How Can You Use AI to Create Great Travel Plan
AI, AI agent, ChatGPT
We discussed how AI was revolutionizing the travel industry in the past, now let’s talk about its implications on a personal level.
An AI Anecdote
A few months ago, during a serene Bosporus cruise in Istanbul, I met a fellow traveller who works at Amazon. She shared an amusing anecdote: she had asked ChatGPT to recommend a hotel for her stay. The AI, in all its wisdom, suggested the luxurious Four Seasons. While we chuckled at the AI’s generic suggestion, it got me thinking: the quality of an AI-generated response is directly tied to the specificity of the prompt. Without considering factors like budget, preferences, and travel dates, it’s unlikely that an AI can provide truly personalized recommendations.
Use AI to Replicate My Google Research Result for Travel Plan
On the other hand, I used the trusty search engine Google to do all my research for my trip and created a highly detailed travel plan in Notion, the popular productivity and note-taking app developed by Notion Labs. Since I know my preferences well, I was able to populate my beautifully templated Notion note with essentials like local time, weather, prayer times, daily budget, mobile data options, public transportation details, and more. Below that, I included a comprehensive itinerary with my flight arrival and departure times, hotel information, popular tourist sites, places of interest I wanted to visit, as well as restaurants and cafes I wanted to try, each scheduled down to the exact date. I also made sure to include a few extra options in case I needed to adjust my itinerary. Thanks to this plan, I didn’t have to deviate from my schedule and had a wonderful time in Istanbul.
In hindsight, I realized I could have crafted a detailed set of prompts for a generative AI tool to gather the same information with similar precision. However, I wasn’t sure if I’d get the same quality of results. I decided to test it out by using Perplexity instead, as I couldn’t get ChatGPT to directly access my Notion travel plan. So, I created a simple prompt, shared the link to my Notion travel plan with the AI, and asked it to generate a 7-day travel itinerary for Madrid in the same format. I chose Madrid because I visited it a couple of years ago after doing extensive research, so I was curious to see if Perplexity could provide a comparable plan.
A Promising Result
The result looks promising, here is what it looks like:
Itinerary:
Based on your preferences for Istanbul and the structure of your Notion travel planner, I’ve created a similar travel plan for Madrid. Here’s a 7-day itinerary for Madrid:
Day 1: Arrival and City Orientation
- Arrive in Madrid and check into your hotel
- Take a leisurely walk around Puerta del Sol and Plaza Mayor1
- Evening: Enjoy tapas in La Latina neighborhood3
Day 2: Royal Madrid
- Visit the Royal Palace of Madrid (Palacio Real)13
- Explore Almudena Cathedral
- Afternoon: Stroll through Plaza de Oriente and Sabatini Gardens
- Evening: Dinner in the Opera district
Day 3: Art and Culture
- Visit the Prado Museum13
- Explore Retiro Park13
- Evening: Watch a Flamenco show in Corral de la Morería3
Day 4: Modern Madrid
- Visit Reina Sofia Museum
- Explore the trendy Malasaña neighborhood1
- Evening: Dinner and drinks in Chueca district
Day 5: Day Trip to Toledo
- Take a day trip to Toledo (30 minutes by high-speed train)1
- Explore Toledo’s historic center, including the Cathedral and El Greco Museum
- Return to Madrid for a late dinner
Day 6: Markets and More Art
- Morning: Visit Mercado de San Miguel3
- Afternoon: Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum
- Evening: Food tour in Lavapiés neighborhood
Day 7: Madrid’s Hidden Gems
- Visit Temple of Debod at sunrise
- Explore the Literary Quarter (Barrio de las Letras)
- Afternoon: Shopping on Gran Vía
- Evening: Farewell dinner at the world’s oldest restaurant, Botín3
Transportation:
- Purchase a multi-day Tourist Travel Pass for unlimited use of public transport
- Consider using the hop-on-hop-off bus for a day to get an overview of the city2
Accommodation:
Stay in central neighborhoods like Opera, La Latina, Malasaña, or Chueca for easy access to main attractions
Food and Dining:
- Try traditional Spanish dishes like paella, cocido madrileño, and churros con chocolate
- Visit local markets and food halls for authentic experiences
- Book a food tour to explore Madrid’s culinary scene
Useful Tips:
- Book tickets for popular attractions like the Royal Palace and Prado Museum in advance to avoid long queues
- Consider a Madrid Card for free entry to many attractions and discounts
- Best time to visit: Spring (April-May) or Fall (September-October) for pleasant weather2
This itinerary provides a solid foundation for exploring Madrid’s key attractions, while also allowing for spontaneous discoveries and cultural immersions. It mirrors the structure of my Istanbul plan, considering my preferences for cultural experiences and local life with quotes for great resources. Notably, the AI even suggested a day trip to Toledo, a popular choice for many visitors. The travel plan is quite close to the one I created for myself. I believe it would have saved me a significant amount of time and effort during the research phase.
By integrating AI with automation tools, it’s conceivable that we could automate the entire travel planning process, generating detailed itineraries directly within Notion.
Key Takeaways for AI-Powered Travel Planning:
- Be Specific with Your Prompts: The more detailed your prompt, the better the AI’s response. Include specific details like dates, budget, interests, and any unique requests.
- Leverage Templates: Using a template of a previous travel plan helps the AI understand your preferences and style, leading to more tailored suggestions.
- Consider Perplexity AI: Perplexity offers a unique advantage by accessing and processing information directly from the web, providing more comprehensive and reliable results.
The Next Step
While we specialize in helping clients develop and deploy AI agents for various business applications, I believe there’s significant potential in applying AI to personal use cases.
One such application is AI-powered travel planning. By integrating Perplexity with Notion, we can create a tool that generates comprehensive travel itineraries based on user preferences. Users would simply answer a few questions about their desired destination, budget, interests, and travel style. The AI would then leverage Perplexity’s ability to access and process real-time web information to create a detailed itinerary, including:
- Day-by-day itineraries: Outlining activities, attractions, and dining options.
- Transportation recommendations: Suggesting public transport options and tips.
- Accommodation advice: Recommending suitable neighborhoods and hotels.
- Food and dining suggestions: Highlighting local cuisine, markets, and food tours.
This AI-powered travel planner would not only save users time and effort but also provide personalized recommendations tailored to their specific needs and preferences.
Also read “How is AI Revolutionizing the Travel Industry“.
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