Report
Artificial intelligence can also be used to plan travel routes and bundle tips for tourists. The industry is paying close attention to this trend. But how does this work in practice? A city guide tried.
Brent Foster was curious. The Californian has been working as a city guide in his adopted home Hamburg since 2010 – he knows the city like the back of his hand. But in the age of ChatGPT, his job may soon be under threat. For example, if you come to Hamburg as a tourist, you can use the artificial intelligence ChatGPT to pop up walking directions or compile a form with travel tips.
From a three-week round trip in Thailand to a short walk in Hamburg: ChatGPT seems familiar. A threat to travel experts like Foster? A city guide tests the scheme at the Hamburg City Hall Market – and gives the following “hint” (ie instruction): “Give me an hour to explore Hamburg.”
The question is still general, and the answer is equally general – from the Rathausmarkt, continue to the Jungfernstieg, follow the Binnenalster, return via the Mönckebergstraße, and return to the terminus to admire its “impressive architecture”. Foster thinks: You can do it, but it’s also a standard thing. Is there more?
Add statues to town hall
Travel planning with ChatGPT is still an insider tip, but it’s already being used by influencers and travel bloggers. For example, influencer Diana zur Löwen recently used the tool to plan a trip to London. Her advice: Be specific about what your interests are and what your travel bans are.
The more ChatGPT knows about your profile and travel wishes, the better it can respond. It doesn’t have to be done by request, either: “You can also ask ChatGPT counterquestions, so that you can actually have a full conversation with it,” says zur Löwen. “It’s really worth trying bit by bit.”
City guide Brent Foster in front of Hamburg’s town hall. ChatGPT is unable to provide any reliable information about elevations.
City guide Foster is testing conversations with artificial intelligence at the Hamburg City Hall and wants to learn from ChatGPT the meaning of the statues on the façade. The answer came quickly, but disappointingly: the AI only correctly identified one of the five characters mentioned, but it also added new ones.
For example, long-serving city tour guides have yet to spot Karl Marx on the front, and inquiries to the tourist office show that no one here has ever heard of Karl Marx. Digital travel companions are still prone to errors. Influencer zur Löwen recommends that you check out these tips “or just use them as a basis, then think about it and check against them”.
TUI hopes to use the technology soon
Despite the error-prone nature of AI, the travel industry is watching developments closely and has already developed its own ideas on how to use the technology. Oliver Rengelshausen, Chairman of the Digitization Committee of the German Tourism Association: “I see test projects being called everywhere, curiosity everywhere.” The topic was discussed at the meeting and the association members accepted Train and discuss ideas.
At TUI Travel Group, some ideas are about to be put into practice. Christian Rapp is a press spokesman for the TUI Group, responsible for technical issues and reporting on the artificial intelligence project for travel agencies: “In the Netherlands we want to make it easier for travel agencies of travel agencies to find information systems in our own internal information”.
It’s not meant to replace travel agent workers, but AI could help them get information faster. Our expectation is that “certain tasks will be made easier and can be done faster so that our travel agency colleagues actually have more time to do what they really do: provide personal advice to clients.”
Elbphilharmonie as “insider information”
So far, city guide Foster isn’t worried that his trip to Hamburg will be replaced – as he returns from a ChatGPT round, he points to a bright yellow umbrella and a group of tourists in front of Hamburg’s town hall: City tour Fellow of Robin and the Guide. Very well visited. According to Foster, there is still no substitute for this personal touch.
And: Chat GPT has not yet convinced him, important information is lost during short trips, errors occur when there are queries, and planned routes are somewhat unrealistic. Perhaps a vehicle for starting life in a new city? “You might get your first glimpse of a city you didn’t know,” he said.
Finally, he tested again whether a very precise request would lead to better results: What does ChatGPT have inside scoop for classical music lovers in Hamburg? The answer is sobering: the Elbphilharmonie is recommended as an insider tip. After that, artificial intelligence will also recommend concerts such as the Hamburg University of Music, which is actually more inside information. Artificial intelligence travelers still need to be patient and try more.