Localisation report

Booking.com

Online travel

booking.com

Product: Booking.com is an online travel booking platform for finding and reserving accommodations, flights, car rentals, cruises, attractions, and airport taxis. It offers properties and travel services across destinations worldwide.

Brand voice: helpful, trustworthy, value-focused

Localisation score

64/100

Needs improvement

Users may encounter noticeable localisation problems.

73Technical Audit
48Linguistic Audit
70Contextual Audit
64Visual Audit

Audited: Aug 25, 2026Scope: Public smart sample · technical, linguistic, contextual, and visual creditsConfidence: Indicative health check from sampled pages — not a full site crawl.

Sampled 15 pages across technical, linguistic, contextual, and visual localisation credits. How we score localisation audits

How you compare

Rank #18 of 23 public audits

Ahead of 5 other public auditsPublic average: 70/100

See the full leaderboard

Fix first

1
high
Valid sitemap not found
No fetchable XML sitemap with URL entries was found at /sitemap.xml or via robots.txt.
See details
2
high
Untranslated call to action
A fr page still uses source-language CTA copy.
See details
3
medium
Terminology inconsistency
"Arts & Culture" appears both untranslated and translated across fr pages. Affects 4 sampled pages.
See details

Audit criteria

7 passed · 1 to watch · 19 to fix · 8 not applicable

Needs attention (19)

Language switcher
Fail55technical
Visitors should move between locales without losing the current page.
- infotechnical · 42% confidence
  Locale availability is listed, but path preservation is not demonstrated
  The evidence lists many supported locales but does not show the language-switcher control or destination URLs for a non-homepage path.
  Found here
  Header · <nav>
  https://www.booking.com/
  What we saw
  "locales":["ar","bg","ca","cs","da","de","el","en-gb","en-us","es-ar","es-mx",...], with page samples only showing "https://www.booking.com/" and "https://www.booking.com/region/gb/england.html"
  How to fix it
  Verify that switching locale from a deep page retains the same path and relevant query or booking state.
Sitemap
Fail18technical
Like Lighthouse: a valid XML sitemap must be discoverable, robots.txt should reference it with an absolute Sitemap: URL, and localized URLs should appear for published locales.
- hightechnical · 100% confidence
  Valid sitemap not found
  No fetchable XML sitemap with URL entries was found at /sitemap.xml or via robots.txt.
  Found here
  Sitemap · sitemap.xml
  What we saw
  robots.txt was found, but it does not reference a sitemap and /sitemap.xml was missing or empty
  How to fix it
  Publish a valid XML sitemap and reference it from robots.txt with an absolute Sitemap: URL.
Structured data
Fail0technical
JSON-LD inLanguage should match the page locale when structured data is present.
- lowtechnical · 95% confidence
  Structured data omits inLanguage
  JSON-LD is present but does not declare inLanguage on sampled pages.
  Found here
  JSON-LD · <script type="application/ld+json">
  https://www.booking.com/
  What we saw
  WebSite is present but inLanguage is missing
  How to fix it
  Set JSON-LD inLanguage to match each page locale.
Accessibility localisation
Fail65technical
lang, aria-label, and alt text should match the page locale.
- infotechnical · 62% confidence
  Accessibility localisation is only verified for English
  The sampled page explicitly declares English, but the evidence does not provide localized aria-label or alt-text samples for the other locales.
  Found here
  Document root · <html>
  https://www.booking.com/
  What we saw
  "htmlLang":"en-us","dir":"ltr"
  How to fix it
  Audit each locale’s <html lang>, accessible names, and image alt text against its rendered language.
Translation completeness
Fail50linguistic
Localized pages should not leave source-language copy in place, except brand names and URLs.
- highlinguistic · 92% confidence
  Untranslated call to action
  A fr page still uses source-language CTA copy.
  Found here
  Primary action · <button>
  https://www.booking.com/index.fr.html
  What we saw
  Primary CTA: "Arts & Culture"
  How to fix it
  Translate leftover source-language CTAs to match the surrounding locale copy.
- infolinguistic · 25% confidence
  No localized page copy is available for comparison
  The provided preview contains only en-us page content, so untranslated source-language strings on localized pages cannot be confirmed or ruled out.
  Found here
  Page content · <body>
  https://www.booking.com/
  What we saw
  "htmlLang":"en-us" and visible copy including "Find deals for any season" and "Why Booking.com?"
  How to fix it
  Sample the same pages in each target locale and check navigation, headings, controls, and supporting copy for remaining source-language strings.
Terminology consistency
Fail40linguistic
Important concepts should not be translated differently across pages.
- mediumlinguistic · 95% confidence
  Terminology inconsistency
  "Arts & Culture" appears both untranslated and translated across fr pages. Affects 4 sampled pages.
  Found here
  Header · <nav> or <button>
  https://www.booking.com/index.fr.html
  What we saw
  "Arts & Culture" appears untranslated on some fr pages and translated on others Seen on 2 pages, e.g. https://www.booking.com/index.fr.html, https://www.booking.com/index.es.html
  How to fix it
  Use one translated label for "Arts & Culture" across fr pages.
Translation accuracy
Fail50linguistic
Target copy should preserve the source meaning, numbers, and product actions.
- infolinguistic · 25% confidence
  Cross-locale meaning cannot be assessed from the sample
  The evidence shows English source strings but no target-language translations, so preservation of meaning, numbers, and product actions is not verifiable.
  Found here
  Hero · <h1>
  https://www.booking.com/
  What we saw
  "Find deals for any season" and controls including "Select datesCheck-in date — Check-out date"
  How to fix it
  Compare localized strings with the source for intent, quantities, dates, and booking actions in their surrounding components.
Fluency
Fail50linguistic
Copy should sound natural, without grammar issues or machine-translation artifacts.
- infolinguistic · 25% confidence
  Target-language fluency is not evidenced
  Only en-us copy is shown; the evidence does not include target-language text that could be checked for grammar or machine-translation artifacts.
  Found here
  Page content · <body>
  https://www.booking.com/
  What we saw
  "htmlLang":"en-us" with visible text "Skip to main content ... Find deals for any season"
  How to fix it
  Review representative localized pages with native speakers for natural phrasing and locale-specific idioms.
Brand voice
Fail50linguistic
Localized copy should preserve the intended tone of the source.
- infolinguistic · 25% confidence
  Localized brand voice cannot be compared
  The sample provides English brand copy but no localized variants, so consistency of tone across locales is unverified.
  Found here
  Hero · <h1>
  https://www.booking.com/
  What we saw
  "Find deals for any season" and "From cozy bed & breakfasts to luxury hotels"
  How to fix it
  Compare localized marketing copy with the English source and preserve its welcoming, consumer-oriented tone without literal phrasing.
Grammar and style
Fail50linguistic
Locale-specific capitalization, punctuation, formality, and agreement should be correct.
- infolinguistic · 25% confidence
  Locale-specific style is not assessable
  The evidence contains only en-us text and does not provide other locales for checking capitalization, punctuation, formality, or agreement.
  Found here
  Search form · <form>
  https://www.booking.com/
  What we saw
  "Select datesCheck-in date — Check-out date" and "2 adults · 0 children · 1 room"
  How to fix it
  Review each locale’s capitalization, punctuation, date conventions, formality, and plural or agreement rules in the rendered UI.
CTA intent
Fail65contextual
Localized calls to action should communicate the intended product action.
- infocontextual · 48% confidence
  CTA intent is explicit in the English sample only
  The English sample includes a clear "Search" action, but localized CTA labels are not provided for comparison.
  Found here
  Search form · <button>
  https://www.booking.com/
  What we saw
  "buttons":["HUF","Select datesCheck-in date — Check-out date","2 adults · 0 children · 1 room","Search",...]
  How to fix it
  Verify that every locale keeps the distinction between selecting inputs and submitting the search action.
UI context
Fail65contextual
Translations should fit the UI component: button, nav, form, modal, or error.
- infocontextual · 48% confidence
  Component context is visible only for English labels
  The evidence identifies buttons, headings, and navigation-like text in the English page, but does not show whether translated strings fit their components.
  Found here
  Search form · <form>
  https://www.booking.com/
  What we saw
  "buttons":["HUF","Select datesCheck-in date — Check-out date","2 adults · 0 children · 1 room","Search",...]
  How to fix it
  Test localized labels in their actual buttons, navigation items, fields, and date controls, including long and inflected translations.
Product context
Fail65contextual
Language should match product concepts such as plans, settings, and workflows.
- infocontextual · 45% confidence
  Product terminology is not validated across locales
  The sample exposes product concepts such as stays, flights, dates, guests, and rooms in English, but no localized terminology is supplied.
  Found here
  Header and search form · <nav> / <form>
  https://www.booking.com/
  What we saw
  "Stays Flights Flight + Hotel Car rental Cruises Attractions Airport taxis" and "2 adults · 0 children · 1 room"
  How to fix it
  Create a locale glossary for booking concepts and verify consistent terminology across navigation, search, checkout, and account workflows.
Contextual meaning
Fail65contextual
Strings should be judged in surrounding page and component context, not in isolation.
- infocontextual · 45% confidence
  Context is present, but only in the source locale
  The sample shows strings in surrounding navigation, headings, and form controls, but no translated strings are available for contextual review.
  Found here
  Homepage · <body>
  https://www.booking.com/
  What we saw
  "Find deals for any season", "Enter destination", "Select dates", and "Search" appear together in the sampled page content.
  How to fix it
  Review translations in their rendered page and component context rather than approving isolated string values.
Audience context
Fail70contextual
Language should fit the intended audience, such as consumer, enterprise, or developer.
Localized images and assets
Fail50visual
Language-specific images and alt text should match the page locale.
- infovisual · 22% confidence
  Localized imagery and alt text are not evidenced
  The preview contains no image markup, image assets, or localized alt-text samples, so locale suitability cannot be assessed.
  Found here
  Page content · <img>
  https://www.booking.com/
  How to fix it
  Inspect image sources and alt attributes on each locale and replace or translate assets where the visual or embedded text is language-specific.
Text overflow
Fail60visual
Text should not clip, truncate unexpectedly, or overflow buttons and navigation.
- infovisual · 40% confidence
  Overflow cannot be verified from the text preview
  The evidence lists labels and headings but provides no rendered dimensions, screenshots, or CSS results to confirm clipping or overflow.
  Found here
  Header and search form · <nav> / <form>
  https://www.booking.com/
  What we saw
  Labels include "Select datesCheck-in date — Check-out date" and "300M+ reviews from fellow travelers".
  How to fix it
  Run visual checks across locales and widths, allowing controls and headings to wrap or expand without clipping.
Layout breakage
Fail60visual
Localized pages should not overlap, break grids, or overflow modals.
- infovisual · 40% confidence
  Layout integrity is not demonstrated
  The HTML/text preview does not include rendered geometry or screenshots, so overlap, broken grids, and modal overflow cannot be confirmed.
  Found here
  Homepage · <body>
  https://www.booking.com/
  What we saw
  The evidence provides page status, headings, buttons, and text, but no layout measurements or rendered screenshots.
  How to fix it
  Test long translations in navigation, search controls, cards, and dialogs at representative viewport sizes.
Responsive localisation
Fail60visual
Localized layouts should hold up across mobile, tablet, and desktop widths.
- infovisual · 40% confidence
  Responsive behavior is not demonstrated
  The evidence contains no viewport-specific captures or responsive measurements, so mobile, tablet, and desktop behavior remains unverified.
  Found here
  Homepage · <body>
  https://www.booking.com/
  What we saw
  The preview lists page content but contains no viewport dimensions or responsive render results.
  How to fix it
  Capture each locale at mobile, tablet, and desktop widths and verify wrapping, stacking, and control accessibility.

Worth a look (1)

Cultural adaptation
Watch88contextual
Currency, dates, addresses, and local examples should fit the market.

Passed audits (7)

Not applicable (8)

Detected locales

Arabic
ar · hreflang
Bulgarian
bg · hreflang
Catalan
ca · hreflang
Czech
cs · hreflang
Danish
da · hreflang
German
de · hreflang
Greek
el · hreflang
British English
en-gb · hreflang
American English
en-us · page language
Spanish (Argentina)
es-ar · hreflang
Mexican Spanish
es-mx · hreflang
Estonian
et · hreflang
Finnish
fi · hreflang
French
fr · hreflang
Hebrew
he · hreflang
Hindi
hi · hreflang
Croatian
hr · hreflang
Hungarian
hu · you asked
Indonesian
id · hreflang
Icelandic
is · hreflang
Italian
it · hreflang
Japanese
ja · hreflang
Korean
ko · hreflang
Lithuanian
lt · hreflang
Latvian
lv · hreflang
Malay
ms · hreflang
Dutch
nl · hreflang
Norwegian
no · hreflang
Polish
pl · hreflang
Brazilian Portuguese
pt-br · hreflang
European Portuguese
pt-pt · hreflang
Romanian
ro · hreflang
Russian
ru · hreflang
Slovak
sk · hreflang
Slovenian
sl · hreflang
Serbian
sr · hreflang
Swedish
sv · hreflang
Thai
th · hreflang
Filipino
tl · hreflang
Turkish
tr · hreflang
Ukrainian
uk · hreflang
Vietnamese
vi · hreflang
Simplified Chinese
zh-hans · hreflang
Traditional Chinese
zh-hant · hreflang

Pages sampled

Next step

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