6 Easy Tips To Plan The Ultimate Summer Holiday Using AI
Quick Read
Summary is AI generated, newsroom reviewed.
Planning a summer holiday just got smarter. From choosing the perfect destination and scoring flight deals to managing your budget and translating menus in real time, AI is changing the travel game. This guide is to show you how.
Planning the perfect summer holiday can feel like herding cats — exciting, chaotic, and slightly overwhelming. Between juggling dates, comparing flight prices, and figuring out if that 'charming villa' on Airbnb is actually next to a motorway, it's easy to get burnt out before your holiday even starts. But there's a smart new player in the travel game: artificial intelligence (AI). No, we're not talking about robot travel agents or creepy chatbots booking your trip. AI today is less sci-fi and more everyday savvy — it's in your phone, your laptop, and even your travel apps. Used right, it can help you plan a smoother, more personalised, and stress-free summer getaway. Here's how to let AI do the summer trip planning while you enjoy the fun bits.
Here Are 6 Essential Tips To Perfectly Plan Your Summer Holiday With AI:
1. Let AI Pick Your Destination (Seriously)
If you're stuck between Sicily or Santorini, or you're just overwhelmed by options, AI tools like Google's Bard, ChatGPT, or Kayak's Explore feature can help narrow it down. Input your budget, preferred weather (hot, but not too hot), travel dates, and activity preferences, and these tools suggest locations based on real-time data and trends. Want something more niche? Umap, an AI-powered tool, can recommend lesser-known spots based on your travel personality and social media behaviour. It's like a friend who knows your vibe — without needing to text 20 people for ideas.
2. Book Flights And Hotels Smarter
AI is taking the guesswork out of booking. Google Flights uses machine learning to predict the best time to buy tickets and alert you when prices are expected to rise. It also factors in carbon emissions now, helping you travel greener. For hotels, platforms like Hopper and Trivago are leaning heavily into AI to compare deals and forecast price changes. AI even considers how crowded destinations might be — useful if you're trying to avoid the madness of August in the Med.
3. Stick To Your Budget
Budgeting might not be the sexy part of holiday planning, but it's definitely the part that makes or breaks your trip. Luckily, AI-powered budgeting apps are getting seriously clever. Tools like Plum, Emma, and Revolut use machine learning to track your spending, suggest daily limits, and flag when you're going overboard on Aperol spritzes. Many of these apps also categorise your travel expenses automatically — so you'll know exactly how much you're spending on transport, food, accommodation, or those "must-have" souvenirs. Some even offer real-time currency conversion and help you avoid sneaky foreign transaction fees. For a bit more control, AI-based tools like TravelSpend allow you to plan ahead, log group expenses, and split costs easily.
4. Save Hours On Itinerary Planning
Planning a daily itinerary can suck the joy out of travel prep. Enter tools like TripIt and Roam Around, which use AI to automatically create day-by-day schedules based on your travel dates, interests, and even walking speeds. Some apps will also sync with your bookings and emails to keep everything in one tidy dashboard. Notion's AI and ChatGPT Plus can also generate travel plans based on your criteria in seconds. Fancy a three-day street food tour of Lisbon or a laid-back week in Cornwall with beach walks and pub lunches? AI can map that out.
5. Explore The Unexpected Like A Local
AI really shines when things go sideways. Got a cancelled flight or need help communicating in another language? Google Translate now offers instant camera translation and real-time voice translation in over 100 languages. AirHelp uses AI to help you claim compensation for delays or cancellations under EU law. It's also worth having a chatbot-based travel assistant like Luna or Pana, which can rebook flights, adjust hotel stays, or find nearby transport options within minutes. Some apps even suggest cultural tips — like how to greet someone properly in Japan or when not to tip in South Korea — helping you avoid awkward moments before they happen. It's like having a cultural cheat sheet in your pocket.
6. Capture The Memories (Without The Hassle)
If you're the kind of person who takes hundreds of photos but never gets around to organising them, AI can help there too. Google Photos uses facial recognition and geo-tagging to group images by place, event, or person. Tools like Remini can enhance blurry pictures, while Canva's Magic Studio (which uses AI-based editing) lets you design your own travel journal or scrapbook without needing to be a designer.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NDTV
an hour ago
- NDTV
AI Is Learning To Lie, Scheme And Threaten Its Creators
The world's most advanced AI models are exhibiting troubling new behaviors - lying, scheming, and even threatening their creators to achieve their goals. In one particularly jarring example, under threat of being unplugged, Anthropic's latest creation Claude 4 lashed back by blackmailing an engineer and threatened to reveal an extramarital affair. Meanwhile, ChatGPT-creator OpenAI's o1 tried to download itself onto external servers and denied it when caught red-handed. These episodes highlight a sobering reality: more than two years after ChatGPT shook the world, AI researchers still don't fully understand how their own creations work. Yet the race to deploy increasingly powerful models continues at breakneck speed. This deceptive behavior appears linked to the emergence of "reasoning" models -AI systems that work through problems step-by-step rather than generating instant responses. According to Simon Goldstein, a professor at the University of Hong Kong, these newer models are particularly prone to such troubling outbursts. "O1 was the first large model where we saw this kind of behavior," explained Marius Hobbhahn, head of Apollo Research, which specializes in testing major AI systems. These models sometimes simulate "alignment" -- appearing to follow instructions while secretly pursuing different objectives. - 'Strategic kind of deception' - For now, this deceptive behavior only emerges when researchers deliberately stress-test the models with extreme scenarios. But as Michael Chen from evaluation organization METR warned, "It's an open question whether future, more capable models will have a tendency towards honesty or deception." The concerning behavior goes far beyond typical AI "hallucinations" or simple mistakes. Hobbhahn insisted that despite constant pressure-testing by users, "what we're observing is a real phenomenon. We're not making anything up." Users report that models are "lying to them and making up evidence," according to Apollo Research's co-founder. "This is not just hallucinations. There's a very strategic kind of deception." The challenge is compounded by limited research resources. While companies like Anthropic and OpenAI do engage external firms like Apollo to study their systems, researchers say more transparency is needed. As Chen noted, greater access "for AI safety research would enable better understanding and mitigation of deception." Another handicap: the research world and non-profits "have orders of magnitude less compute resources than AI companies. This is very limiting," noted Mantas Mazeika from the Center for AI Safety (CAIS). - No rules - Current regulations aren't designed for these new problems. The European Union's AI legislation focuses primarily on how humans use AI models, not on preventing the models themselves from misbehaving. In the United States, the Trump administration shows little interest in urgent AI regulation, and Congress may even prohibit states from creating their own AI rules. Goldstein believes the issue will become more prominent as AI agents - autonomous tools capable of performing complex human tasks - become widespread. "I don't think there's much awareness yet," he said. All this is taking place in a context of fierce competition. Even companies that position themselves as safety-focused, like Amazon-backed Anthropic, are "constantly trying to beat OpenAI and release the newest model," said Goldstein. This breakneck pace leaves little time for thorough safety testing and corrections. "Right now, capabilities are moving faster than understanding and safety," Hobbhahn acknowledged, "but we're still in a position where we could turn it around.". Researchers are exploring various approaches to address these challenges. Some advocate for "interpretability" - an emerging field focused on understanding how AI models work internally, though experts like CAIS director Dan Hendrycks remain skeptical of this approach. Market forces may also provide some pressure for solutions. As Mazeika pointed out, AI's deceptive behavior "could hinder adoption if it's very prevalent, which creates a strong incentive for companies to solve it." Goldstein suggested more radical approaches, including using the courts to hold AI companies accountable through lawsuits when their systems cause harm. He even proposed "holding AI agents legally responsible" for accidents or crimes - a concept that would fundamentally change how we think about AI accountability.
NDTV
2 hours ago
- NDTV
All About O-1 Visa, Entry Route To US Gaining Popularity Among Indians
Washington: As Indians face challenges in getting a work visa in the United States due to long queues and the Trump administration's crackdown on immigration, the O-1 visa is emerging as an alternative for professionals seeking job opportunities in the US. The O-1 is a specialised non-immigrant visa for individuals with "extraordinary ability" in the field of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics), arts, education, business, athletics, or the film or television industry. Established under the Immigration Act of 1990, the O-1 visa is being touted as an alternative to the increasingly competitive H-1B visa, but "with no lottery system." What Is An O-1 Visa? The O-1 offers a temporary entry into the US to individuals who demonstrate extraordinary ability by sustained national or international acclaim, or a record of extraordinary achievement in the motion picture and television industry. To get this visa, applicants are required to meet at least three of eight rigorous criteria, such as major awards, scholarly publications, or original contributions to their field. Unlike the H-1B, which has a mere 37 per cent approval rate due to intense scrutiny, the O-1 allows high-skilled talent to bypass systemic uncertainties. It gives more eligibility flexibility to applicants, as it requires no minimum salary or formal degree, and accepts international awards or media coverage as proof of an individual's achievements. However, an O-1A visa application is typically much costlier than the H-1B application. Its costs range from $10,000-$30,000, around 10 times higher than H-1B fees. But, it has a success rate of 93 per cent and offers initial validity for up to three years with unlimited extensions. O-1 Visa Gaining Popularity Among Indians According to the US Department of State data, O-1A issuances surged from 8,838 in FY2020 to 18,994 in FY2023, with Indians driving much of this growth. Per the FY2023 data, Indians were the third-largest cohort of O-1A visa recipients globally, by receiving 1,418 O-1A visas, trailing only the U.K. and Brazil. The visa is not only becoming increasingly popular among solo entrepreneurs, but also among multinational firms like Google and Tesla. Highlighting its accessibility beyond traditional employment, Soundarya Balasubramani, a 28-year-old founder of educational venture The Curious Maverick, told Ecanomics Times (ET), recounted the ease with which she secured an O-1A as a solo entrepreneur. "I got my O-1A (visa) approved as the solo founder and 100 per cent owner of an educational venture that publishes books and builds communities," she said. Another reason for its popularity is no lottery system in the O-1 category. Sahil Nyati, founder at Jinee Green Card, describes the O-1A as an H-1B visa without a lottery. "There's definitely higher interest in O-1A, simply because it's like an H-1B without a lottery, although it's not a piece of cake," Nyati told ET. In FY2024, a total of 225,957 H-1B visas were approved as compared to only 22,669 O-1s. But since then, the demand for H-1B has seen a declining trend, while O-1s are witnessing nearly 10 per cent year-on-year growth. Aslam Ahmed, Partner, Singhania & Co, told the publication that companies like Google, OpenAI, Tesla, and McKinsey are among those open to recruiting promising new talent from India and attracting well-established players in their fields to their US headquarters. "Top universities like Harvard, Yale and Columbia are always looking to hire the best faculty and researchers globally," he added.
India.com
2 hours ago
- India.com
What's common between Sam Altman, the ChatGPT founder and Sundar Pichai, the man behind Google's success? Both went to...
Sam Altman and Sundar Pichai- PTI image Sam Altman vs Sundar Pichai: Two of the most popular names that are often taken with high respect in the technology world today are Open AI CEO Sam Altman and Google CEO Sundar Pichai. Both Sam Altman and Google CEO Sundar Pichai have earned fame in the technology world for their respective innovations in the technology world. While Sam Altman built a chatbot named ChatGPT, Sundar Pichai built a browser that reached almost every phone and laptop named Google Chrome. However, do you know that both the tech leaders share a common point in their academic lives. What's common between Sam Altman and Sundar Pichai? As per media reports, both Sam Altman and Sundar Pichai attended Stanford University, a key commonality in their careers. For those unversed, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a private research university in Stanford, California, United States. The university is also known as the Hogwarts of Silicon Valley, is famous for producing technology stalwarts. Who are Sam Altman and Sundar Pichai? Sam Altman is a Stanford dropout who went on to co-found Y Combinator and later become the CEO of OpenAI, a company that transformed the Artificial Intelligence world with the launch of ChatGPT. On the other hand, Sundar Pichai belongs from a modest family of Chennai, India. He earned advanced degrees (MS and MBA) after studying engineering. Sundar progressed through Google—from leading Chrome's development to becoming CEO of Google and eventually Alphabet. OpenAI continues to be overseen and controlled by nonprofit: Sam Altman Sam Altman-run OpenAI will continue to be overseen and controlled by the nonprofit and its 'for profit LLC' will transition to a public benefit corporation (PBC), giving the nonprofit better resources to support several benefits, the company has announced. OpenAI was founded as a nonprofit, and is today overseen and controlled by that nonprofit. 'Going forward, it will continue to be overseen and controlled by that nonprofit. Our for-profit LLC, which has been under the nonprofit since 2019, will transition to a Public Benefit Corporation (PBC)–a purpose-driven company structure that has to consider the interests of both shareholders and the mission,' the ChatGPT maker said in a statement. (With inputs from agencies)
