Data Sources & Methodology
Transparency matters. Here's exactly how we build and maintain our resort database.
Resort Data
- Ratings & Reviews: Sourced from Google Maps. We display the aggregate rating and total review count as reported by Google. These are not curated or filtered by us.
- Location: GPS coordinates from Google Maps, verified against official resort websites and satellite imagery.
- Photos: Sourced from Google Maps business listings (publicly available). We plan to add official resort imagery over time.
- Pricing: Approximate “from” prices based on publicly available rate information. Actual prices vary by season, room type, and booking platform. Always check the booking site for current rates.
- Features: Manually categorized based on resort websites, booking platforms, and guest reviews (e.g., all-inclusive, glass floor, private pool).
- Accommodation Types: Villa names, sizes, and highlights extracted from official resort websites and booking platforms.
Verification Process
Not every resort that claims “overwater” actually has overwater accommodation. We manually verify each listing against:
- Satellite imagery (Google Earth, Bing Maps)
- Official resort websites and floor plans
- Guest reviews mentioning overwater villas specifically
- Travel industry databases and competitor sites (e.g., DreamOverwater.com)
Resorts that only offer beachfront, lakeside, or “water-view” rooms are excluded. We've removed over 20 listings that appeared in other directories but turned out to be beachfront properties marketed as overwater.
Ranking Methodology
Our default sort (“Top Rated”) uses a Bayesian weighted average that balances rating quality with review quantity:
where C = 20 (minimum reviews threshold), m = 4.2 (global mean)
This means a resort with 4.9★ and 2,000 reviews will rank higher than one with 5.0★ and only 10 reviews. We believe this better reflects genuine quality than naive rating sorts.
Update Frequency
Resort data is refreshed periodically. Ratings, review counts, and pricing may be slightly behind real-time data. If you notice outdated information, please let us know.
Limitations
- Prices are approximate and may not reflect current availability
- Some newer resorts may not yet be in our database
- Guest review excerpts are from Google Maps and may not be representative of all reviews
- We focus on permanent overwater structures — floating hotels and temporary installations are generally excluded