Jennifer Ebert, CTC
I visited EPCOT (Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow) as a child. Disney sparked my imagination with my first visit in to the plans for the future. I remember the flying cars and robots that would live in our homes as housekeepers, like Rosie from The Jetsons. I was mesmerized. Never could I have imagined Artificial Intelligence (AI) the way it is now and what tomorrow may bring. Disney’s Tomorrowland was only a glimpse of what was to come. Our world of technology has rapidly transformed, and the travel industry and its agents would be naïve to ignore this because it is not going away. We no longer ride horses and ride trains for transportation today. We have self-driving cars and fly planes that AI can assist with optimizing flight travel. We need to hop on board the revolution of artificial intelligence (AI) in the travel industry, learn how it can help us grow and benefit our businesses, and learn how to use its perks to our advantage. As advisors, we are superior and cannot be replaced if we do not let it happen.
Change is Not Bad
Depending on when you started in the travel industry, you may have had a brick-and-mortar storefront and competed with big names like AAA to book trips. When agents started giving up storefronts and working remotely, the idea of this was initially shunned and looked at as less superior to the tried and true. Does an agent from a home office know less than a store owner? No, they do not. Objectives were: how would they get business? How would people find them? In the end, that change is now the new normal. Change happens, and some agents shut their doors for fear of change and the unknown. Others got on board and turned to the future of remote businesses out of their home offices and now work virtually with their clients. People fear the unknown and criticize what the future can bring them. But the future is here, and it has been since the internet.
As Trova Trip mentions in their article, “Travel planning prior to the internet was very different than it is today. People sat face-to-face with an agent, looked through brochures, and chose a destination. Agents would search for flights on a magic system that no one else could access. Customers did not question prices, and after spending hours with the agent, the clients would book and go home with their papers in hand.” (TrovaTrip, 2025.) Fast forward a couple of decades, and we are now in a world where AI is working behind the scenes. Instead of looking at this change as a negative, we can grab this new intelligence by the reins; we can grow and excel in our businesses, free up time, and simplify our lives as agents.
The Transformative Power of AI
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been a driving force behind many technological advancements. Still, its impact on the travel industry is particularly profound. As consumers and agents, we have access to fare-tracking sites and chatbots to answer travel questions, suggestions for hotels, itinerary suggestions, and activities. From enhancing customer experiences to streamlining operations, AI offers numerous advantages that travel professionals can leverage. We have the ability to use AI to assist with targeted ads and marketing that can know where we want to go through our algorithms, sometimes even before we do. Using AI and understanding and integrating these technologies can significantly elevate the quality of service and operational efficiency within the industry.
Enhanced Customer Service Through AI
One of the most instant advantages to the travel industry that AI offers is improved customer service. Travel agents work with tools like AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants, which are transforming the way they serve their clients. These chatbots and virtual assistants can manage a multitude of inquiries and provide immediate responses while freeing up human agents to handle more complex requests. For instance, a virtual assistant or chatbot can manage booking modifications, serve as a 24/7 FAQ, and even provide recommendations and interaction on a pathway to a fully realized customer profile.
Natural language processing (NLP), a key element of the artificial intelligence (AI) powering today’s chatbot technology, enables the bots to understand and respond to our queries in a natural, conversational way. This natural tone not only improves efficiency but also enhances the overall customer experience. According to a study by Travel Leaders Network, integrating AI in customer service can lead to more satisfied clients and reduce response times significantly (TravelLeadersNetwork.com, 2024). To take it one step further, companies like Booking.com CEO Glenn Fogel believe that AI will eventually be able to do everything that a travel advisor can do and better. As an advisor, I know this is not the case, especially today. Ai is not perfect and is known to have hallucinations. A hallucination in AI is when an artificial intelligence system produces incorrect or misleading information. Hallucinations happen when a model makes a prediction based on incorrect or insufficient data. AI can improve our services in the same way it helps an airline pilot to avoid errors. But there will always be a real need for someone to be behind the wheel.
Personalization: Tailoring Experiences to Individual Preferences
AI is great at personalizing travel experiences by analyzing large amounts of data to understand individual preferences and behaviors. This capability allows travel professionals to offer tailored recommendations and create customized travel packages that align with clients’ specific interests. For example, AI algorithms can analyze previous travel history, social media activity, and even current search trends to suggest destinations, accommodations, and activities a client will likely enjoy. As a travel professional, you can interview a person and get to know their likes and wants, but using this service as a tool can help you help your clients and save you both time. Instead of looking at this as a way that AI is taking over, let’s look at it as a way that it can save you time and allow you to use your personal experience and knowledge in this process. If it suggests Ochi Rios, Jamaica, as the perfect destination, as the advisor, you can lean into your expertise. You have connections with businesses and personal relationships and have visited sites firsthand. AI cannot tell them where the best little bakery serving Toto’s is on the island. AI does not know where to tell them to find this, but you do!
Outside Magazine’s writer Jen Murphy put the AI free tools to the test. In her article, “Can AI Be Trusted to Plan Your Next Trip” she states that 70% of Americans are using AI for travel planning (Outside, 2024.). Those statistics are why we should all be listening and making sure we are staying up to speed with our knowledge and training. Can AI give us the same information that recommendations and our own experience can? Her experiment used four AI tools and asked them all about an area that she was familiar with. She used Layla, Wonderplan, Mindtrip, and GuideGeek. Her findings were that you need to be specific when asking questions, and they can provide a loose plan faster than she could provide using traditional methods. In agreement with that article, using AI tools can give you a solid outline of how to start working with a client. But when considering things like over-tourism and being up to date on information, those are things that humans need to double-check. Other platforms like TOBY, which are specifically designed for travel professionals, can leverage AI to assist in creating personalized itineraries and marketing campaigns.
Marketing and Client Engagement
Marketing is another area where AI can make a significant impact by making campaigns more personalized and effective. These tools can create highly targeted marketing campaigns by identifying and analyzing customer data and segmenting audiences. They are based on various factors such as travel preferences, demographics, and purchasing behavior. One way that AI can help is by designing personalized email campaigns that offer important promotions or travel packages based on individual client interests.
Another great way to use AI is for your creative marketing pieces. An article in Pax News talked about how an agent used Canva to create a marketing graphic with a waving Santa on a cruise ship. Using Canva saved her time because Canva used images that fell under the fair use rules, and she did not have to hunt down copyright-free images. (Paxnews.com, 2024). Canva can also help with video design.
Additionally, another AI tool that the agent mentioned she used is Google Trends. It allows you to see what people are searching for in real-time. If people are hunting for spring break locations, you can use this in your advertising to attract these potential clients. By having tools like these in your arsenal, travel agents can ensure that their suggestions are not only fitting for their client’s needs but also appealing to each clients wants. This can assist an agent to enhance their customer satisfaction and loyalty.
AI can improve social media marketing by producing engaging content and analyzing campaign performance. Tools like Canva, when combined with AI, can help in designing visually appealing graphics and advertisements, thus making it easier for travel professionals to have a strong online presence and engage with potential clients. These are ways that AI can make your business more productive and help an agent with their business in areas where they may struggle. Not all travel advisors are great at marketing, but this does not mean that they do not know their stuff or are not travel experts. They may just need an edge to help get their word out to the target audience, and this is where services like AI and Canva can help.
Streamlining Operations and Reducing Administrative Burden
AI tools can majorly simplify administrative tasks. Simplifying these jobs allows travel professionals to focus more on client interaction and less on routine paperwork and menial things. Virtual Assistants (VAs), such as AISERA, can play a vital role in this regard. They can manage bookings, handle customer inquiries, and even process refunds and cancellations. Using AI to automate these small jobs, a travel agent can reduce the probability of errors. It can also improve productivity and guarantee a more consistent customer experience.
An additional way that AI can help is with data management. It has the ability to do this by studying booking trends, analyzing customer feedback, and the current market conditions. Using this tool to analyze that data allows travel professionals to make educated decisions in their marketing and sales. The data gives them information to optimize pricing strategies and identify new business opportunities. For instance, AI tools can forecast demand for specific destinations and suggest adjustments to pricing or marketing strategies accordingly.
Some agencies are taking advantage building an AI tool directly into their websites. This tool allows clients to still do what they love by giving them your site as a tool to search for travel. It also saves time and assists the agent by eliminating a lot of the back and forth. These sites take information and travel dates and build itineraries based on the customer’s wants and needs. It is time-bound and gets them answers immediately. The agent can follow up with them and then go over everything, and adjust it to how they want to enhance it. Taking notes during trainings and zoom calls is another tedious task. Now there is an AI software called Otter Ai that can take notes and images all while you are paying attention to the subjects at hand. Think of how much time you can save when the meeting or training is finished, and you do not have to write notes or lose focus.
Gleen is another administrative tool that can blow your mind. If you have lost clients due to a lack of follow-up or missed messages, then this one could be for you. Gleen offers a multitude of services. It can be used to automatically write emails and letters to your clients. It can also be used to automate customer service for simple questions and even handle complex questions. It can improve your customer service by increasing your response time to clients, ensuring that their questions do not go unanswered. It has the ability to sell on social platforms too. If a client asks questions about booking a trip, it can be managed through your social media platform.
Future Outlook: Embracing the AI Revolution
As AI technology continues to evolve, its potential to transform the travel industry will only grow. Emerging technologies such as machine learning and advanced data analytics are expected to further enhance personalization, operational efficiency, and customer service. One way that machine learning algorithms can be used is to predict future travel trends. This gives travel professionals the ability to stay ahead of the curve and be alert to market shifts. With this information agents can offer new and original solutions for their clients.
Additionally, AI is likely to play a crucial role in the development of new travel experiences. Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) applications powered by AI could offer immersive previews of destinations, accommodations, and activities, providing clients with a more engaging way to plan their trips. Imagine sending your client a video of them on the ski lift headed up the mountain on a ski lift in Vail, Colorado. Virtual reality would not only enhance the booking experience but also help a client make a more informed decision. Imagine where the future will go.
In the end, AI is not going to go away. As we have learned throughout our lives, nothing stays the same. All of the naysayers have said that travel agents were a thing of the past. We have proved them wrong time and time again. As agents, we have learned to evolve and show the world that we are resilient and can change with the times. AI is artificially intelligent, BUT we are genuinely Intelligent. AI is a tool that can help us grow and benefit our businesses, and as travel leaders we will learn how to use its benefits to our advantage and excel with it into the future.
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