Can AI help bring back Travel and Tourism?

Can AI help bring back Travel and Tourism?

Very similar to what was picturized in the movie Contagion, the virus has not only claimed more than a 2 million deaths, but it has unpleasantly affected global economy and causing widespread panic. The global restrictions imposed since early 2020 due to Covid-19 has brought worldwide travel to a screeching halt. This has caused 60-80% fall in international tourist arrivals during the whole year. Nevertheless, Travel will be back but the way we travel will see a dramatic change.

Though technology may have already transformed how travelers plan, book, and board their journeys over the past decade, at this crisis, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is playing a key role in helping the industry resuming back to the normalcy. It has the potential to revive operational efficiencies by enabling authorities to take better and faster decisions. It also harnesses the power of data to draw effective and valuable insights that can combat COVID-led challenges in the travel sector.

There are 3 areas where AI can impact travel to provide better assistance and uplift customer experience.

• Contactless Thermal Scanner and Face Recognition – This deadly virus has made thermal scanning vital for public outlets from shopping malls to airports and hotels. For example, travelers undergo a repeated processes of scrutinizing travel documents by various authorities like customs, immigration & airports.
• AI-powered Optical Character Recognition (OCR) - Optical Character Recognition (OCR) helps in extracting texts from physical documents and store them in digital files. AI has removed this limitation by employing Machine Learning algorithms to identify different layouts, fields, and texts in any document type. For travel companies, Optical Character Recognition has replaced manual customer data entry from identity cards, passports, etc.
• Chatbots for Instant Bookings - In the age of Artificial Intelligence, a chatbot has become imperative for business strategies regardless of industry. From routine customer interactions to complex queries, a travel virtual assistant significantly improves customer satisfaction. For example - Each hotel wishes to offer guests a great experience. Inevitably, the guests will need some or the other info about the accommodations. That’s where the Chatbots come into play.

The above three areas of AI in travel industry have one thing in common. They reduce the time taken to complete tasks while improving the accuracy of processes and outcomes. In an industry where time is critical, and information is constantly changing, these are invaluable capabilities.

The biggest advantage is the ability to personalize experiences and streamline services based on customer data. The notion of a tour bubble for a group of tourists, starting from the commencement of the journey to the zenith, if managed well, will create a distinct possibility of enhancement of the destination image post-COVID-19. The tour bubble notion will help the depleted tourism to bounce back with more assurance.

Do you think there are more ways in which AI will revolutionize the travel industry? Let's talk about your needs. For more details visit us at – www.aress.ai

About Himanshu Chate

Sr. Manager Business Development

Driven and motivated Business Development Consultant with 7+ years of experience collaborating with Sales leaders and Account executives.

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