Taking Their Name Back From The Booking Sites
A family owned apartment complex in Airlie Beach where Booking.com, Expedia and Trip.com outranked the property's own website for its own name. I rebuilt the site so Google, AI search and guests all get the full story straight from the source. Website rebuild and SEO by Ripple Effect Online.
The live site: whitsunday-reflections.com.au ↗
The Booking Sites Said More
Whitsunday Reflections has 30 self-contained apartments on the hill above Airlie Beach. Every booking through Booking.com or Expedia costs the owners commission, and those sites were winning because they described the apartments better than the owners' own website did.
The old site had three different apartment counts, features that no longer existed, claims like "4 star" with nothing behind them, and ten thin pages all chasing the same search. Then the old host went dark, so the rebuild became a full move as well. The job was simple to say: make booking direct the obvious choice.
Facts First, Then Words
Locked The Facts With The Owners
Before writing a word, the owners confirmed every fact: apartment sizes, rates, check-in times, accessible units, cancellation terms. One fact, one version, everywhere.
Proved Luxury, Didn't Just Say It
No "unparalleled luxury". Instead, the real stuff: floor sizes in square metres, an ensuite in every bedroom, a freestanding bath, and in the Ocean View apartments, the view from the bed.
Out-Described The Booking Sites
Every apartment page now carries more detail than Booking.com does. Floor plans, bed setups, rates by length of stay, parking and accessibility.
Made Booking Direct Easy
A from-rate shown up front, a clear book direct offer on every page, and every Book Now button straight to their booking engine.
I also told the truth about the steep hill. The Getting Here page owns it up front, with a drive-up video and the step-free units listed, then sells the upside: quiet nights, and that's where the view is.
Nothing Lost In The Move.
The old site's biggest page by a mile was a live cam, not the homepage. Easy to cut as off-topic. I checked the data first, so every page that earned traffic kept its address, and every old page went somewhere sensible.
The move itself was a rescue. The old host went dead and nobody could get in, so I rebuilt the site from a backup onto fast Australian hosting, and left their Microsoft 365 email alone while everything was switched over.
Get a QuoteWhere It's At
The new site went live on 30 September 2026.
Google takes a few months to settle after a rebuild. I'll add the ranking and direct booking numbers here once there's 60 to 90 days of data. No guesses until then.
Win Your Bookings Back
Holiday apartments, resorts, B&Bs and tour operators anywhere in the Whitsundays. If the booking sites are beating you for your own name, give me a call.
07 4813 9009or get a quote · more case studies