AI-generated images and text on your hotel website and listings: what is allowed in 2026

Updated: 10 November 2026

More and more hotels use AI to write descriptions or improve photos. That is not banned, but there are limits: the EU AI Act, Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive 2005/29 and each platform's rules. This guide sums up what we could check on 10 November 2026 on EUR-Lex, the European Commission, Google, Booking.com, Airbnb and C2PA, and flags what we could not confirm. This is not legal advice: for a specific case, ask a lawyer.

The short answer

The essentials:

Using AI to write text or fix the lighting of a photo is not banned, as long as the result is true and you review it.
What you cannot do is show something that does not exist: invented views, pools, rooms or amenities. Google Business Profile ("the image should represent reality"), Booking.com ("realistic representation") and Airbnb (photos must accurately represent the space) all say so.
Since 2 August 2026 Article 50 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 applies: whoever publishes a deep fake must disclose that it was generated or manipulated with AI.
According to the Commission, the Digital Omnibus on AI (Regulation (EU) 2026/1744) only gave AI system providers until 2 December 2026 for technical marking. The duty to disclose deep fakes was not postponed.

Article 50 of the AI Act and its date

What the official text says:

Definition (Article 3, point 60, consolidated version on EUR-Lex of 27 July 2026): a deep fake is AI-generated or manipulated image, audio or video content that resembles existing persons, objects, places, entities or events and would falsely appear to be authentic or truthful.
Article 50(4): the deployer who publishes a deep fake must disclose that the content has been artificially generated or manipulated. For evidently artistic, creative, satirical or fictional works, a disclosure that does not spoil the work is enough.
Article 50(5): the information must be clear and given at the latest at the first interaction or exposure. The Commission (FAQ updated 24 July 2026) adds that it must be perceivable without special tools and that the AI provider's technical marking is not enough.
Date: the Commission confirms that Article 50 applies from 2 August 2026. Deep fakes created before that date need no retroactive label, although labelling is encouraged (Commission fact page, 29 July 2026).
Our reading, not an official position: an AI-made photo of a room or a view that looks real fits the definition of existing "places or objects". We have not confirmed that every minor lighting fix counts as a deep fake.

Does the Digital Omnibus delay anything?

Confirmed and not confirmed:

Regulation (EU) 2026/1744 of 8 July 2026 (Digital Omnibus on AI) entered into force on 27 July 2026 according to EUR-Lex.
According to the Commission (24 and 29 July 2026), the Omnibus amended Article 50(2): providers of generative AI systems placed on the market before 2 August 2026 have until 2 December 2026 for machine-readable marking.
That extension is for AI providers, not for the hotel that publishes the images. The Article 50(4) duty to disclose deep fakes applies from 2 August 2026.
Not confirmed: we could not read the articles of Regulation 2026/1744 themselves; we rely on the Commission's official summaries.
A Code of Practice on Transparency of AI-generated Content was published in June 2026. It is voluntary.

Photos on Google, Booking.com and Airbnb

What each platform says (checked on 10 November 2026):

Google Business Profile: photos should be in focus, well lit and have no significant alterations or excessive use of filters or AI; "the image should represent reality". Its content rules ban content that does not accurately represent the location. The pages carry no date.
Booking.com: photos should give "a clear and realistic representation" of the property and its location and set accurate expectations. It asks you to avoid over-processed photos, filters, excessive HDR, watermarks and illustrations. The page does not mention AI and only says it was "Updated 9 months ago".
Airbnb: photos and description must accurately represent the space. Airbnb can require removal of content where AI or other digital tools were used to hide damage, fix defects or add amenities that do not exist. The page carries no date.
Not confirmed: what Booking.com does specifically with AI-generated images, or whether Google detects or requires AI metadata on listing photos.

Images that do not reflect reality: Directive 2005/29

The general consumer rule:

Directive 2005/29/EC of 11 May 2005, Article 6(1), treats a practice as misleading if it contains false information or in any way, "including overall presentation", deceives the average consumer about the main characteristics of the product and leads them to a decision they would not otherwise have taken.
A photo of a sea view that does not exist or a pool the hotel does not have can fall under it, with or without AI. Each country applies the directive through its own law and penalties, which we do not detail here.

AI text on your website: what Google Search says

Google Search Central (page updated 1 October 2026):

It does not ban AI-generated content: it asks that it meet Search Essentials and the spam policies, and says AI can help with research and structuring original content.
Generating many pages without adding value may violate the spam policy on "scaled content abuse".
It asks you to manually fact-check and review all AI-generated content before publishing, including titles, meta descriptions, structured data and image alt text, because models can be wrong.
In e-commerce, Google requires AI-generated images to carry the IPTC DigitalSourceType "TrainedAlgorithmicMedia" metadata. We have not confirmed that this rule applies to a hotel website.

Content Credentials (C2PA): what they are and are not

With caution:

C2PA is an open standard. A "Content Credential" records where an image comes from in a way that makes changes detectable (official C2PA explainer, version 2.4, 2026).
C2PA itself states that provenance information alone cannot tell you whether content is true or accurate.
Not confirmed: whether Google, Booking.com or Airbnb read these credentials on hotel photos today.

What to do: AI yes, inventing no

Our recommendation, not an official rule:

Fine, with review: drafting or translating descriptions with AI and checking every fact (prices, times, distances, amenities); fixing lighting, straightening or denoising real photos.
Not fine: adding or changing views, pools, terraces, furniture or rooms; erasing building work, damage or nearby buildings; using "photos" of rooms that do not exist.
If you use a render or an AI image (for example of a future refurbishment), say so clearly next to the image.
Publish the same on your website, Google, Booking.com and Airbnb: AI assistants compare sources, and a misled guest leaves bad reviews.

How iQuota helps

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Frequently asked questions

Can I write my hotel website with AI?

Yes. Google Search does not ban it, but asks you to review and fact-check everything before publishing and warns that mass-producing pages without value can be "scaled content abuse" (Google Search Central, 1 October 2026).

Do I have to label a photo edited with AI?

If the image is a deep fake (it looks real and is not), Article 50(4) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 requires disclosure from 2 August 2026. We have not confirmed that a simple lighting fix is one. This is not legal advice.

Did the Digital Omnibus postpone this duty?

Not for whoever publishes. According to the Commission, it only gave providers of generative AI placed on the market before 2 August 2026 until 2 December 2026 for the technical marking in Article 50(2).

Can I upload an AI-generated image to Google Business Profile?

Google asks that photos have no significant alterations or excessive use of filters or AI and that they represent reality. An invented image of your hotel does not meet that.

Do Booking.com and Airbnb accept enhanced photos?

Booking.com asks for a clear and realistic representation and no over-processed photos; Airbnb asks that photos accurately represent the space and bans using AI to hide damage or add amenities.

Sources

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