Britons Turn to AI for Holidays

British travellers have become Europe’s most active users of artificial intelligence and social media in holiday planning. New research from MMGY Travel Intelligence shows that digital assistants, video platforms and social recommendations are quickly moving from secondary tools to core channels for choosing destinations, itineraries, hotels and trip formats.

AI becomes the new travel adviser

The UK travel market is entering 2026 with a visible change in consumer behavior. Until recently, travellers mainly relied on search engines, tour operator websites, reviews, friends’ recommendations and traditional guidebooks. Now artificial intelligence and social media are playing a much larger role.

HospitalityNet, citing research by MMGY Travel Intelligence, reported that 52% of British travellers use artificial intelligence tools to plan trips. A year earlier, the figure was 40%. The 12-percentage-point increase was the strongest among the major European markets covered by the study.

Artificial intelligence in travel refers to software systems that help users choose destinations, build itineraries, compare options, find holiday ideas, estimate budgets and generate personalized recommendations based on a prompt. Unlike ordinary search, these tools respond in a conversational format and can assemble a complex itinerary within minutes.

ChatGPT becomes the leading platform

According to MMGY Travel Intelligence, ChatGPT is the most widely used artificial intelligence platform among British travellers, used by 35% of respondents. The main use case is generating travel inspiration and ideas, cited by 47% of users.

This is an important change for the travel industry. At first, artificial intelligence was treated as an experimental service for technically advanced users. It is now becoming a normal part of the consumer journey: a person asks about a beach holiday, city break, family trip or food itinerary and receives a set of options before visiting an airline or hotel website.

For hotels, tour operators, cities and national tourism boards, this changes the rules of visibility. In the past, ranking in search results and on travel platforms was crucial. Now a brand also has to be understandable to the algorithm that forms an answer and offers the user a limited set of destinations.

Social media becomes a second search engine

The study also found that 46% of British travellers say social media influences their holiday decisions. Another 32% use social platforms to research and follow destinations. YouTube and Instagram were identified as the most influential channels.

Social media is changing the logic of travel choice. A user often first sees a short video, atmospheric review, influencer itinerary, restaurant selection or visual image of a place, and only then starts checking prices, flights, visas and hotels. As a result, a destination can become popular not through a classic advertising campaign, but through a series of viral clips and recommendations.

For the market, this creates both opportunities and risks. A small city, resort or hotel can quickly gain an international audience. But such demand is often unstable: it depends on trends, seasonality, influencers and platform algorithms. If the social media image of a destination differs from reality, the risk of disappointment, negative reviews and reputational damage increases.

British travellers become Europe’s digital leaders

The 2026 Portrait of European Travellers compares travellers from the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. Against that background, Britons stand out not only for high use of artificial intelligence, but also for the speed with which their habits are changing.

There are several reasons for this. The UK market has long been advanced in online booking, package holidays, air travel, independent planning and price comparison. Travel is an important part of consumer spending, while competition among airlines, hotels, tour operators and platforms has made users sensitive to convenience and search speed.

British travellers also often choose international destinations and compare many options in advance: the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, the United States, the Middle East, Southeast Asia and European city breaks. Artificial intelligence fits this model well because it narrows a wide choice quickly and turns chaotic search into a structured itinerary.

Hotels and tour operators lose the first contact

For hotels and travel companies, the main challenge is that the first contact with the customer increasingly does not happen on their own website. A traveller may start with a chatbot question, a YouTube review, an Instagram collection or a social media discussion. Only after that does the booking process begin.

This changes marketing. Traditional search engine optimization remains important, but it is no longer enough. Brands need to monitor how they appear in open sources, reviews, videos, maps, forums, user photos and structured data. If information is outdated, contradictory or poorly describes the product, artificial intelligence may simply exclude the property from a recommendation.

The Guardian previously reported that major travel groups, including TUI, are already investing in optimization for generative systems, meaning services that provide ready-made answers rather than lists of links. For the industry, this is the next stage after classic search engine optimization: the competition is not only for clicks, but for inclusion in AI recommendations.

AI speeds up choice but raises error risks

Speed is the main advantage of artificial intelligence for travellers. In a few minutes, it can suggest a one-week route, compare districts, select hotels by travel style, list restaurants and estimate a budget. For users overwhelmed by choice, this reduces decision fatigue.

But the technology has a weak point. Artificial intelligence can provide outdated information, confuse entry rules, invent non-existent places, misjudge distances or recommend attractions that have closed. Errors are especially risky in visas, health requirements, baggage rules, transport schedules and booking cancellation conditions.

Amadeus noted in a separate study that Britons are increasingly turning to generative artificial intelligence and travel influencers, but traditional sources still matter. That caveat is important: even digital users have not fully abandoned friends’ advice, official websites, trusted agencies and verified reviews.

Social media strengthens emotional travel

Social media is especially powerful where the decision is emotional. A beautiful beach, unusual hotel, food market, music festival, sports event or short urban route sells better through a visual image than through a dry description.

For British travellers, this fits a broader trend toward interest-led trips. Travel is increasingly built not only around a country, but around an event, lifestyle or personal passion: food, sport, music, nature, wellness, shopping, architecture or family experiences. Social media provides the idea, while artificial intelligence turns it into a route.

For destinations, this creates an opportunity to move beyond mass advertising. A city can promote not only landmarks, but also neighborhoods, local cuisine, walking routes, small hotels, seasonal events and experiences that work well in video format.

Booking becomes more personalized

The more travellers use artificial intelligence, the higher their expectations for personalization become. Users no longer want just a list of hotels. They expect suggestions based on budget, dates, family composition, travel style, meals, transport and time constraints.

This may intensify competition among suppliers. A hotel that clearly describes rooms, facilities, district, transport, child policies, accessibility and real advantages has a better chance of appearing in a relevant recommendation. Properties with thin descriptions, outdated photos and incomplete information will lose ground.

For online agencies and tour operators, artificial intelligence is both a threat and a tool. The threat is that users can bypass part of the traditional sales funnel. The tool is that companies can integrate AI into their own platforms, speed up trip selection and keep customers inside their ecosystem.

Regulation and trust become the next barrier

As artificial intelligence plays a larger role in travel, responsibility will become a bigger issue. If a system recommends an unsuitable district, gets a visa rule wrong or suggests a hotel that fails to meet expectations, the traveller will look for accountability: the platform, the tour operator, the hotel or the technology provider.

For the industry, this means transparency. Users need to know what data the system uses, why it recommends a specific option, whether the result is advertising, how current the information is and who is responsible for errors.

Personal data is especially sensitive. Travel planning reveals routes, budgets, family composition, dates away from home, interests and sometimes medical or dietary needs. The more AI is involved in planning, the higher the requirements for protecting that data.

Travel shifts from search to dialogue

The main change in 2026 is that travel search is becoming conversational. Travellers no longer enter isolated keywords and open dozens of tabs. They describe a task: “I need an affordable beach holiday with a child in August,” “I want a three-day city break with good food and museums,” or “build a route without renting a car.” The system responds with a ready-made scenario.

For the industry, this means a shift from destination advertising to destination data management. The winners will be countries, cities, hotels and tour operators that can be visible on social media, understandable to AI and reliable when users verify the facts.

The UK market has become an early indicator of this transition. The high share of AI users shows that the habit is moving beyond a youth experiment and becoming mass behavior. But trust in the technology will depend on accuracy, transparency and the industry’s ability to correct errors before they damage a trip.

As reported by International Investment experts, the rise of artificial intelligence use among British tourists is not a fashion trend, but a structural shift in demand distribution. Hotels, airlines and destinations no longer control the first point of contact with the customer: algorithms and social platforms increasingly occupy that space. The main risk for the industry is that weak digital visibility may become as damaging commercially as a poor location or outdated rooms.

FAQ: AI and social media in travel planning

How many British travellers use AI to plan trips?

According to MMGY Travel Intelligence, 52% of British travellers used artificial intelligence tools for trip planning in 2026. A year earlier, the figure was 40%.

Which AI platform is most popular among British tourists?

ChatGPT was identified as the most widely used platform. It is used by 35% of British travellers surveyed in the study.

What do tourists use artificial intelligence for?

They most often use AI to find inspiration, choose destinations, build itineraries, compare options and personalize trips based on budget, dates and interests.

How does social media influence holiday choice?

Social media lets travellers see destinations through videos, photos, reviews and other people’s experiences. According to the study, 46% of British travellers say social media influences their holiday decisions.

Which social platforms matter most for travel?

YouTube and Instagram were named as the most influential platforms for travel inspiration. They are especially strong in visual decisions about destinations, hotels, routes and experiences.

What are the risks of AI travel planning?

The main risks are outdated information, errors in visa rules, wrong distances, non-existent places, inaccurate prices and recommendations that do not reflect a traveller’s real constraints.