SPONSORED CONTENT
AI WILL CHANGE HOW WE
SELL TRAVEL.
IT WON'T CHANGE WHY
PEOPLE BOOK.
May 2026
By Melissa DaSilva, Deputy CEO & Chief Sales Officer – TTC Tour Brands
There’s a lot of conversation right now about what AI will mean for the future of travel.
It’s a fair question. Every wave of technology has raised it. This one just happens to be moving faster and reaching further than anything before it. And like many in the industry, at Trafalgar, we’re actively exploring how to bring AI into our own business in ways that make us smarter and more efficient.
But when it comes to what actually drives someone to book a trip, the answer hasn’t changed.
It comes down to connection. To feeling understood. To having confidence that what you’re choosing is right. In my mind, what’s happening now is actually quite clear. As AI changes what gets done in travel, it’s also elevating what matters most, reshaping how we define success.
Human connection isn’t being replaced. It’s becoming the differentiator.
What AI Will Change
AI is already transforming the mechanics of travel.
It’s taking on more of the planning, processing and information retrieval that once required significant time and effort. It will make planning faster, surface options more efficiently and match products with preferences at a scale we haven’t seen before.
That’s not a threat. It’s progress.
In our own business, we’re using AI tools to handle simpler queries, streamline early planning and give our teams faster access to information. Our pilot AI chatbot program for example, provides instant answers to simple questions, while directing more complex needs to human support. By routing immediately, we’re freeing time for higher-value, more personal conversations.
And really, that’s the most important thing AI is doing.
It’s creating space.
“Human connection isn’t being replaced. It’s becoming the differentiator.”
What Will Matter More
As AI takes on more of the mechanics, the human role becomes more focused and more valuable because choosing a trip isn’t just about finding the right option. It’s about feeling confident in the decision.
The truth is, AI doesn’t understand what a trip actually means to someone.
It cannot comprehend why it matters that your dad is celebrating his 80th, that this is a first trip to Italy, a honeymoon, a long-awaited girls getaway or a thousand other reasons that the moments you are planning must be unforgettable. It doesn’t carry the weight of those moments and AI certainly has no vested interest in the outcome.
That’s the difference. AI can process the trip, but only a human being can truly care and so your role isn’t disappearing, but it is changing.
Less time will be spent on tasks. More time will be spent understanding.
Less time answering basic questions. More time asking better ones.
Why this trip? Why now? What do you want it to feel like?
The best advisors will use AI to remove friction, then lean further into guidance and reassurance. Sometimes that may mean introducing a better option. Sometimes it will mean validating a choice. And sometimes, it may mean slowing the process down so someone feels confident moving forward.
That’s what drives better outcomes.
From Transaction to Relationship:
How We Measure Success Is Changing
For a long time, success in travel has been measured by speed and efficiency. How quickly can we move someone from interest to booking? How low can we make the cost of a transaction? AI will improve both.
But faster and cheaper don’t necessarily create more value. As single transactions become easier, relationships become even more important with the focus moving toward lifetime value.
Repeat bookings. Loyalty. Long-term relationships.
Those are the indicators that matter, because they’re built on trust.
And trust is built through human connection.
The Differentiator Moving Forward
I’ve talked before about the role of joy in creating energy, courage in moving forward and good judgment in helping us read people and make better decisions. Human connection is what brings it all together.
It’s what ensures that the experience we deliver actually matches what someone hoped for in the first place.
AI will continue to evolve. It will get faster, smarter and more capable than we can imagine.
The leaders in this next chapter of travel will be the ones who embrace it as a co-pilot, using it to remove friction and free up time, while leaning even further into the human side of the experience. Knowing what to hand off and what to hold onto will become the real skill.
Choose wisely. Because even as everything changes, what matters most is holding on to the people at the center of it.
Travel will always be about people. And the advisors who succeed will be the ones who use this technology well, while deepening their ability to understand who someone is, what they want and why it matters to them. That’s what turns a booking into something meaningful.
Human travel advisors care about the outcome of the memory-making trips they plan. Human travelers will continue to keep coming back because they do.