I used TripAdvisor’s new AI-powered hotel summary to plan my next vacation

TripAdvisor is now using AI to summarize vast swathes of user hotel reviews from its site to provide tailored itinerary suggestions based on your preferred amenities or features. 

This differs from TripAdvisor’s typical aggregation by using AI to validate personal preferences with specific details about the hotel. With the still-in-beta system, you can submit a destination, dates, and the kind of experience you’re looking for and TripAdvisor will plan a full-day itinerary with suggested hotels.

Let’s travel the AI way

I tested this out by planning a trip to Spokane, WA. I was looking for a hotel that is central to all of the main attractions, yet close to outdoor activities. TripAdvisor was able to point out details such as which hotels had better windows or A/C units based on the time of year I would be traveling.

It also was able to weigh in through text field options on what kinds of food options were available within a half-mile walk. As a foodie, I feel like that is such an incredible detail, especially since I tend to travel with friends who have Celiac disease or other dietary restrictions.

Knowing this hotel summary works for smaller cities, like Spokane, I was curious to see how it worked in a larger city with an abundance of options.

Let’s try this with a staycation in Manhattan! I mentioned to the AI that I didn’t like fluorescent lights. Admittedly a very strange request for a hotel, but TripAdvisor’s AI was able to find reviews that focused on lighting.

Knowing Manhattan prices, the options given were pretty exorbitant for my budget. I asked for hotels under $300/night. It returned hotels averaging $230/night. Overall the tool seems responsive to feedback.

The AI was able to refine my search for more affordable places that still had access to some of the attractions I wanted to see such as Lincoln Center or Central Park West.

While this is great for basic cursory searches, I still personally like to have more control over my results. I would love, for example, to be able to see more than three options for hotels.

Overall, this looks like a decent addition to TripAdvisor’s growing lineup of AI-powered features.

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