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Use AI as a starting point to book a trip. But do this before completing your purchase.

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Use AI as a starting point to book a trip. But do this before completing your purchase.

Christopher Elliott
 |  Special to USA TODAY

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  • Artificial intelligence can be helpful for travel planning, but it’s not quite ready to replace human travel agents.
  • AI excels at comparing prices, finding nearby amenities, and providing quick recommendations based on your preferences.
  • However, AI models often lack up-to-date information, insider knowledge, and the ability to book complete trips.

How do you use artificial intelligence for your next trip? Maybe it’s more like, how don’t you?

A February survey by Adobe found more than half of Americans (53%) have turned to AI for help with travel. The top applications in travel include comparison shopping (93%), discovering the working hours for hotel services and restaurants (90%), and finding nearby parking, restaurants and pharmacies (90%).

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The survey didn’t say how well AI performed, including errors or simply misunderstanding the prompt.

And the truth is, AI isn’t quite ready for prime time. Most of the free versions are often not up to date, they are imprecise, and the major AIs can’t book a trip for you yet. But an AI model can offer general recommendations and whittle down a lot of data into something you can use – and it’s lightning fast.

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When should you use AI to plan a trip?

However, there are also instances when AI can be a helpful tool. For example:

  • If you need a travel recommendation: “For people who would like to decide and shortlist where they want to travel, AI is useful,” said Sangeeta Sadarangani, CEO of Crossing, a multinational travel agency headquartered in London. “I see AI as the raw material for creating a trip.” But for the finesse, the elegance, and the deep personalization, a human being is still the best travel support. That’s because no two clients are the same, and this is where your personal travel advisor can curate a better itinerary for you. An AI model can’t know you that well – at least, not yet.
  • If you need to analyze lots of data: “Travelers are drowning in data,” said Bob Bacheler, managing director of Flying Angels, a medical transport service. “AI can analyze vast amounts of this data to understand a traveler’s preferences and history, offering highly personalized travel recommendations.” So, if you want to sift through megabytes of information and find something useful, like a restaurant recommendation or activity, AI may be able to help. It’s especially useful when you also tell the AI what you like and dislike.
  • If you’re in a hurry: AI can suggest local activities and popular destinations in a few seconds in many different languages, generating rapid results that humans can’t. AI can also handle some customer-service functions at hotels in just a fraction of the time a person would, according to Tim Hentschel, CEO of HotelPlanner.com. “Humans lack the speed and precision needed for such rapid analysis,” he said.

“Overall, discovery is one of the best opportunities for AI in travel,” said Shiyi Pickrell, Expedia’s senior vice president of data and AI.

Expedia’s research suggests travelers view 141 pages of travel content in the 45 days before booking a trip, Pickrell said. “That’s a lot of time spent just on planning and something that generative AI can simplify.”

So, AI can be useful as long as you know when to use it.

Here’s when you should not use AI to plan travel

There are times when you’ll want to avoid using most AI models. For example:

  • When you need the latest information: Many free-to-use AI models don’t have the latest information. “That makes using AI to plan a vacation extremely risky,” said Brandon Foster, owner of Magic Lamp Vacations, a travel agency specializing in theme park vacations. “An AI might be able to provide general recommendations such as ‘What do I do if my flight is canceled?’ But it will never be able to replace a human who does have the latest information.” Pro tip: There is no substitute for conducting your research, which includes contacting the business directly. Don’t rely solely on AI.
  • When you need insider information about a place: “You’re unlikely to find local favorites and hidden gems,” said Peggy Cleveland, author of “100 Things To Do In Tacoma Before You Die.” And she should know; she specialized in finding both. She’s queried ChatGPT many times to get insider information on Tacoma. She sees frequent responses that would lead the average visitor to make a wrong decision about a restaurant or attraction. A well-written article researched by a human would have been more useful. 
  • If you want to book an airline ticket or hotel room: None of the major AI models can find an airfare or hotel rate and book it for you yet, said John Maly, a lawyer and an expert witness on AI. “So right now, humans are better at this task than AIs, but that’s largely because the AIs are denied direct access to the flight databases.” This will probably change soon, but experts say you should be careful before jumping into booking travel with an AI. You could end up with a ticket you never ordered. (AIs like Skyscanner’s Savvy Search and Gemini from Google use AI but still don’t handle reservations.)

Generally, AI still has some gaping holes when it comes to functionality, according to experts.

“I still don’t think we’re at the point when AI can be trusted to do much in the way of booking trips or making travel-related arrangements,” said Emily DeJeu, who teaches business management communication at Carnegie Mellon University’s Tepper School of Business. “People are better at that because human agents, like travel agents, understand they are accountable for getting things right, and that accountability creates trust.”

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My misadventures with AI

I’ve had a tortured relationship with AI since the first version of ChatGPT flickered to life. I love the speed and depth of knowledge of artificial intelligence. For example, it generated a full itinerary when I planned my recent reporting trip to the Caribbean, which was mostly reliable.

And there’s that word – “mostly.” AI has recommended destinations that were closed, supplied me with inaccurate information about opening hours, and sent me to closed attractions. I can’t fully trust it – yet.

But others can. Katharine Nohr, an attorney from Honolulu, used ChatGPT to schedule a recent trip to Japan for a friend.

“I used AI to create a detailed itinerary, list of top attractions to see, and common travel phrases in Japanese,” she said.

Nohr says the itinerary was reliable and that she’s used AI to plan other trips, including a summer trip to the Olympics.

Working with AI is like asking your know-it-all-friend to plan your next trip. It’s helpful, but you might want to check the facts.

Christopher Elliott is an author, consumer advocate, and journalist. He founded Elliott Advocacy, a nonprofit organization that helps solve consumer problems. He publishes Elliott Confidential, a travel newsletter, and the Elliott Report, a news site about customer service. If you need help with a consumer problem, you can reach him here or email him at chris@elliott.org.

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