Hotel Fake-Out Photos 6

Oyster.com uncovers the truth and compares hotel marketing images with real photos. Take a look and see if you can spot the differences.

By: Oyster.com

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Photo By: Amata Resort (L), Oyster.com (R)

Photo By: AVA Hotel (L), Oyster.com (R)

Photo By: Hayriye Hanım Konagi Hotel (L), Oyster.com (R)

Photo By: Hotel Sagrada Familia (L), Oyster.com (R)

Photo By: Inn at Seaside (L), Oyster.com (R)

Photo By: Le Dune Suite Hotel (L), Oyster.com (R)

Photo By: Maca Bana Luxury Boutique Resort (L), Oyster.com (R)

Photo By: Sandals Luxury Included Vacations (L), Oyster.com (R)

Photo By: Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide (L), Oyster.com (R)

Photo By: Tensing Pen Resort (L), Oyster.com (R)

Photo By: Paradies Suites and Rentals (L), Oyster.com (R)

Amata Resort Pool (Phuket, Thailand)

The metal fence around this rooftop pool is probably a very wise safety precaution, and it really doesn't obstruct the city view. So why does the hotel website not want you to know about it? It's completely missing from the marketing photo.

Ava Hotel Exterior (Athens)

On the left photo, it appears as though the Acropolis is very close to the Ava Hotel, but the photo on the right clearly shows that you’ll have to walk quite a distance to see the ancient ruins.

Hayriye Hanim Konagi Pool (Istanbul, Turkey)

We're pretty sure they must teach "pool cropping" in Marketing Photos 101. We've found hotels all over the world guilty of employing this tool, and here's 1 we discovered in Istanbul. Sure, the photo is accurate, but we're always wary of something that doesn't show us the full picture. Because the truth here is that this pool is quite tiny.

Hotel Sagrada Familia Bedroom (Barcelona)

Look before you leap onto your bed at the Hotel Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. The marketing photo on the left shows what looks like a king or queen bed, but check closely. The photo on the right shows 2 twin beds side by side, disguised to look like a comfy bed for 2.

Inn at Seaside Pool (Seaside, OR)

This kid looks super excited to be hanging out in this normal-size pool, but don't let that photo fool you. The Inn at Seaside’s marketing team used a clever trick to disguise the fact that the hotel's pool is actually closer to the size of a hot tub.

Le Dune Suite Hotel Pool (Porto Cesareo, Italy)

Le Dune Suite Hotel is pulling out all the tricks with this one. Strategic cropping to make a tiny pool appear larger is a common tactic, but this marketing photo goes further, with bright colors and an out-of-this-world view that don’t live up to our real photo on the right.

Maca Bana Pool (St. George’s, Granada)

This marketing picture totally plays into our Caribbean fantasies — gorgeous view, gorgeous woman, gorgeous bod and gorgeous pool! But the well-placed (and, we must say, well-selected) model is distracting us from asking the important question: Why can't we see the entire pool in this shot? Well, it's because the marketing team over at Maca Bana did the good ol' pool crop, where they strategically cropped out the edges to hide the fact that it's really closer to the size of a bathtub. The truth is revealed when comparing these 2 photos.

Sandals Carlyle Beach (Montego Bay, Jamaica)

OK, this is just egregious. Was the photographer for Sandals Carlyle on a different beach? Because that tranquil scene of a desolate, sandy shoreline — complete with crystal-clear waters and luxe loungers — was nowhere to be found when we visited. Instead, we headed down to a tiny batch of public sand right off a busy street.

Sheraton Waikiki Pool (Honolulu)

The photo on the left shows the infinity pool overlooking the ocean at the Sheraton Waikiki. The view looks great, but the right photo clearly shows that this pool is never crowd-free, as it is in the marketing photo. We’d still take a dip, but we wanted to give prospective guests a word of warning if they’re expecting a quiet swim here.

Tensing Pen Resort Pool (Negril, Jamaica)

This marketing photo from Tensing Pen distracts the viewer from noticing that the tight crop of the camera hides the fact that this pool is actually smaller than you may expect. The gorgeous ocean view is, fortunately, the same in both the marketing fantasy and reality.

Weiss’ Paradise Suites Room (Seaside, OR)

"Paradise Suites" may be a bit of a stretch here, because there's nothing really special about the 4 on-site suites, and when you take away the staging in the marketing photo — fresh flowers, cute doilies, extra throw pillows — they're really pretty drab.