How AI is changing the way Americans travel?

Highlights

• AI is slowly changing how Americans travel
• Travellers are using AI tools for everything; from booking activities, and accommodations to looking for best deals
• Here's how the world of travel is set to change

For the longest time there was only one way to travel. Scour through websites, read through reviews, remain glued to the internet in the hunt for best deals, and look through social media for the best hidden spots and restaurants at a destination.

That is slowly changing as an increasing number of Americans upgrade the way they travel by using AI tools across every stage of their travel experience.

From building a week-long personalised itinerary to booking attractions, and accommodations and alerting you when airfares dip, here’s how AI has integrated itself into every stage of the travel experience and changed how Americans travel:

Who is using AI and who isn't?

Deloitte’s 2026 Summer Travel Survey found that 25 per cent of Americans use gen AI tools in travel research, up from 15 per cent in 2025.

Popular AI virtual assistant apps on a smartphoneiStock

Millennials led the way among travellers using gen AI tools, with 36 per cent saying they use it in travel research as compared to only 33 per cent Gen Z, 24 per cent Gen X and 9 per cent Boomer travellers.

Even as large travel platforms lead, users still engage with an average of 2.5 different types of gen AI travel tools, revealing that discovery, comparison and variety remain central to the travel planning experience.

Most travellers said they were not looking for the “ultimate travel shortcut” with only one in ten saying they found travel research frustrating.

Among those surveyed, only 26 per cent said they want a one-stop shop when it comes to travel research, while a majority of 57 per cent said they enjoy researching options on various travel sites.

What are the biggest use cases?

Research and planning are the most common use cases for gen AI in travel. Travellers are using gen AI to gather information across aspects of the travel experience.

The biggest use case for gen AI is in travel planning and researchiStock

Among those who use gen AI tools, 58 per cent said the use it to look up and plan in-destination activities and attractions, followed by 54 per cent and 52 per cent travellers using it to research accommodations and destinations, respectively.

The other use cases included researching restaurants, planning trip itineraries and flights.

AI becomes mainstream

Travel giants like Expedia, Booking.com, and Airbnb, see this change and are actively taking measures to meet customers where they are.

Popular travel booking and preparation apps seen on a smartphoneiStock

Expedia recently announced that it now connects to Claude by Anthropic so travellers can search for the trip they want on their terms, get real-time flight and hotel options and click through to Expedia to review details and complete their booking.

Booking.com had announced a similar partnership with OpenAI’s ChatGPT earlier this year.

“When ChatGPT launched in 2022, I got this tingle,” says Adrienne Enggist, senior director of product marketplace at Booking.com. “It reminded me of the early days of broadband access—this massive opportunity to change how people engage with travel. We knew this could help us finally crack the discovery challenge.”

Airbnb also recently unveiled that it would be upgrading its app with AI-powered tools to help user find the perfect place to stay and plan their trip. The app now provides AI-summarised reviews for each listing, as well as summary for each home, with context about the location, best amenities, and more available later this year.

The road ahead

AI is still in its early stages as a travel tool and the world’s biggest travel platforms are only now beginning to build it into the core of their products. It remains to be seen how it grows and changes the world of travel in more ways.