Arizona Tribune - Lighthouse Launches Review Agent to Help Independent Hotels Boost OTA Rankings and Bookings as AI Search Reshapes Travel Discovery

DENVER, CO / ACCESS Newswire / March 12, 2026 / Lighthouse, the commercial operating system for the travel and hospitality industry, today announced Review Agent, a new feature that brings guest reviews from Booking.com and Expedia into a single dashboard where hoteliers can read, respond and automate their review management.

As AI-powered platforms increasingly determine which hotels travelers see first, guest reviews have become one of the most important factors shaping both OTA rankings and AI recommendations. For independent hoteliers juggling every role in the building, Review Agent turns one of the most time consuming marketing tasks into one of the easiest.

Guest reviews have always been central to how travelers choose where to stay. TripAdvisor research shows 77% of travelers are more likely to book when a property owner responds to reviews. But reviews now carry weight far beyond the guest reading them. Platforms like ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews and Perplexity are actively shaping which properties travelers discover. According to TrustYou, 71% of AI-generated hotel recommendations are influenced by guest review content.

For independent hotels, review management is no longer just about reputation, it's about whether your property shows up at all. Competing with well-resourced chains for the same recommendation slots on OTAs and AI-powered search tools, properties that respond consistently see higher rankings, stronger trust signals and more conversions. Properties that don't risk disappearing from the results entirely.

"Independent hoteliers pour everything into creating incredible guest experiences. They shouldn't have to choose between running their hotel and protecting their online reputation," said Nadine Böttcher, Head of Product Innovation at Lighthouse. "Review Agent handles the heavy lifting so hoteliers can focus on what they do best, while making sure their property stays visible wherever travelers are searching, whether that's on Booking.com, Expedia or the next wave of AI-powered travel platforms."

How it works

Review Agent gives hoteliers three levels of control, depending on how hands-on they want to be:

See everything in one place. All Booking.com and Expedia reviews appear in a single view, filterable by platform or score. New and unread reviews are flagged so nothing slips through the cracks.

Respond faster with AI. Hoteliers can generate personalized, translated replies with one click and push them directly to the source platform - or write their own response manually. Either way, the review gets answered in seconds, not days.

Set it and forget it with Autopilot. For hoteliers who want full automation, Autopilot monitors incoming reviews and responds automatically based on score thresholds. High-scoring reviews get a warm, personalized thank-you. Lower scores get flagged for the hotelier's personal attention.

In early usage, 88% of review responses were sent with a single click AI generated reply, freeing hoteliers to focus only on the feedback that needs a personal touch.

Availability

Review Agent is available now for Lighthouse users with Channel Management subscriptions on Plus and Complete plans, with unlimited AI responses and full Autopilot functionality.

Discover how Review Agent can work for your property at: mylighthouse.com/platform/independent-hotels

Contact information:

Adam Swart: [email protected]
(917) 359-8969

SOURCE: Lighthouse

View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire

Ch.Campbell--AT