Travel technology is shifting from helping travelers plan to helping make the trip happen, and AI remains the biggest force behind that change.

The Business Research Company valued the global AI in hospitality and tourism market at US$20.47 billion in 2025, and expects it to reach US$58.56 billion by 2029.

According to Phocuswright’s March 2026 research, 56% of active US travelers used AI for at least one trip in the past year, but the more significant development in 2026 is what agentic AI is beginning to do. What started with itinerary suggestions and conversational search is moving toward systems that can compare options, make recommendations and eventually book on a traveler’s behalf. Travel market researcher Phocuswright found that 61% of travel executives are already experimenting with or scaling agentic AI, while 83% of travel businesses use generative AI in some capacity.

Hotels, airlines and travel platforms can now combine booking history, loyalty information, browsing behavior, location and real-time demand to shape what an individual customer sees.

That is changing both pricing and merchandising. Rather than offering every traveler the same room package or ancillary bundle, systems can increasingly serve offers according to context: a late check-out to one guest, a transfer to another, or a different room recommendation altogether.

Hotels are also moving toward attribute-based selling, where guests choose the specific elements of a stay they value. A particular view, larger bed, higher floor or breakfast package can become individually selectable. Recent Amadeus research found that 74% of travelers expect some form of personalization, adding pressure on hotels to make their inventory more flexible.

Recognition technology is making that experience more seamless. Biometric tools such as facial recognition and fingerprints can already support check-in, room access and identity verification. Airports show how quickly travelers are becoming comfortable with the technology: IATA’s 2025 passenger survey found that 50% had already used biometrics during an airport journey, while 74% said they would share biometric information to avoid repeatedly showing passports or boarding passes.

Automation is becoming more visible on the ground too. Service robots are already being used for hotel deliveries, cleaning and simple guest requests, reducing the time staff spend on repetitive tasks. Phocuswright expects robotics, digital identity and other automated systems to become more closely integrated into the hotel experience as AI develops.

There is, however, a trade-off. Greater personalization and automation depend on ever larger volumes of customer data. As travel companies connect more systems and collect more payment, identity and behavioral information, cybersecurity becomes harder to ignore. According to Statista, 89% of hotel IT leaders rank cybersecurity as their top technology investment priority for 2027, putting data protection and system security firmly alongside customer-facing innovation.

Key figures

US$58.56 billion
projected value of the global AI in hospitality and tourism market by 2029

56%
of active US travelers used AI for at least one trip in the past year

89%
of hotel IT leaders rank cybersecurity their top tech investment priority for 2027