AI and Travel: Friend or Foe?

The rapid rise of artificial intelligence is transforming how we plan, book, and experience travel—whether we're ready for it or not. After resisting the AI wave, I've finally accepted its inevitability while maintaining a healthy skepticism about certain applications.

Delta Airlines' recent expansion of AI-powered pricing algorithms reveals a troubling trend. They've increased coverage from 3% to 20% of domestic routes, using your personal data to determine how much you might be willing to pay. This means two passengers on the exact same flight could see entirely different fares. Even more concerning for solo adventurers: early indicators suggest individuals booking single tickets are charged premium rates compared to those purchasing multiple seats. This profit-maximizing strategy raises serious ethical questions about fairness and transparency in travel pricing.

Beyond airlines, AI has quietly integrated into nearly every travel touchpoint. Some applications genuinely enhance our journeys—Google Translate breaking down language barriers, Hopper predicting the best booking times for savings, or facial recognition speeding up airport security. Yet these conveniences come with tradeoffs: potential job displacement for human travel agents, privacy concerns as our data is harvested, and algorithmic biases that steer travelers toward overcrowded destinations while overlooking authentic local experiences.

For those wanting to leverage AI's capabilities while avoiding its pitfalls, try this approach: when using ChatGPT or similar tools, craft specific prompts like "You're a local who hates tourist traps. Give me five spots in [city] for someone who avoids crowds and cares more about feel than famous." This helps circumvent the tendency of AI to recommend only well-known attractions. Most importantly, remember that the heart of meaningful travel lies in human connection. Hire local guides, shop at neighborhood markets, and engage directly with communities. While AI can help organize your journey, it can never replicate the transformative power of authentic human experiences that make travel truly worthwhile.

Chapters

• 0:24 AI's Unavoidable Impact on Travel
• 1:38 Delta's Controversial AI Pricing Strategy
• 4:42 AI vs. Human Travel Agents
• 6:16 Positive Applications of AI in Travel
• 9:51 Drawbacks and Ethical Concerns
• 12:20 Practical Tips and Future Outlook

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Well, I think I personally have hit the wall where I can no longer resist not using AI. I was a bit of a skeptic and in some cases, I still am. But how does AI? How is it shaping and changing the travel industry? Will it change the travel agency? Will it replace travel agents? How will it change the travel agency? Will it replace travel agents? How will it change planning of trips and what are the pros and cons of it? Well, we're going to talk a little bit today about those very things. So welcome to Solo Travel Adventures. I'm Cheryl Esch.

Speaker 1: 0:40

Well, I did an episode a while back about just kind of dabbling a little bit in AI and how it could potentially help with travel planning. But I am prompted to do this episode because I have seen just recently in the news how AI and I'm not happy about this use of AI we know that many companies have been using it. They've already been using it for a while specifically for customer service, like as a AI bot right and or helping on the phone get you to the right representative, and so it's already been in use. But now Delta Airlines has decided to use it and apparently they have been using it, I think, for a little while, but they're starting to use it in pricing tickets. Now, what does this mean for you? Well, this means that your ticket price might be different than someone else who is getting on the same flight. Some will pay more, some will pay less, so pricing is going to be based on you know what history you might have, what they think you might pay, and I had heard that if you are a solo traveler only buying a single ticket, you are likely to pay more than if you are buying two tickets at the same time or more. And so Delta intends to expand its usage of AI to price about 20% of its domestic routes. Okay, so this is up. They were doing a trial where they just did 3%. They did like what they were seeing, which means they are making more money by doing this. They're into profit chasing here.

Speaker 1: 2:37

I'm not thrilled, and apparently it is definitely making them money, definitely making them money. Now it is a question by the US government, you know as the potential for these individualized prices where people can see different fares tied to their own pain points. Now someone gave a an example that they're not thrilled about this prospect because, for example, say that you have a death in the family and they AI, can you know? Scrub your emails and see that you are going to need a flight. You were desperate, so you're going to pay the higher fare, and so they see that and they kind of can play off of that, which I think is very unfair. So I'm not thrilled, actually, with what Delta is doing Now. Please know that they're not the first and they're not going to be the last to probably be doing something like this.

Speaker 1: 3:43

How do we combat that? You know, I don't have the answers for that. Even people saying you know you clear cache, whatever, it still doesn't help. Because, you know, ai is very intuitive and, for example, I have chat GPT, of course that I use occasionally. Of course that I use occasionally, and I recently, just last week, was putting together a new bio and I gave it very few bullet points of what I wanted to create. However, it knew me enough that it inserted a few other bullet points or things about me that I hadn't put in the chat box. So it remembers my history, you know.

Speaker 1: 4:31

So this is similar to what is happening when and it is starting to replace the human factor, meaning it can, and some people have been using it to replace a travel agent. If you've ever worked with a travel agent, they work very hard and they organize and you know, get all your travel, whether you're doing a tour or your flights, and they organize all that for you. But they also base that on that personal relationship they have with you, what they know about you, that those very intimate things that are just special to you. Maybe as far as what you're looking to do Now, ai can't exactly replace that part, and having that human connection obviously is missing if you tend to use AI for any of your travel planning needs. Outside of the airlines utilizing AI, there are other booking platforms that are also powered by AI and they adjust costs based on demand, the time and even customer behavior. So one example of that is a platform called Hopper, and so Hopper actually uses AI to predict the best time to book for the lowest prices. So you can put in there maybe a trip that you are looking to take and if you're flexible on time, you can kind of put in a time window, not specific dates, and they will tell you. They'll tell you when the best time to book. They'll even say, oh wait, we predict lower prices, or hey, it just went up yesterday. You might want to book now so that can present a positive use of AI on your booking platforms such as Hopper.

Speaker 1: 6:38

It doesn't always, you know, we look at AI as this beast that we can't control, but, believe it or not, many people that have been traveling you don't realize how much we've already been using it quite a bit. For example, google Translate uses AI and how many have used that while you've traveled to a country where you don't speak their language. So that is a really good tool. I love Google Translate, so I am happy with how AI has used that in conversations and helped me navigate. It's also used in airports and hotel experiences. Believe it or not, there is. We know we're using facial recognition or biometric check-ins for security or boarding recognition, or biometric check-ins for security or boarding, and hotels are actually using AI for contactless check-ins and even smart room controls. So I've noticed in some places where, if they notice movement in the room, the temperature, the thermostat, starts to adjust. If you're not around, it does typically go into more of an energy saving mode. But the other positive is AI can we know it can forecast weather, traffic and even flight delays. So these are some positive things I will say as a travel content creator.

Speaker 1: 8:13

It has affected some of my fellow bloggers and influencers, some in a positive way and where they help generate some travel guides, do photos and Um, but it also, in the scheme of things a lot of bloggers are saying it it has lessened their ability to make money as bloggers. There are ways to use it to personalize your travel planning. So if you ever had a question about travel and where you wanted to go, you could put into you know an AI chatbot, things that you're interested in, places that interest you, things that interest you, maybe a budget. You want to make sure you put a budget, your time frame, and it will act like a travel agent, unfortunately, and kind of spit out some recommendations for you based on what you've put in, what you enjoy doing. So it does have some positives.

Speaker 1: 9:22

However, there are some negative parts. One I did mention it can be job displacement for human travel agents, unfortunately. So that was one kind of scary part. If you are a travel agent or you know a travel agent, they are a little concerned about how AI could come and take some other business over how they can help with this human customer experience right, so it can have that effect. Ai also has some inaccuracies, so it's only as good as the data that it is provided. Okay, so the data can be biased and incomplete, so this could result in over recommendation of trendy places while ignoring maybe some lesser known gems. There could be some pricing inconsistencies, especially if you're Delta and you're basing your airfare on AI and how that person spends money. There also could be incomplete information on cultural stereotypes in maybe the travel content or suggestions that it makes AI. Also a major concern around AI is its misuse of data, its breaches, the surveillance involved in it, and the lack of privacy is often a concern. I hear from some people as to seeing this more increase of AI being used in many, many industries.

Speaker 1: 11:08

So what are your thoughts on how AI can be used effectively for travel and what do you plan, or how do you plan to use AI in your travel planning? An example that you could utilize if you wanted to test out chat, gpt or any AI platform for yourself is if you, for example, let's say what I said before is often AI will focus more on the, those popular places, those tourist traps I like to call them, but maybe that's not you. So here's a prompt that you could put in to kind of get AI to work in your favor. For example, say hidden gems only, please. And the prompt would be you're a local who hates tourist traps. Give me five spots in blank. So you name a city or a spot for someone who avoids crowds, loves small, poetic places, cares more about feel than famous, whatever the highlights of you, right. Maybe you like something different, all right, and then you can kind of go micro in.

Speaker 1: 12:34

Once they named the spots, ask again, follow up with another question to AI is for each spot, because the AI is going to name five spots. You have a name and neighborhood. Ask what makes it special, best time to go, what to do, notice or just feel. That's one way to work through AI in having it help you search, because it is doing, you know, a very broad search, versus when we do, say, a Google search, we're often maybe not putting in all the right words to get what we want, and so there are some pros to utilizing AI in helping you kind of narrow down possibly where your next trip or where you want to highlight in your next travels. Well, I hope that you have learned a little more about AI, it's pros and cons.

Speaker 1: 13:36

I'm still trying to make a way around.

Speaker 1: 13:39

Right now.

Speaker 1: 13:40

I am not booking through Delta until I can determine a way around that pricing that they might do, especially how it hinders sort of this solo travel me right and anybody else out there that does a lot of solo travel we may be paying more if you fly via Delta, so I plan not to fly Delta for a while, until again I can figure this out and use other airlines at this moment for especially my domestic flights here in the US.

Speaker 1: 14:14

Well, sister travelers, ai is here to stay and as much as I have, you know, resisted, I have finally determined and see that it does have value. But we need to also keep in mind that there is an element of travel in general that involves the human component, and we want to stay connected and on the pulse of that as well as travelers. Connected and on the pulse of that as well as as travelers. And so, even though you may use AI to help in some aspects, don't forget about connecting with locals, especially when you travel. I would even, you know, go as far as hiring locals If you're hiring a tour guide, if you're hiring a tour guide shop locally instead of in the big chain stores, go to the little markets and support the local community, the culture. No-transcript.