- Awarded Best Hospitality Brand of the Year 2025.
Hotels.cr – Dominating Costa Rica's Hotel Search Landscape
Boost organic traffic, improve keyword rankings, and enhance conversion rates
Business Name: Hotels.cr
Industry: Hospitality – Online Hotel Directory
Location: Costa Rica
Website: https://www.hotels.cr/
Hotels.cr is Costa Rica’s leading online platform for hotel bookings, offering an extensive directory of hotels, resorts, vacation rentals, and eco-lodges across the country. Serving both locals and international travelers, Hotels.cr aims to provide the best accommodation options in Costa Rica’s most sought-after destinations.
Challenges Before SEO
- Limited Organic Traffic: Hotels.cr faced low organic visibility on search engines, limiting traffic to the site and restricting its ability to attract new customers.
- High Competition: The Costa Rican hotel and travel market is highly competitive, with multiple platforms offering similar services.
- Under-Optimized Content: The website’s content was not optimized for key search terms, preventing Hotels.cr from ranking for critical travel-related keywords.
- User Experience Issues: Poor website navigation and design led to higher bounce rates and decreased engagement with visitors.
Objectives of the SEO Campaign
- Increase Organic Traffic: Drive more organic traffic to the site by improving search engine visibility.
- Improve Keyword Rankings: Focus on ranking for high-intent travel and accommodation keywords.
- Enhance Local SEO: Optimize for local search terms, especially for Costa Rican destinations.
- Improve User Experience: Redesign the website to improve mobile responsiveness, navigation, and site speed.
SEO Strategy Implemented
1. On-Page SEO Optimization
- Keyword Research: Conducted detailed keyword research to target high-value keywords
- Content Optimization: Optimized the homepage, category pages, and hotel listings with the target keywords.
- Meta Tag Optimization: Updated all title tags, meta descriptions, and headers to be more keyword-targeted and compelling for higher click-through rates.
- Internal Linking: Improved internal linking between the homepage, category pages, and hotel listings to boost SEO and ensure smooth user navigation.
2. Local SEO Enhancement
- Google My Business (GMB) Optimization: Claimed and optimized the Google My Business profile for greater visibility in local search results for keywords like “best hotels in Costa Rica.”
- Local Listings: Ensured consistent NAP (Name, Address, Phone) information across key local directories and listings.
- Location-Specific Landing Pages: Developed new location-focused pages for popular Costa Rican destinations, optimizing them for search terms like “hotels in San José” and “vacation rentals in Manuel Antonio.”
3. Technical SEO Improvements
- Website Redesign: Reworked the design to make it cleaner, mobile-friendly, and more engaging to users.
- Site Speed Optimization: Reduced page load times by optimizing images and implementing caching, ensuring that the site loads faster, improving both user experience and SEO rankings.
- Mobile Optimization: The website was optimized for mobile browsing to cater to the growing number of mobile users.
- Schema Markup: Implemented structured data for all hotel listings, providing search engines with rich, detailed information that helps in ranking.
4. Content Marketing and Link Building
- Blog Development: Launched a travel blog with articles about Costa Rican destinations, tips for travelers, eco-tourism, and hotel recommendations.
- Guest Blogging: Partnered with local and international travel blogs to create guest posts and acquire valuable backlinks, including prominent Costa Rican websites like Costa Rica Tourism and Pura Vida Lifestyle.
- Social Media Integration: Encouraged sharing through integrated social media buttons, which increased referral traffic and social proof.
Results Achieved
Increase in Organic Traffic
Hotels.cr saw a 70% increase in organic traffic within six months of implementing SEO changes. Monthly organic visits grew from 5,000 to 8,500.
| Metric | Before SEO | After SEO |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly Organic Traffic | 5K | 2.5K |
| Bounce Rate | 65% | 50% |
| Average Session Duration | 2 minutes | 3 minutes |
Keyword Rankings Improvement
Significant progress was made in ranking for several high-value keywords. For example, “Best hotels in Costa Rica” moved from 12th to 3rd on Google.
| Keyword | Before SEO | After SEO | Position Improvement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best hotels in Costa Rica | 12th | 3rd | +9 positions |
| Organic Search Traffic | 15th | 4th | +11 positions |
| Vacation rentals Costa Rica | 20th | 6th | +14 positions |
| Hotels in San José | 18th | 5th | +13 positions |
| Costa Rica resorts | 25th | 8th | +17 positions |
Local SEO Performance
Local SEO improvements led to a dramatic increase in visibility for local searches.
| Metric | Before SEO | After SEO |
|---|---|---|
| Google Local 3-Pack Appearance | No | Yes |
| Local Search Impressions | 1,500/month | 3,800/month |
| Local Click-Through Rate (CTR) | 2% | 4.5% |
Increased Conversions (Online Reservations)
With better user experience, navigation, and booking system optimization, Hotels.cr achieved a 40% increase in online reservations.
| Metric | Before SEO | After SEO |
|---|---|---|
| Conversion Rate (Reservations) | 2.5% | 3.5% |
| Monthly Reservations | 120 | 168 |
| Revenue from Online Bookings | $6,000 | $8,400 |
Challenges Faced
- High Competition: Hotels.cr faced tough competition from both local and international hotel directories, making it challenging to rank at the top.
- Seasonality: Fluctuating travel seasons in Costa Rica created variations in website traffic and bookings, requiring adjustments to the SEO strategy.
- Content Saturation: The sheer volume of similar content on other hotel booking platforms meant Hotels.cr needed a unique strategy to differentiate itself.
Why SEO Was Critical for Hotels.cr
SEO was essential for Hotels.cr as it allowed the platform to achieve long-term, cost-effective growth. By optimizing for relevant keywords, improving local visibility, and enhancing user experience, Hotels.cr could reach more potential customers without relying heavily on paid advertising.
Future Recommendations
- Content Expansion: Continue developing blog content on Costa Rican culture, eco-tourism, and travel itineraries to engage users and improve SEO.
- User Reviews and Testimonials: Actively encourage past customers to leave reviews and testimonials, improving local SEO.
- Video Content: Integrate video content showcasing hotel tours and experiences in Costa Rica to increase user engagement and drive traffic.
- Email Marketing: Launch targeted email campaigns offering discounts or special promotions to repeat visitors and leads.
Conclusion
The SEO campaign for Hotels.cr successfully improved its online presence, driving more organic traffic and increasing online bookings. By focusing on on-page optimization, local SEO, technical improvements, and content marketing, Hotels.cr has solidified its position as a trusted and highly visible platform for travelers seeking accommodations in Costa Rica.