What’s changed since last year—and what it means for how destinations get discovered now

Insights from DMOs across the country on budgets, measurement, AI, and storytelling—plus how destinations are adapting to drive real impact in a changing travel landscape.

Last year, we introduced AI for Travel. Since then, AI has moved deeper into how travelers search, plan, and decide.

It’s no longer just supporting inspiration. AI is now influencing more of the traveler journey—shaping what gets surfaced, how options are compared, and how quickly decisions are made.

AI for Travel 2.0 is a focused update on what’s changed—and how destination marketing needs to adapt right now.

WHAT YOU’LL FIND INSIDE

  • What’s changed in AI-driven travel discovery
  • How visibility is shifting across search and AI surfaces
  • Where traditional content strategies are losing traction
  • What leading destination teams are doing differently
  • A practical view of how to move forward

WHY THIS MATTERS

  • The way destinations get found is evolving quickly.
  • Travelers are getting answers faster.
  • Destinations that adjust early will be better positioned as these shifts accelerate.
  • And the signals that determine visibility are changing.
  • Fewer steps are separating discovery from decision.

FILL OUT THE FORM TO DOWNLOAD YOUR WHITEPAPER

Share This Story, Choose Your Platform!

  • May 5, 2026

    Why Slow Data Is Killing Your Marketing Strategy

    Josh GibsonJosh Gibson has visited all 57 of Tennessee's state parks. That's not a trivia detail — it's the origin story. He came up through digital and social strategy for the Tennessee state park system, left for a stint in product management at FedEx, and came back because mission-driven work turned out to matter more than the compensation that replaced it. Now [...]

    1 min read•By •Published On: May 5th, 2026•
  • May 5, 2026

    Your Website Isn’t the Center Anymore: Marketing in a Zero-Click World

    This is the shift most teams are still underestimating. The website is no longer the center of the journey. It’s just one input. In the episode, Eric Hultgren frames this as a “Copernicus moment” and it’s exactly right. We’ve spent years optimizing for: TrafficClicksSessions But now: Travelers get answers without visiting your siteAI systems synthesize information before users ever [...]

    1 min read•By •Published On: May 5th, 2026•
  • April 28, 2026

    The Best Travel Marketing Gets People to Log Off

    Pinterest recently launched a campaign encouraging people to spend less time on social media.

    2 min read•By •Published On: April 28th, 2026•