Earlier this year, Google Search debuted an AI mode created to respond in conversational language to user questions on all topics, including traveler questions about places to go and things to do. Asking things like “a romantic Santa Fe weekend in March” or “wineries to visit in Croatia” will give you ideas and a rough, often fairly accurate itinerary to plan your vacation.
While most people access the itinerary feature simply by using AI mode in Google Search, savvy users would be wise to use the Gemini app, the Google AI chatbot that powers AI mode. Although there is a paid version, most consumers can get all the information they need from the free version. Gemini offers additional tools (more on that later) and a better chat interface, takes full advantage of Google’s ability to connect you to the search giant’s well-established travel planning services (Google Flights, Google Hotels, Google Maps), and incorporates saved search data about you to refine your results.
“The ability to get live data about travel products from Google Travel and integrate those answers with data from Google search history, Maps, Gmail, and YouTube creates an end-to-end experience that no other platform can match,” said Mike Coletta, senior manager of research and innovation at travel consulting firm Phocuswright.
In other words, Google offers more than simple AI-generated travel plans, and more than most other bots can muster to aid travel planners. Here’s how to get the most out of Google’s AI travel planning tools.
Search for flights via chat
Travelers can use the Gemini app to specify what they’re looking for in natural language. For example, you can go to the Gemini app and describe your flight needs like this: “Find nonstop flights from Washington DC to London for the week of January 10th. See a grid of options and links to book.”
Gemini will show you the basic choices and immediately direct you to Google Flights. “A balanced combination of conversational search and traditional filters and inputs makes the process much easier and better,” Coletta says. Other services cannot access Google’s real-time flight data.
Dream big with Google Air Tickets
The recently released AI-powered Google Flight Deals tool sounds like a way to find cheap fares, and it is. But its superpower is that it is a dream weaver with a brain for budgeting. Try this: Don’t specify a destination. Tell them, “A romantic February long weekend Caribbean getaway from Philadelphia that isn’t too expensive.”
You would expect Jamaica and the Dominican Republic to appear, and they do. But topping the list is Providenciales in the Turks and Caicos Islands, which is selling for 41% less than usual at the time of writing. Suddenly you find yourself dreaming of a completely different Caribbean vacation.
Tips for power users
We then put the AI field on the same page to drive deeper insights to tackle unexpected destination recommendations. “What makes Providenciales suitable for a romantic getaway? What drawbacks should I stop for? Cite examples and provide sources for each item.” Then ask for affordable hotels. Google Hotels lets you know if your flight savings will be wasted on your stay.
Create a profile with trusted travel sources
Google’s little-used gems are essentially profiles you set up for specific types of AI searches. “It helps you tailor Gemini to your specific needs, saving you time spent on repetitive prompts,” said Google’s Jasmyn Peterson. To do this:
- Go to the Gemini app.
- Look for the gem at the top of the left sidebar.
- Click “Explore Gems” and then “New Gem”.
- Write the kind of introduction you want the AI to consider when creating travel queries, and give it a name. (I have one for romantic vacations with my wife, one for trips with my extended family, and one for conference trips.)
- Then, every time you visit the Gemini app to plan a trip, select the gem before entering the prompt.
Now you don’t have to remind your Gemini that you love historic hotels, family-run restaurants, and electric bikes. The more you use it, the better it gets. “Given the huge amount of data that Gem can store, you can remember and refer to previous sessions to hone your results,” says Adriana Lee, head of AI at travel consulting and publishing company Skift.
Tips for power users
In Gem, specify that Gemini should only refer to specific sources for travel information, such as trusted publications that you specify. This significantly reduces (but does not eliminate) information from low-quality sources. But you may also be missing wisdom hidden in unexpected places.
The more you give to Gemini, the more you get
For even more travel recommendations, give Gemini access to your email, photos, and documents. This sounds like an outrageous invasion of privacy, but you’re essentially giving Google permission to access your information. (Google says Gemini inputs will not be shared outside the Google ecosystem, but Lee points out that there are also privacy concerns. Some experts question whether it’s even possible to know whether the opaque systems powering the AI are complying with privacy agreements, and European privacy laws have strict rules on the use of personal data that it would be difficult for all AI systems to comply with.)
When Gemini has access to information like loyalty programs and past trips extracted from your search history, emails, photos, and documents, it can tailor its answers more precisely. That’s Google’s unique value, Colletta said, and the service Google’s Peterson admires most. To do this, Go to the Gemini app, find (Settings), click (Apps), and you’ll be guided through the steps to give Gemini access to your digital personality treasure trove.
This approach, integrated with Gems, turned out to be surprisingly effective. I used the “Conference Travel” gem to tell my Gemini about a conference I went to two years ago and told her to plan a trip to the next one. It found information about my previous trip in my email, searched for upcoming trips and their dates, and suggested flights, hotel options, and restaurants based on my Gems profile.
Use AI to fact-check AI
I then told Gemini to tabulate all the facts and recommendations, confirm that the location is currently open and the prices are as originally listed, and provide two linked sources for each fact to confirm everything. You still have to check everything, but this way Gemini will catch some of the (inevitable) failures.
In this case, all the facts were correct, but upon closer inspection, we discovered that the restaurant’s characteristics were incorrect. The paper described Delmonico’s as a “chef-driven, independent restaurant,” which is not factually inaccurate, but misses the point that Delmonico’s is a stately, old-fashioned steakhouse. This is truly a classic AI failure. It’s “correct”, but I don’t “understand” it. I sigh.
Google’s AI is great for travel, but it’s not error-free. You should check everything suggested. For now, the best way to plan a trip is to start with artificial intelligence and end with good old humanity.
