Selective by Design: Systematic Accommodation Bias on Official Tourism Board Websites

Abstract

Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) serve as the primary public-facing information source for U.S. travelers researching where to stay in a destination. This study examines what official DMO websites in the United States choose to include when presenting lodging options for prospective visitors. The paper analyzes 97 official DMO websites selected for being the top ranked counties in terms of individuals hired by the hospitality and tourism industry. The analysis recorded the presence of six distinct accommodation categories: hotels, resorts, vacation rentals, campgrounds and RV parks, bed and breakfasts, and short-term rentals across all 97 destinations. The findings revealed a consistent and non-random pattern of accommodation representation. Hotels appeared on 96.9% of websites with an average of 105 listings per website. Short-term rentals in comparison, appear on fewer than 5% of sites. The rank order of category exclusion aligns closely with the rank order of competitive proximity to the hotel model. In addition, larger markets, despite their increased access to organizational resources, list fewer accommodation types than smaller leisure destinations. These patterns hold regardless of geographic location, market size, and destination type. These findings suggest that official tourism board websites present an incomplete picture of the lodging landscape that favors hotels over all competing accommodation categories. The findings contribute to current conversations about the role of tourism marketing organizations as intermediaries and raise questions about the accuracy of the accommodation landscape these organizations present to the traveling public.