How Indian travellers are turning to AI to craft itineraries, streamline the planning process

Let’s face it: Planning a trip is never easy. Whether it's you, a friend, or a family member sifting through endless blogs, websites and social media pages to find hidden gems and offbeat spots — it takes days of research.

And honestly, not everyone has the time to dive into all that work considering hectic work timelines. That’s why more and more Indian travellers are turning to AI to craft itineraries, discover unique places, and streamline the planning process.

"As travellers embark on new adventures, AI is becoming their go-to tool for inspiration and comparison, empowering them to turn travel dreams into reality," says Mohit Joshi, Skyscanner Travel and Destinations Expert.

He further shares, "A remarkable 84% of Indian travellers feel confident using AI tools for planning and booking their travels, with 52% using them for destination research, 50% for flight bookings, 48% for comparing flight and hotel options, and 46% seeking destination inspiration."

Santosh Kumar, Country Manager for India, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Indonesia at Booking.com shares, "With 87% of Indian travellers likely to use AI to plan their trips, there is a growing preference for technology-driven solutions in key elements of their journey. This trust in AI is further underscored by the fact that 84% of Indian travellers find AI-powered travel planning faster and efficient, 83% feeling confident to use AI to plan their trips and 81% believing that AI provides accurate information."

Take Archita Malhotra, 32, an IT consultant from Gurugram, recently travelled to London with her 60-year-old parents and GenZ sibling for 10 days. She used platforms like ChatGPT, DeepSeek, and Gemini to plan her trip. "I would’ve gone crazy researching for both my parents and younger sibling and making an itinerary that caters to both age groups. These platforms helped narrow down options, but it’s not about blindly following; it’s about having the best shortlisted options to consider in no time. For example, a highly recommended breakfast spot had a 50 min wait upon arriving, but after checking reviews online quickly on other websites, we stayed and it turned out to be really amazing!"

However, AI has its limitations. Shivya Nath, author and travel content creator says, "As someone who seeks conscious, community-centric, plant-based and low carbon experiences, I find AI’s trip planning ability fairly limited. It relies entirely on what’s available online, and a lot of such experiences can only be found based on local recommendations. Besides, for me, too much trip planning takes away from the joy of spontaneous and serendipitous experiences on the road."

Mallika Sheth, co-founder of TealFeel, echoes this sentiment and says, "AI tools might struggle with highly nuanced preferences, spontaneous changes, or cultural sensitivities that a human expert could navigate better. Additionally, relying solely on AI-generated itineraries may remove the serendipitous discoveries that make travel so enriching."

Hari Ganapathy, Co-Founder, Pickyourtrail also believes that a great holiday isn’t just logistics; it’s about the details. He says, "The neighbourhood that feels just right, the immersive experience that leaves you spellbound, or the offbeat trail that’s perfect for a solo adventure—these aren’t things algorithms can fully capture. AI sets the stage, but human intuition crafts the story."

Adding further, he says, "Millennials, who spend an average of INR 5 lakhs annually on travel, are already prioritizing memory-making adventures over material things. They want unique, meaningful experiences—something no algorithm alone can pre-package."

The good:

Create an itinerary tailored to your preferences (for instance, plan a 7-day Italy trip for a foodie solo traveller who loves history).

Compare destinations: Like comparing Koh Samui vs. Krabi for a couple who likes to party and beaches.

Flight and hotel comparison: Guide you on what to consider when comparing options.

AI can save travelers significant time by filtering through vast amounts of information and curating highly relevant recommendations.

It can also offer cost-saving opportunities by tracking price trends and suggesting the best booking windows.

The bad:

May not provide up-to-date info on events, weather, or availability, might give general or common recommendations without personalising it, some places may not be covered in detail and lesser known might not be listed.

Travel designers bring in experiences by local partners that enhance a traveller’s itinerary design.

Curating experiences can usually be the highlight of a trip and AI will have limitations in bridging the gap between the traveller’s preferences and interests and local available choices. ⁠

AI will offer options beyond what may be largely popular given the wide search base. Travel designers marry client food preferences with local eateries.

What lies ahead:

Sheth says, "In the future, AI could integrate with live data sources to optimise routes based on weather, local events, and transportation schedules, making travel seamless and highly efficient."