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AI Can Plan Your Vacation - But Should It?
Last week I was in San Antonio for Travel Market 2026, and while I learned about plenty of destinations, resorts, cruise lines and travel companies, one topic came up over and over again:
AI.
How travel advisors can use it. How travelers are using it. And what it means for the future of planning vacations.
Here’s the thing: I use AI. It can be incredibly helpful.
You can ask it to find the perfect adults-only Caribbean resort, compare river cruises through Europe, or help you decide which ocean cruise is right for the kind of vacation you actually want.
Within seconds, you’ll have an answer.
The problem?
An answer isn't necessarily the RIGHT answer.
AI pulls together information from all over the internet. Some of it may be current and accurate. Some of it may be outdated. And sometimes it can confidently give you information that simply isn't true.
That's where the human part still matters.
When I'm planning your vacation, I'm not just putting together an itinerary or handing you a list of resorts and cruise ships.
I'm checking current information. I'm talking to travel partners. I'm looking at logistics and asking whether something actually makes sense. I'm using my own travel experience, training, supplier relationships and client feedback to help determine whether something is a good fit for you.
Because the adults-only resort with the prettiest pictures may not have the beach you were dreaming about.
The river cruise itinerary that sounds perfect may not be the right cruise line for how you like to travel.
And the ocean cruise AI recommends may technically visit all the places you asked for, but be completely wrong for the experience you wanted onboard.
That's the difference between finding a vacation and finding YOUR vacation.
And then there's the part AI definitely can't replace:
I'm here when you actually travel.
Flight canceled?
Transfer didn't show up?
Room isn't what you expected?
Something changed and you don't know what to do next?
You have a real person to call or text who already knows you, your trip and your reservation.
Because if something goes wrong with the vacation AI planned for you...
Who are you going to call?
Apparently one of my biggest takeaways from a travel conference in 2026 is that technology is pretty amazing.
But having an actual human in your corner still matters.
And I'm pretty happy to be that human.
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