Methodology & About | londonhotel.online

What this site does

londonhotel.online analyses whether UK hotels deliver on their own marketing claims. We collect the specific promises hotels make — about views, dining, facilities, service, and value — then cross-reference those claims against hundreds of verified guest reviews to produce a single Truth Score per hotel.

We are not a booking site. We do not take payment from hotels for coverage, placement, or scores. We are funded by a referral arrangement with our airport transfer partner, RushXO — this is disclosed in full below and on every page of the site.

The scoring methodology

Step 1

Collect hotel claims

We extract specific, verifiable claims from the hotel's own website, press materials, and marketing copy. Vague claims like "exceptional service" are noted but weighted lower than specific claims like "2 Michelin stars" or "direct terminal access."

Step 2

Sample 200+ reviews

We collect a minimum of 200 verified guest reviews per hotel, drawn from TripAdvisor, Google Hotels, and Booking.com. Reviews are sampled from the most recent 18 months to reflect current conditions.

Step 3

Score each claim

Each claim is matched against the review sample. Where guest comments directly address the claim, we classify the result as confirmed, mixed, or contradicted. We record the volume and consistency of relevant comments.

Step 4

Weight and aggregate

Confirmed claims score positively, contradicted claims score negatively, and mixed claims receive partial credit. Specific, factual claims (dining awards, facilities) are weighted higher than subjective claims (atmosphere, charm).

Claim classifications

✓

Confirmed Guest reviews consistently support the hotel's claim. We look for at least 65% of relevant comments to be positive, with no significant pattern of contradiction.

⚠

Mixed / inconsistent Reviews are split, or the claim holds for some guests but not others. This often reflects variability in rooms, staff, or time of year. We flag mixed claims rather than hiding them.

✗

Contradicted A majority of relevant guest reviews directly contradict the hotel's claim. This is a signal that the hotel is overstating or misrepresenting this aspect of its offer.

Truth score bands

Score	Label	What it means
80–100	Honest	Most claims are confirmed by guest reviews. The hotel's marketing is largely accurate. Minor mixed findings are expected and do not indicate deception.
60–79	Partial	Some significant claims are mixed or contradicted. The hotel may oversell specific aspects. Useful to check which claims are disputed before booking.
Below 60	Misleading	Multiple significant claims are contradicted by guest reviews. The gap between marketing and reality is wide enough that guests are likely to feel misled.

Data sources

We draw on three primary review platforms. Using multiple sources reduces platform-specific bias and gives a more complete picture of guest experience.

TripAdvisor

Largest global review base. We filter for verified stays and weight recent reviews more heavily.

Google Hotels

Strong UK coverage, harder to game than some platforms. Used to cross-check TripAdvisor findings.

Booking.com

Booking.com only publishes reviews from guests who actually stayed, providing a higher-confidence sample.

We do not use social media, editorial press reviews, or hotel-supplied testimonials as primary sources. These are considered secondary context only.

Review categories we assess

We score hotel claims across these 18 standard categories where applicable:

What we do not do

Important limitations

We do not conduct first-hand inspections or mystery guest stays. Our analysis is based entirely on publicly available guest reviews. Scores reflect the pattern of guest feedback, not our personal opinion. Hotels change — recent renovations, new chefs, or management changes may not yet be reflected in scores. We update scores annually and after major reported changes.

Commercial disclosures

Transfer partner — RushXO

Every hotel page on this site includes a link to book an airport transfer with RushXO. We earn a referral commission on transfers booked through these links. RushXO does not pay for editorial coverage, and transfer revenue does not influence hotel truth scores, rankings, or inclusion decisions in any way.

Hotel payments

Hotels do not pay to be listed on this site, to receive a particular score, or to have negative findings suppressed. No hotel has commercial influence over our editorial content. If a hotel contacts us to dispute a score, we review the evidence and update our analysis if warranted — we do not adjust scores in response to commercial pressure.

Award and badge claims

Some hotel cards display award badges (e.g. "Sunday Times #1 UK 2025", "AA Best Wales"). These are sourced from publicly reported awards and press coverage. We cannot guarantee their continued accuracy — all award claims should be independently verified with the awarding body.

Corrections and contact

If you believe a hotel score is inaccurate, or if you are a hotel with evidence that disputes our findings, we welcome the opportunity to review our analysis. Please contact us with specific evidence (review links, dates, published corrections) rather than general disagreement.

Contact: info@londonhotel.online

We aim to respond to correction requests within 14 working days.