Ways technology can help you plan trip better

Travel has been through a lot in the last few years, with the pandemic bringing the industry to its knees. The hospitality and airline industry took a hit – but I think the hardest hit was felt by people like you and me, who love to travel.

Suitcases gathered dust, itineraries that we once made stayed ignored, wishlists stayed wishlists. And then around the end of 2021, the world started opening up.

And we did what was expected. We started traveling with gusto, almost making up for lost time.

I’ve been a travel addict for as long as I can remember. I get up on my bike and go where the wind takes me, every opportunity I get.

What does AI have to do with travel, especially within the context of the pandemic? How can technology enable us to plan better trips, not just the big yearly ones, but also the it’s-the-weekend-let’s-go-somewhere ones? Allow me to explain, not as a co-founder, but as someone who travels.

#1 We’re not the same

There are many tribes of travellers. Take one look across the Mall Road in McLeod Ganj and you will see that there are pilgrims, foreigners, backpackers, weekend tourists, all looking for a different experience. Technology’s biggest challenge has been the ability to personalise itself for all kinds of travellers.

#2 Instagrammability

A very dear friend of mine runs a successful resto-pub in Goa’s popular Anjuna sunset point. One of the biggest reasons for its success is the instagrammability. Our social currency is as important as our bank balance. This is where technology will have to start aggregating its data from. Not from reviews, but from recommendations made by other travellers.

#3 #The Instant Traveller

Instant travel is the new thing. I know people who spend their weekends out, hiking in the Aravalis, staying in a tent, all while working a 9-5 in the same city. This is where most of the travel platforms fail. At KOGO, we call it the 365/52/12/4/1 effect. 52 being the number of weekend trips that a traveller can take. Technology can play a massive role in aggregating relevant nearby itineraries and experiences to cater to this exponentially growing base of travellers.

#4 Search & Review VS Discovery & Recommendation

Solang valley is the top-reviewed attraction in Manali, according to Tripadvisor. But almost every traveller I know, stays away from that crowded place. I strongly feel recommendations and not reviews are the future of travel. Recommendation platforms ensure that what you’re about to experience, has been an epic experience for someone else who shares your tastes and preferences.

#5 AI generated travel plans

Generative AI creates itineraries for any city in the world. And while it can be useful, it’s based on existing data and has a cognitive bias without individual context. AI is definitely the future, but Contextual AI for travel still has some strides to make before it truly works.

Technology can personalise and create 365/52/12/4/1 experiences for every kind of traveller and build a curated plan to experience and unbox the planet. And who knows – maybe it’s going to be gamified, so you have as much fun planning a trip as you have actually going on it.

(The writer is Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer of KOGO Tech Labs, an AI-powered gamified travel discovery platform)

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