UK holidaymakers want ‘more AI and virtual tours’ at hotels

Travel companies need to embrace new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) to create a more “immersive and enjoyable” travel experience for holidaymakers, new research suggests.

Mobile technology group, Apadmi, found that almost half of Brits (48%) would like to see investment in interactive technology, like VR and AR.

Of those asked, 21% said they believed that the use of artificial intelligence and digital chat bots would improve the booking process.

It was suggested that by asking a few initial qualifying questions and filtering a plethora of options down to a handful of highly personalised choices, AI could lead to a more tailored experience.

The report surveyed 1,000 people who had taken a holiday in the last 12 months.

Some 27% UK holidaymakers had complaints about the number of options when booking a holiday. Apadmi suggested that due to the increased levels of personalisation in many other aspects of modern life, travellers also wanted reflected in the booking process.

Nick Black, CEO of Apadmi, said: “Creating loyal customers is becoming increasingly difficult for companies operating in the travel sector. Competition is becoming fiercer between different travel agents and operators, and customer expectations are changing continuously.

“Our research has found that customers are asking for more innovative technology from the travel sector. Investing in areas such as AI, VR and AR will help travel companies create and maintain competitive advantage, and build that elusive consumer loyalty.”