---
title: "Google tests AI Overviews in the hotel side panel"
url: https://seomadman.com/news/google-hotel-panel-ai-overviews-test
section: news
published: 2026-09-25T00:00:00.000Z
modified: 2026-09-25T00:00:00.000Z
author: Adam Hafez
topics: ["AI search", "SERP features"]
---

# Google tests AI Overviews in the hotel side panel

## The short answer

Google is testing AI Overviews in a bottom-right position on hotel search results, beneath the hotel knowledge panel, rather than at the top of the page. Lluc Penycate shared desktop and mobile screenshots on X. The source reports no Google confirmation, so treat it as an unconfirmed test.

## Key takeaways

- Google is testing AI Overviews at the bottom right of hotel results, beneath the hotel knowledge panel.
- Lluc Penycate shared desktop and mobile screenshots of the placement on X, and Search Engine Roundtable reported it.
- The source mentions no official Google confirmation, so this is an observed test and not an announced change.
- Search Engine Roundtable links the placement to earlier sightings of AI Overviews inside local panels.

Google appears to be moving [AI Overviews](/topics/ai-search) away from the top of the results page
for one query type. On hotel searches, the AI Overview shows at the bottom right, under the hotel
knowledge panel. Barry Schwartz reported it at Search Engine Roundtable on 24 September 2026.

## What is Google testing in hotel results?

The test repositions the AI Overview from its usual top-of-page slot to a bottom-right spot beneath
the hotel knowledge panel. It appears when a hotel knowledge panel is brought up in Google Search,
and the screenshots cover both a desktop layout and a mobile layout. Schwartz notes that in his own
searches the AI Overview still shows at the top.

## Who spotted it, and has Google confirmed it?

Lluc Penycate shared the screenshots on X. The report says the images were hard to read because X
downsized them. It mentions no official Google confirmation, so we treat this as an observed test
that may change or disappear.

## How it connects to local panels

Schwartz says the placement may be related to a change he reported a week earlier, on 17 September
2026, in which local knowledge panels for businesses were turned into an AI Overview listing. That
version carries an "AI Overview" label at the top of the listing and a "Show more" button that
opens an AI Mode style follow-up chat. Ben Fisher first posted it on LinkedIn, and Schwartz was
able to replicate it.

Testing his own company's panel, Schwartz found the summary mostly correct but partly out of date,
and put that down to old content on his own corporate site. That is the most useful detail in
either report: the AI summary of a business can only be as current as what it draws on.

## What does it mean for hotel SEO?

Nothing measurable yet: the source gives no rollout scope, no traffic data and no timeline.
Schwartz suggests most people would rather see an AI Overview lower on the page than at the top.

What a hotel can control is the same as for any page. Google's AI features documentation says a
page must be indexed and eligible to show in Search with a snippet to appear as a supporting link,
and that no special optimization is needed. In practice:

- Keep the hotel's own website current, especially descriptions of rooms, amenities and services.
- Keep the Business Profile accurate, since the local panel is where the AI Overview now sits.
  Google is also testing [a faster way to set Business Profile hours](/news/gbp-set-your-hours-automatically-test).
- Watch your own hotel query layouts, desktop and mobile, before drawing conclusions.

For what else tends to appear on a results page with an AI Overview, see
[Semrush's data on SERP features beside AI Overviews](/reports/serp-features-alongside-ai-overviews-semrush).

## Sources

1. [Google tests AI Overviews on hotel on side panel](https://www.seroundtable.com/google-hotel-ai-overviews-42146.html) - Search Engine Roundtable (primary)
2. [Google Local Knowledge Panel As An AI Overview](https://www.seroundtable.com/google-local-knowledge-panel-ai-overview-42105.html) - Search Engine Roundtable (primary)
3. [AI features and your website](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/ai-features) - Google Search Central (primary)