Aussies are being warned over how they use artificial intelligence (AI) when booking or organising their holidays. Travel agent Kellie Woodward has been using ChatGPT to help her and her clients, but she’s quickly discovered it’s not perfect.
While it can whip up itineraries, provide information, or at least get the ball rolling on some ideas, it can lead you down the wrong path if you’re not careful. Kellie, from Travel Associates Kew, told Yahoo Lifestyle you shouldn’t avoid using AI altogether, but know when and how to use it.
“We are seeing an increase of clients emailing us or coming in with a printed copy of a ChatGPT idea for their holidays,” she said.
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“It’s always a great start, and people like to research their own holiday and have a look at what’s out there. But AI is exactly that. AI is artificial intelligence.”
She rejected the idea that AI is making travel agents obsolete as she said her job is a “fine art”.
According to Compare the Market, more than one in 10 (11.5 per cent) of Aussies have used AI to look for destination recommendations.
While Baby Boomers and Gen X aren’t fond of the technology, Millennials and Gen Z are much more likely to utilise it for travel recommendations.
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Sometimes AI can get it very wrong
AI platforms can pull information from anywhere and everywhere, but if you don’t do your due diligence, you could be reading something that’s totally incorrect.
The Tasmania Tours website used a third party, who ended up using AI, to create some of their marketing material.
But the AI platform created fake information and fake photos about hot springs in Weldborough that didn’t even exist.
The article claimed it was a “popular destination for those looking to immerse themselves in Tasmania’s raw beauty” and had a reputation for being a “tranquil haven” beloved by “local hiking groups, wellness retreat organisers, and anyone wanting to experience one of the more untouched hot springs Tasmania has to offer”.
According to the ABC, travellers and tour groups had flocked to the area in recent months hoping to feast their eyes on the hot springs.
This was the image that an AI platform produced about the fake Weldborough hot springs. Source: Tasmania Tours
The incorrect articles have now been taken down, but there have been numerous examples of this happening in other places.
Tourists tried to hike their way to the ‘Sacred Canyon of Humantay’ in Peru, which didn’t exist, according to the BBC. A couple was stuck on the top of a Japanese mountain after ChatGPT told them the wrong closure time.
A 2024 study found 33 per cent of people who used AI to plan their travels created recommendations with incorrect information.
Kellie said these are perfect examples of what can happen when you solely rely on AI.
“We’re finding a lot of new clients are coming to us because they have been caught out by it in the past,” she told Yahoo Lifestyle.
“I think the pandemic was a really big eye-opener for people in how much they still needed that human interaction.
How should you use AI for travelling?
Travel can be very subjective, and Kellie said this is where AI can get things wrong.
It can offer suggestions based on your situation, likes, and dislikes, but it’s pulling information from the internet that might not fit perfectly with you.
“AI doesn’t have that human touch to find out exactly what it is you want, or to be able to know how you want to feel on a particular holiday,” she added.
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Kellie said it’s best to use the technology to get general ideas, like where to go and what to see in a certain country.
But when it comes to the nitty gritty, she said this is where travel agents thrive as they usually have access to deals or expert hidden gems that aren’t available on the internet.
“Someone might be happy to line up for the Louvre. Someone else might not,” she said.
“But a lot of people wouldn’t know that we can actually book you into the Louvre when it’s closed, so you can have it to yourself with no one else in there at all.”
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