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Searching for a hotel online is actually more complex than, say, searching for a flight or car rental or even Viagra. A hotel stay is more of an emotional experience than flying somewhere. To go from New York to London, is simply to find the most convenient, and best-priced flight.

Choosing a hotel  is choosing a home away from home. It's actually a place where you live for a while, and often with someone you really care about.  It's an emotional experience. Flying isn't. Hopefully.

So, you have to get it right in terms of service, and especially a hotel's sense of place. Knowing the neighborhood and what attractions and merchants are local is an important part of a quality stay, of being comfortable and reassured.

Not surprisingly, says Hotelmarketing.com, Google's Hotel Finder understands that. And the search site has added a new filter.

All the trademarked maps come up and all those red dots, but now, says The Next Web, the update includes a box overlaid on the top that brings up a detailed description/map of the neighborhood your hotel is in.

There's the usual text information, reviews, comments. The hotel lists on the left-hand side are updated regularly for price and comments. But the update now zooms into a four-cornered map, so, planning a stay at the Crown Plaza Hotel in downtown Dallas ($127.00),  a traveler sees it's surrounded by highways (what in Dallas isn't?). But it's not so far from the Arts District. The map can be configured to show various views.

The Hotel Finder also has a new filter called "Brand," which lets the user chose specific brands, or just "Any Brand". What's also cool is that under "Amenities" one can search directly for a hotel that is near the beach (none in Dallas), offers a free breakfast and has free WiFi. Type "Four Star Hotel in Boston With Free WIFi" and get taken right to those hotels, each with a corresponding map that reflects the area.

No beaches in downtown Boston, but Google Hotel Finder's does show how close they are.


image/courtesy mdgadvertising.com