Google’s crawler fetches page content after discovering a URL. Discovery does not guarantee a visit. A visit does not guarantee indexing. Access restrictions or server problems can prevent a page being crawled. Source: Google Search Central: How Search works

Give important pages a clear route

Check that a new guide has a relevant link from the existing site and is included in the appropriate sitemap. Ask the website team to review any access restrictions. This provides a practical starting point when investigating why a published page has not been found.

Check the stage before changing content

Record whether the issue concerns discovery, access or a later indexing decision. Keep the affected URL and observed error together. This helps the person investigating work on the actual problem rather than repeatedly rewriting a page the crawler cannot reach.

Written and updated by Travelgenix. Sources checked on 19 October 2026. Practical advice and examples are Travelgenix editorial guidance.