Travel Marketing Guides.

A potential customer asks ChatGPT about your hotel. The AI responds that you have a rooftop pool and spa facilities. You don't. Another person asks Claude about your tour company's safety record. It mentions an incident that never happened at a location you don't even operate in. Someone asks about your restaurant's menu, and the AI describes dishes you stopped serving two years ago.

Your content is being read. Your expertise is being cited. Your recommendations are being shared. But your website traffic is dropping. Welcome to the era of zero-click discovery, where being right doesn't automatically mean being rewarded.

There’s a strange trend emerging in travel marketing – or actually all marketing – right now. AI can write content in seconds, but AI systems are getting better at detecting and devaluing AI-generated content.

Imagine someone opens ChatGPT and asks, "Plan a 10-day honeymoon in Greece for $5,000." The AI instantly generates a detailed itinerary, suggests hotels, and lists tour operators.

Search has changed. People aren't just typing keywords into Google anymore. They're asking Siri questions while driving, snapping photos to find similar destinations, and getting answers from ChatGPT instead of clicking through ten websites.

If you’re feeling like digital marketing has become a bit of an alphabet soup, you’re not alone. First, we mastered SEO, then we learned all about AEO, and now we need to understand GEO. Where does GEO fit in? Is it just a new name for the same thing, or is it a different beast entirely?

We’re sure you’re tired of hearing it, but here it is again: the digital marketing landscape is changing at breakneck speed. 2026 promises to be exciting, innovative, and pivotal for brands looking to find and secure clients.

As more travel brands invest in answer engine optimisation (AEO), we're seeing patterns emerge – not just in what works, but in what doesn't. After working with travel companies implementing AEO strategies, we've identified recurring mistakes that undermine visibility, waste resources, and delay results.

As answer engine optimisation (AEO) gains momentum, we're hearing a recurring question from travel brands: "Should we shift our budget from SEO to AEO?" The short answer is no. The slightly longer answer? Both disciplines are essential – they serve different purposes, and the smartest travel brands are learning to balance them strategically.

AI search is rapidly reshaping how people plan their trips. Travellers are no longer typing short keywords into Google. They’re asking conversational, scenario-based questions such as “What’s the best safari park for couples who hate crowds?” or “Where should I stay in Cape Town for £150 a night with beach access?”

For years, travel brands have focused on SEO to rank in Google searches. While traditional search engines aren't going anywhere, AI-powered search tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Google's AI Overviews are rapidly changing the game.

Here's the thing about travel websites: they need to do something rather extraordinary. They need to make someone feel the warmth of a sunset they haven't seen, taste food they haven't eaten, and trust an experience they haven't had, all before handing over their credit card details.