AI and the Future of Travel
Artificial intelligence (A.I. ) Artificial intelligence (A.I.) is the latest craze. It’s all the rage these days. It’s making waves across design, graphics, and contracts. Will it affect travel? I don’t believe it will change travel that much. Not in the near future. Here’s why. The reason they failed is that people want to plan their trips, because it gives them ownership over their trip. They enjoy reading guides and blogs, researching restaurants and hotels, and planning their trip. All of this adds to the excitement. People feel a connection with their trip when they plan it. The companies that tried to eliminate this have failed or switched to booking corporate travel. Soon, people won’t be saying “Hey Google! Make me an itinerary for Hong Kong!” First, AI isn’t all that good yet. It scrapes content from old posts or websites, as well as blogs. When I asked AI to plan a trip, I got results that included closed restaurants, bad-rated accommodations and other outdated info. AI will take a very long time to create a great itinerary. Second, travel is a very emotional and human experience. AI cannot tell you why to go somewhere. It can’t inspire you by giving you a feeling of place. It can tell you what to do but not why. Inspiring you is a different thing than having AI create a resume for you or show how to do push-ups. Such sites will not need much to learn what you prefer in terms of hotels and flights. You could even teach it by giving it parameters (Never book a plane before 7am or “I prefer Delta”) and showing it past bookings.
I think you’ll be able soon to say “Hey Google!” Remember the hotel (or tour company or walking tour, etc.). What was it that I enjoyed about the hotel I booked in Vienna a couple of years ago? Find me something similar in Paris for X dates, and book it.” They can’t give you the same information as someone who has experience on the ground. You can use them as inspiration but, since they still produce incorrect information, and you would have to double-check it anyway, I wouldn’t recommend using them. Stay away from guidebooks, travel bloggers, and content providers. Book Your Trip: Tips and Tricks for Logistical Planning
Book your Flight
Find cheap flights by using Skyscanner. This is my favorite search engine, because it searches all websites and airlines in the world.
Book Your Accommodation
You can book your hostel with Hostelworld. Booking.com is the best option if you don’t want to stay in a hostel. It consistently offers the lowest rates for hotels and guesthouses.
Don’t Forget Travel Insurance
Travel insurance will protect you against illness, injury, theft, and cancellations. This is comprehensive coverage in the event of an accident. My favorite companies that offer the best service and value are:
Want to Travel for Free?
Travel credit cards allow you to earn points that can be redeemed for free flights and accommodation — all without any extra spending. Want to travel for free?
Travel cards let you earn points which can be redeemed for flights and accommodations for no extra cost. Visit my guide on choosing the best card to see my favorite deals and to learn how to get started. Ready to book your trip?
Check out the resource page to find the best travel companies. Here are all the companies I use to travel. You can’t go far wrong with them. They are top-of-the-line and the best you can get.
