Understanding why your hotel website displays differently on different browsers

Identify differences and ensure a consistent experience for all

Key points • Check the compatibility of styles and visual elements • Understand the differences between Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Edge • Fix problems related to animations, fonts, and scripts • Optimize the display to ensure a consistent experience

It's common for a website to display slightly differently across browsers, but significant differences are never acceptable for a hotel website. Variations in display can affect readability, responsiveness, and sometimes even navigation, directly impacting the perception of your establishment and conversion rates.

Here's why this happens and how to fix it effectively.

Understanding browser rendering engines

Each browser uses a different rendering engine: • Chrome and Edge: Chromium • Safari: WebKit • Firefox: Gecko Each interprets the site's code slightly differently, which can lead to: • Variations in styles • Differences in spacing • Modified shadow or transparency effects 💡 Mobile Safari is often the most sensitive and reveals responsive errors.

Check for non-standard or incompatible styles

Some CSS styles work well in one browser but poorly in others, for example: • Experimental CSS properties • Blur effects or complex filters • 3D transformations • Incorrectly configured Flexbox or Grid. For consistent rendering: • Use standard properties • Simplify visual effects • Always test across multiple browsers

Identify incompatible animations

Animations can cause discrepancies between browsers if they use: • Unoptimized properties (width, height, margins) • Heavy or incompatible scripts • Triggers too sensitive to scrolling 💡 Safari does not handle some complex animations well: reduce them or adapt them specifically.

Check the behavior of the police

Custom fonts can display differently depending on: • Their format (woff2 recommended) • Their loading method • The fallback used if the font fails to load. As a result, the design may appear "broken" on some browsers. Ensure that: • Fonts are properly optimized • Unnecessary variants are removed • Loading is controlled (swap, clear fallback)

Analyze external scripts

Some third-party scripts behave differently depending on the browser: • Booking widgets • Marketing tools • Review modules • Pop-ups and online chat If a script does not load completely, it may shift the display, stretch sections or cause errors.

Control the images and their responsiveness

Safari and Firefox do not handle images the same way as Chrome. Common problems include: • WebP images not supported on some older versions • Cover backgrounds displayed differently • Aspect ratios changed depending on screen width. Ensure that: • Images are the correct size • The responsive design uses the correct versions • No incompatible formats are used as the sole source

Check the cache and preload settings

Some browsers apply stricter caching rules, which can cause: • A different rendering than a previous version of the site • Outdated content • Sections that remain at an incorrect size or position. Encourage your teams to test in private browsing mode to avoid cache errors.

Testing the site under real-world conditions

For a reliable diagnosis: • Test on Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Edge • Try different devices (computer, iPhone, Android) • Compare the preview version and the published version • Check the display over 4G to simulate a real-world hotel consultation environment

Conclusion

If your site displays differently across browsers, it's usually due to incompatible styles, overly complex animations, misconfigured fonts, or external scripts that behave differently. By analyzing these issues and adopting compatibility standards, you ensure a consistent experience for your visitors, regardless of their device.