In addition to the good explanation by Jennifer, motels are lower budget, and more likely to be available for road travellers than other types of traveller. You do find motels in other parts of the world than America, but as a tourist, they are not recommended.

Motels are an American invention. It is a contraction/short form of the phrase 'motor hotel'. So it was a type of hotel, but where you come by car. In Europe typically, you go via a train or public transport, so they have hotels, but by motor car, they are a different design (so you park the car in front of your room) and called motels.

They might be an American invention, but they're not exclusively American anymore. In Germany motels are quite common as well. Here they are predominantly used by travelers that don't want to drive/travel through the night, but rather stop over and sleep in a rented room/bed for a few hours before continuing with their journey. That's why they're usually located at right at big highways and important streets. Motels are less chic than hotels, usually with very few and simple furniture, so that guests don't have to spend a lot of money for staying a night.

it is also interesting that motels are American. In British culture we don't have them. We call everything Hotels or guest houses. I' m guessing the words relates to motor cars and hotel... A place with easy parking.

A motel is usually smaller than a hotel. A typical motel has or one or two floors and visitors can enter their room directly from the parking lot. Hotels on the other hand, tend to have more rooms and can be several floors high. Guests enter the lobby and access their rooms by taking the elevator/ staircase and walking through indoor corridors.