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Lab study · Hotels in Sofia

Which Hotel in Sofia Does AI Recommend?

We asked ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity four questions about hotels in Sofia, three times each, and searched the same questions on Google from Sofia. Between them the assistants named 40 hotels. Only 6 were named by all three: Grand Hotel Millennium Sofia, Grand Hotel Sofia, Hyatt Regency Sofia, InterContinental Sofia, Junó Hotel Sofia, Sense Hotel Sofia.

The questions: „Кой е най-добрият хотел в София?“ (What is the best hotel in Sofia?); „Препоръчай хотел в центъра на София за бизнес пътуване“ (Recommend a hotel in central Sofia for a business trip); „Добър и евтин хотел в София?“ (A good, cheap hotel in Sofia?); "Which hotel should I stay at in Sofia, Bulgaria?".

  • 36 AI answers
  • 40 named
  • 6 by all three
  • 32 by Gemini

Same question, four different answers

Pick a question. These are the names each assistant gave the first time we asked, in their order, next to Google's map for the same search in Sofia. A glowing name came up in more than one answer.

We asked

„Кой е най-добрият хотел в София?“

What is the best hotel in Sofia?

ChatGPT

  1. InterContinental SofiaAlso named in another answer
  2. Grand Hotel Millennium SofiaAlso named in another answer
  3. Hyatt Regency SofiaAlso named in another answer
  4. Sense Hotel SofiaAlso named in another answer
  5. Grand Hotel SofiaAlso named in another answer

Gemini

  1. Grand Hotel Millennium SofiaAlso named in another answer
  2. InterContinental SofiaAlso named in another answer
  3. Hyatt Regency SofiaAlso named in another answer
  4. Sense Hotel SofiaAlso named in another answer
  5. Juno Hotel Sofia
  6. DOT Sofia

Perplexity

  1. Grand Hotel Millennium SofiaAlso named in another answer
  2. InterContinental SofiaAlso named in another answer
  3. Grand Hotel SofiaAlso named in another answer
  4. Hyatt Regency SofiaAlso named in another answer
  5. Sofia Balkan Palace

Google's map

  1. Hyatt Regency SofiaAlso named in another answer
  2. Хотел Глория Палас Дипломат
  3. AMAR Design Hotel by HMG
  4. WorkNomads LAB Hotel - Coliving & Coworking
  5. Хотел Бристол - Бест Уестърн Плюс

We asked

„Препоръчай хотел в центъра на София за бизнес пътуване“

Recommend a hotel in central Sofia for a business trip

ChatGPT

  1. InterContinental SofiaAlso named in another answer
  2. Grand Hotel SofiaAlso named in another answer
  3. Hyatt Regency SofiaAlso named in another answer
  4. Rosslyn Central Park Hotel Sofia
  5. Grand Hotel Millennium SofiaAlso named in another answer

Gemini

  1. Grand Hotel Millennium SofiaAlso named in another answer
  2. InterContinental SofiaAlso named in another answer
  3. Hyatt Regency SofiaAlso named in another answer
  4. Grand Hotel SofiaAlso named in another answer
  5. Sofia Hotel Balkan
  6. Sense Hotel Sofia

Perplexity

  1. InterContinental SofiaAlso named in another answer
  2. Grand Hotel SofiaAlso named in another answer
  3. Central Hotel Sofia
  4. Sofia Balkan Palace
  5. Best Western Plus Bristol Hotel

Google's map

  1. Хотел Централ
  2. Sentro Boutique Hotel
  3. B1 Downtown Hotel Sofia

We asked

„Добър и евтин хотел в София?“

A good, cheap hotel in Sofia?

ChatGPT

  1. Hotel Niky
  2. Hotel Leda
  3. Aurora Sofia Hotel
  4. Hotel Cheap

Gemini

  1. easyHotel Sofia
  2. Hostel Mostel Sofia
  3. Хотел Ники
  4. Хотел Лион (Hotel Lion Sofia)
  5. Хотел Света София (Hotel Sveta Sofia)
  6. Art Hotel 158Also named in another answer

Perplexity

  1. ART HOTEL 158Also named in another answer
  2. Best Western Terminus Hotel
  3. Hotel Premier Sofia Airport
  4. Ramada by Wyndham Sofia City Center

Google's map

  1. LIBERA
  2. Hostel Elena
  3. Hostel №1 in Sofia

We asked

„Which hotel should I stay at in Sofia, Bulgaria?“

ChatGPT

  1. Grand Hotel SofiaAlso named in another answer
  2. InterContinental SofiaAlso named in another answer
  3. Sense Hotel SofiaAlso named in another answer
  4. Junó Hotel SofiaAlso named in another answer
  5. Sentro Boutique HotelAlso named in another answer

Gemini

  1. Sense Hotel SofiaAlso named in another answer
  2. Junó Hotel SofiaAlso named in another answer
  3. InterContinental SofiaAlso named in another answer
  4. Grand Hotel Millennium Sofia
  5. Rosslyn Central Park Hotel Sofia
  6. Hotel Niky

Perplexity

  1. InterContinental SofiaAlso named in another answer
  2. Grand Hotel SofiaAlso named in another answer
  3. Sense Hotel SofiaAlso named in another answer
  4. Rosslyn Thracia Hotel
  5. Hyatt Regency Sofia

Google's map

  1. easyHotel Sofia
  2. Juno Hotel Sofia
  3. ART HOTEL 158
  4. Sentro Boutique HotelAlso named in another answer
  5. Hotel Kitchen59

First of three runs, 30 October 2026. ChatGPT as people see it in Bulgaria; Gemini and Perplexity with web search on; Google searched from Sofia.

How much do they agree?

Across all 36 answers, Gemini named 32, ChatGPT 16 and Perplexity 14. Only 6 sit in the middle, named by all three.

51724156
  • ChatGPT
  • Gemini
  • Perplexity
  • All three
  • Only ChatGPT: 5
  • Only Gemini: 17
  • Only Perplexity: 2
  • ChatGPT and Gemini: 4
  • ChatGPT and Perplexity: 1
  • Gemini and Perplexity: 5
  • All three: 6

The most named hotels in Sofia

Named most often across all 36 AI answers, which assistants named them, and whether Google's map showed them for any of our searches.
#BusinessAnswers it was inWho named itOn Google's map
1InterContinental Sofia27ChatGPT: YesGemini: YesPerplexity: YesNo
2Hyatt Regency Sofia20ChatGPT: YesGemini: YesPerplexity: YesYes
3Grand Hotel Sofia19ChatGPT: YesGemini: YesPerplexity: YesNo
4Sense Hotel Sofia16ChatGPT: YesGemini: YesPerplexity: YesNo
5Grand Hotel Millennium Sofia14ChatGPT: YesGemini: YesPerplexity: YesNo
6Sofia Balkan Palacenamed under 3 spellings8ChatGPT: NoGemini: YesPerplexity: YesNo
7Rosslyn Thracia Hotel7ChatGPT: NoGemini: YesPerplexity: YesNo
8Central Hotel Sofia6ChatGPT: YesGemini: NoPerplexity: YesNo
9Hotel Niky6ChatGPT: YesGemini: YesPerplexity: NoNo
10Rosslyn Central Park Hotel Sofia6ChatGPT: YesGemini: YesPerplexity: NoNo
11Best Western Terminus Hotel5ChatGPT: NoGemini: YesPerplexity: YesNo
12Junó Hotel Sofia5ChatGPT: YesGemini: YesPerplexity: YesNo

A business is counted once per answer. Different spellings of the same name were joined using rules we checked by hand.

Where the assistants read about hotels

The websites the assistants cited when answering these four questions, sized by how often.

  • expedia.com18 times
  • hotels.com18 times
  • tripadvisor.com15 times
  • booking.com13 times
  • tripadvisor.ru9 times
  • ihg.com9 times
  • guide.michelin.com6 times
  • kayak.com6 times
  • fakti.bg6 times
  • hoteles.com6 times
  • grandhotelsofia.bg6 times
  • pinterest.com5 times
  • expedia.co.uk5 times
  • hyatt.com5 times
  • hoteli-sofia.bg4 times
  • sofiahotelbulgaria.com4 times

Lime: a business's own website. Outlined: a list, directory, booking site or forum. Crossed out: a foreign directory with nothing to do with Sofia.

Four lessons for hotels in Sofia

What the assistants got wrong

What hotels in Sofia can do

0 of 6 checked on your site

  1. Look after your booking site profiles

    Expedia, Hotels.com, Tripadvisor and Booking were the most read websites. Keep descriptions, photos and facilities identical everywhere.

  2. Get into the press lists

    A "top 50" list moved the answers within two days. Local press and travel media are the fastest lever there is.

  3. Make your Google Business Profile complete and exact

    ChatGPT reads your rating, reviews, hours and address straight from Google Maps. Fill in every field, choose the right categories and keep your hours current.

  4. Say who you are for

    Business trip, budget stay, families: each question brought a different list. A page for each kind of guest gives the assistants something to cite.

  5. Publish your prices in euro, in plain words

    Price questions were answered from pages that state prices as text. Old prices in leva are still being repeated.

  6. Ask the assistants about yourself every month

    The four questions on this page are a good start. Fix any wrong fact where it comes from.

Questions

Which hotel in Sofia does AI recommend?

The most named were InterContinental Sofia, Hyatt Regency Sofia, Grand Hotel Sofia, Sense Hotel Sofia and Grand Hotel Millennium Sofia, all named by ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity.

How can hotels in Sofia get recommended by ChatGPT?

ChatGPT leans on Google Maps, so start with a complete and exact Google Business Profile. Then use one name everywhere, be on the lists the assistants read for your sector, and say plainly on your own site what you do and what it costs, in euro.

How did you test this?

We asked ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity the four questions on this page, three times each, on 30 October 2026, and searched the same questions on Google from Sofia. The method and all the data are on the main study page.

Keep reading

What does AI say about your business?

We check what ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity say about you, where they read it and what they get wrong, then fix it with you.

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