The digital transformation has always been at the forefront of reshaping industries, and the travel sector is no exception. As the world embraces the wonders of technology, so do online travel agents (OTAs). Their mission has always been to make your travel planning seamless, joyful, and tailored to your desires. Today, thanks to AI, they’re taking a monumental step towards that goal with the introduction of new AI-powered holiday booking assistants.

Generative AI is poised to revolutionize the travel industry, particularly in the domain of online travel agents (OTAs) and holiday bookings. This technology’s potential to create content, analyze patterns, and provide personalized solutions offers a fresh perspective on how consumers plan and book their travels.

From the traveler’s point of view:

Imagine having a travel agent who instantly understands your preferences, budget, and desired experiences. That’s precisely what our new AI tool offers. It analyzes vast amounts of data in seconds to present you with the best holiday options tailored just for you. Whether you’re after a relaxing beach holiday, an adventurous trek through the mountains, or a cultural city tour, our AI understands and delivers.

– Personalized Recommendations: Our AI curates a list of destinations, accommodations, and experiences based on your preferences.

– Timesaving: Instead of spending hours researching and comparing options, get instant results with the best matches.

– Cost-Efficient: By analyzing real-time data, our AI ensures you get the best deals available, maximizing your budget.

– Trending Destinations: Stay ahead of the curve with insights into emerging travel trends and lesser-known gems.

Easy as 1-2-3:

1. Input Preferences: Simply tell our tool what you’re looking for, whether it’s a specific destination or just the general features of your dream holiday.
2. Sit Back and Relax: Within moments, the AI will present a range of options tailored for you.
3. Book and Enjoy: Choose your favorite option and proceed with the booking. It’s that simple.

From the OTA point-of-view:

For travel agents, generative AI represents an opportunity to offer more travel options for their clients that may extend beyond their domain of expertise or regional specialization. This could mean offering tailored activity itineraries and serving customized menus for hotels and restaurants.

1. Enhanced Personalization: Generative AI can assess a traveler’s preferences, past trips, and even online behavior to craft tailor-made travel suggestions. Instead of generic holiday packages, travelers can receive highly personalized travel itineraries, ensuring a more memorable and satisfying experience.
2. Dynamic Pricing Models: With the capacity to analyze vast datasets in real-time, generative AI can optimize pricing models based on current market demand, seasonal trends, and even global events. This dynamic approach can benefit both OTAs by maximizing profitability and travelers by offering competitive prices.
3. Virtual Previews: Generative AI can be used to create virtual experiences of destinations, giving travelers a taste of what to expect. These previews, crafted using data from various sources, can provide a 360-degree view of a location, ensuring travelers make well-informed decisions.
4. Language Translation and Localization: In an increasingly globalized world, language barriers can hinder travel experiences. Generative AI-powered language translation and localization systems not only bridge these gaps by providing real-time translations for travelers but also enable OTAs to cater to a broader global audience, enhancing the user experience for non-English speakers.
5. Automated Customer Support: While chatbots are already a staple for many OTAs, generative AI can elevate this service. These AI systems can generate human-like interactions, answering complex queries and providing real-time solutions, improving the overall customer experience.
6. Sustainability Insights: Generative AI can sift through vast amounts of data related to sustainable travel options, eco-friendly accommodations, and green travel trends. This allows OTAs to present travelers with eco-conscious choices, fostering responsible tourism.
7. Predictive Analysis: Beyond personalization, generative AI can predict emerging travel trends by analyzing global data patterns. This ensures that OTAs stay ahead of the curve, capitalizing on new destinations or experiences before they become mainstream.

Market Update: Who is doing what?

Expedia’s new ChatGPT bot and loyalty program

In Expedia’s (NASDAQ: EXPE) Q1 earnings call on May 4, 2023, CEO Peter Kern highlighted the company’s commitment to deploying AI and machine learning to the product to enhance the customer experience.

Generative AI to support more “experiences” bookings

Purchasing “experiences” has become an emerging growth category in the global travel industry. Leveraging its reviews and enhanced engagement, Tripadvisor’s (NASDAQ: TRIP) Viator experiences have seen strong demand that is expected to continue.

Booking Holdings’ hopes to add ad revenue with AI

Booking Holdings’ (NASDAQ: BKNG) Kayak enables add-ons of experiences to its traditional air/hotel packages and is also experimenting with a generative AI plug-in. Booking’s Advertising and other revenues are expected to generate $1.1+ billion by the end of 2024.

TUI focuses on introducing AI to Other segments sector

Outside of the U.S., Trip.com (NASDAQ: TCOM) and TUI Group (LSE: TUI) will also leverage AI for booking experiences. In the UK and EU markets, TUI’s experiences growth through its Musement business (Other segments) is another example of a company leveraging both loyalty and AI.

An example of integration:

Travel Compositor launched AI-powered travel planning tools for https://booking.sostravel.com/ in August 2023 – This is latest initiative to enhance and expand the knowledge of its large language model that already answered more than 15,000 questions thanks to the combination of 12 technologies and the use of algorithms that are born from user questions.

Thanks to the integration Sostravel.com (BIT: SOS) now employs advanced machine learning algorithms that analyse and process in real time a wide range of data, from user preferences to information about destinations, weather, and local events. This makes it possible to provide clients with unique and personalized trips, offering answers and results adapted to the individual needs of the traveler and allowing them to advance in just a few clicks from a single question to a trip reservation.

About Sostravel.com

Sostravel.com S.p.A. is a digital travel company trading in Milan (BIT:SOS) and New York (SOSAF), operating the sostravel and flio apps, and the www.sostravel.com and www.amareitalia.com platforms.

As a digital tour operator and travel-tech company, it develops proprietary digital travel solutions, such as the Lost Luggage Concierge for luggage protection and recovery and Dr. Travel, a telehealth service designed for travelers.

Over 1 million users worldwide used Sostravel.com as a digital travel companion to find deals on their trips and get information to make their journeys more enjoyable.

Sostravel.com offers investors a unique opportunity to gain exposure to the growth of global travel and digital travel services, both sectors with a high CAGR.