Wordpress website are nearly endless, which can be a good thing for hoteliers with a specific look and feel in mind, but it can also lead to overwhelm. Thankfully, there are a slew of online tutorials and YouTube videos that can help you find your path on Wordpress. Wordpress itself is free, but it doesn’t offer website hosting, so you’ll need to pay for hosting with a separate service.

Squarespace is another well known website builder that works wonderfully for hoteliers (and any kind of business owner). Like Wordpress, Squarespace’s interface is easy enough to use even if you have limited technical know-how. Squarespace offers a little less customization than Wordpress, but the typical user likely doesn’t need complete control over every detail. Squarespace supports many attractive themes, and the platform also offers website hosting, so you can pay for your hosting and content management system all in one.

Known as a somewhat simplified version of Wordpress, Webflow is a great option for hoteliers who want an attractive, SEO-friendly website that’s easy to build and maintain. Using a website template as a starting point, you can customize fonts, colors, and content and even add custom animations and interactive content. Hotels that provide a special experience for loyalty program members will appreciate Webflow’s build-in “membership” feature that lets you wall off content to a specific group of users. Webflow offers website hosting and add-ons to their standard subscription plan for ecommerce functionality, more bandwidth, and more stored content.

For hoteliers who want minimal technical setup to get a high-converting website, Wix is a great option. Wix doesn’t offer quite as much customization as Wordpress, but that can be a good thing for users who want simplicity. Wix’s interface is easy to learn and use, and it’s compatible with a wide variety of add-ons and integrations. If you use Wix, you’ll pay one monthly fee for both the website builder and website hosting, with fees ranging from about $16 to $60 per month.

Finding the right Website Design solution for your hotel depends on several variables ranging from user experience and pricing to functionality and support. This guide is designed to help you identify the best Website Design vendors, questions to ask on demos, read unbiased reviews from similar hoteliers and so much more (including our 2023 Website Design Guide).

Once you’ve chosen a website builder, you’ll need to pick a template for your hotel website. Note that a template is simply a place to start your website; you can stick with the exact specifications of the template (just swapping out your copy and images), or you can customize fonts, colors, and pages to make it reflect your true brand identity. Some templates are free, while others have a price tag. But a more expensive template doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll get more direct bookings out of it. The key is to make your website informative, compelling, and easy for guests to use. Let’s explore a few good examples of hotel website templates.

With neutral colors, an eye-catching logo placeholder, and easy-to-read text, Fortitude would be a great template for a luxury hotel or a hip vacation rental. The template includes several large image placeholders where you can show off photos of your property. Built-in ecommerce functionality means you can sell merchandise like gift certificates or branded items without needing to plug in an additional system.

Perfect for a boutique hotel, Mason Manor turns up the charm with a pastel color palette and plenty of space to showcase your best photos. Amenity icons and a carousel of guest reviews allows you to articulate what makes your hotel unique. While this template doesn’t have built-in ecommerce functionality, you can plug in your booking engine to allow guests to book directly on your website.

This Wordpress theme is a nice example of some of the key elements of a good hotel website. The homepage features a slider with full-screen images, which can help you grab the attention of your website visitors. Also on the homepage is an availability widget, which makes booking a room as easy as possible. Clicking “Search” will direct users to your booking engine, where they can finish making a reservation.

It’s entirely possible to build a strong hotel website with a free template. Resort One has everything you need to drive direct bookings: large photos, a simple menu bar, a prominent “Book Now” button, and fast loading speeds. The theme is responsive, so it will look great on desktops and smartphones, and it offers plenty of customization so you can make it reflect the look and feel of your brand.

This charming template would be perfect for a boutique hotel or B&B since it offers a nice balance of personality and functionality. The prominent “Book Now” buttons will help you secure direct bookings, and the simple menu bar enables guests to find the information they need. The large photo container provides an opportunity for you to show off some of your best photos too. Since this template is designed by Squarespace, it’s included in your Squarespace monthly fee.

Hotels that feature a well-known restaurant or bar can find success with Squarespace’s Juniper template. Although it’s technically designed for restaurants, just a couple tweaks to the text and photos make it ideal for a property that draws guests for several types of visits. This template includes a built-in OpenTable widget so you can easily accept restaurant reservations, and you can easily link to your booking engine to accept hotel reservations too.

A solid template for any type of hotel, Wix’s Great Hotel template ticks all the boxes for an effective hotel website. There’s a prominent date picker and “Book Now” button on the homepage, a straightforward menu bar, and a full-screen media box where you can upload your best photos or even a video clip. Images are the star of the show on this template, so it’s a good choice for hotels with especially eye-catching views or decor.

This Wix template is designed for vacation rental, but it would work well for B&Bs or boutique hotels too. The template puts your property front and center with many spots to showcase photos and text descriptions. The “Book Now” button is ready for you to link your booking engine, and you can fully customize the fonts and colors to make this template your own. An integrated Google Maps widget allows you to highlight your location, and a couple of testimonial placeholders let you show off your glowing guest reviews.