I recently went on vacation with a good friend to Ireland for a week. We knew the basics of what we wanted to do — two different locations, a few specific destination recommendations — but we were adamant about not planning everything. We made zero restaurant reservations, zero excursion reservations, nothing. The only reservations we made ahead of time were flights and hotels, essentially.
This was vacation, we reasoned, not school. Neither of us wanted the hassle of planning. We'd go with the flow, see where the wind took us.
"And we have ChatGPT to ask where to go once we're there," my friend reminded me.
Ah yes. I was eager to try all of the ways generative AI could help me with trip planning, considering this is the wave of the future, according to all the travel experts.
ChatGPT got me started great with weather forecasting for our destination and with packing lists. I pride myself on always knowing what to pack and only that, curating the most uses out of one pair of black trousers, not fussing with extras and generally coming out okay, outfits-wise. ChatGPT's recommendations not only schooled me but converted me. I will never pack for another trip without consulting my new digital fashion consultant. It was absolutely spot-on and I can't wait for you to try it.
And that was precisely where I stopped consulting Leslie (yes, my AI assistant's name is Leslie, after Leslie Knope, from Parks & Recreation). Didn't use her once the entire trip, because instead I rediscovered the joy of talking to people.
On our first night in Dublin, I met some fun people on the hotel rooftop and asked them for a pub recommendation and it was spot-on, absolutely perfect and no tourists in sight. In Galway I asked people working in the shops I liked for their restaurant and coffee recommendations, and we just went with them — perfect every time. It was so liberating to not scroll menus on tiny screens, hemming and hawing about finding the perfect restaurant, then worrying we might not get a reservation and getting FOMO along with all that pre-planning nonsense.
And then back in Dublin, we met Luis, the concierge at The College Green Hotel. I hate to admit that as an independent and frequently solo traveler, I have never really appreciated everything concierges do in hotels because I rarely used them. On this trip, though, one conversation with Luis and immediately we had a friend. Right away he sussed out that we weren't necessarily Temple Bar-hoppers, but more bookstore and coffeeshop gals, that we loved a good breakfast and we appreciated off-the-beaten-path destinations. We wanted fun places where we could pretend to be locals, not tourists.
In just two days, we saw and tasted things in Dublin we would never have found for ourselves. And even if AI assistants had suggested the places, they certainly couldn't make a call to get us in when the restaurant or bar was fully booked, like Luis did.
And I don't need to even tell you that the conversation wouldn't be nearly as fun. Or even exist, actually.
I'll definitely continue to experiment with AI assistance for trip planning, especially in places where I don't know the language. I'm about to ask it to reorganize my entire wardrobe, honestly.
But I'll never give up talking to people in the moment and just going with their suggestions when I travel. And from now on, every time I stay at a hotel with a concierge, I'll be at that desk first thing.
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