Google’s Bold AI Travel Tools Change Summer Trip Planning

Mountain View, California, March 27, 2025 – Planning a summer getaway has just had a high-tech ride. Google launches ​a wave of smart features, ​infused by AI through its most popular platforms – Search, Maps and Gemini – all designed to ease the chaos of travel planning. ​In a ​movement that places Google squarely against competitors like OpenAI ChatGPT in the auxiliary travel space, the technology giant mixes artificial intelligence with practical travel tools to help users create, plan and organize travel without breaking sweat.

Updates come when users ​are ​increasingly looking beyond traditional travel agencies or websites to help organize a vacation. According to Google, people now trust smart assistants not ​only to look for flying times, ​but to ask broader and personal questions like “Where should I go if I like ​waterfalls and hiking?” or “Help me make a trip to Costa Rica in July.” The company ​is inclined to this ​change with new tools that bring travellers where ​they are, often on their phones and need advice.

What is ​the new Google travel planner in search?

One of the ​highlights is the update of Google Search AI Summaries, which now helps build custom travel routes. Imagine ​writing ​”creating an ​itinerary for Costa Rica with a focus on nature”, and immediately receiving a complete plan for several days. AI offers ​activities, links to ​photos and magazines, and presents everything on an ​interactive map that you can expand, expand or explore in detail.

This tool is currently available ​for research in English in ​the United States on mobile and desktop. Once you have completed ​a route you want, Google facilitates the export of your plans directly to ​Google Docs, Gmail, or save ​it as a list in Google Maps. ​According to Google’s official blog, this feature aims to bridge the gap between discovery and execution, making it easier than ever to switch inspiration to a reserved trip on a question of ​clicks.

How does the Gemini ‘Gems’ function increase personal travel ​planning?

Beyond Search, Google integrates travel planning directly into Gemini, its advanced AI assistant. The new Gemini ‘Gems’ feature allows users to create customized AI experts tailored to specific needs. For travellers, this ​means the ability to build a Gem that acts as a virtual travel agent. Do you want help deciding between Japan and Portugal? Ask your Gem. Do you need a checklist ​for a backpack trip to Southeast ​Asia? ​Your ​Gem can handle ​this too.

And the best part? Now it’s free for everyone. ​According to Google, the Gems function represents a leap towards a more personalized AI – turning what was once a ​general-purpose chatbot into something that feels more ​like a ​useful friend and aware of the context that turns out to know a lot about airline fares and the best gelato points in ​Rome.

Can ​I follow hotel prices ​like flights?

Yeah, and ​it’s time. Google’s price tracking tool for flights ​has been for a while, but ​it is now expanding to include hotels. Whether you are planning a last-minute getaway in the Caribbean or opening a romantic cabin ​in Maine months in advance, you can now receive email alerts when hotel prices ​fall for your selected dates and destinations.

To ​use the ​function, ​simply apply the desired filters in ​a hotel search – such as the number of ​stars or the proximity to the beach – and ​then shout the “track prices” to move. ​If a better case appears, you will be automatically informed. According ​to a Google statement, this feature ​works worldwide this week on mobile and desktop browsers.

How Google Maps uses AI to organize holiday screenshots?

Let’s be honest: Most of us take food deals, hiking routes or attractions we want to remember, and then quickly forget that we have never ​saved them. ​Google Maps solves this problem with a ​new feature ​that scans images and makes them ​usable.

Allowed by Gemini’s artificial intelligence, ​Maps can now access your screenshots (with ​permission) and identify the names of the places ​mentioned in the text. There is no ​need for a luxury image ​recognition – all this concerns ​reading what is already visible. Once identified, locations can be saved in a custom list, with map pins ​and shared links. This feature is launched for the first time in iOS in the US in English, with Android support ​coming soon.

“The mapping function ensures you don’t ​lose the ​coffee ​track or the hidden beach someone sent ​you last week,” said a Google Maps spokesperson. “Everything you keep appears on your card, so your trip is always ​within your reach.”

How does Gemini inspire travel ideas from scratch?

The initiation of a travel plan may feel like watching a blank canvas. You know you want to leave, but where? Gemini ​is designed to fill these gaps. Ask him for something wide ​like ​”Help me find ​a ​summer vacation place with good food and hiking,” and he ​will return a mix of ​destinations, flights, YouTube guides and packaging tips.

This conversational exchange of ideas format makes Gemini a powerful option for early planning. You can also get good results ​on the fly. Don’t you feel that first suggestion? Ask for alternatives. You ​want to keep the budget tight? Request options ​below $1,000. Gemini’s flexibility and speed contrast ​strongly with static lists found in travel blogs or ​booking ​sites.

Which ​destinations are trending this summer ​according to Google?

Google’s flight data offers a look at where people ​expect to spend their summer ​of 2025. Internationally, destinations like Curaçao, Osaka, Saint Lucia and ​Tokyo are warming up. Inside, places like San Juan, Puerto Rico, and even the lesser known Billings, Montana, see more interest.

According to a Google ​Travel trend report, ​people ​gravitate to places that offer adventure ​and relaxation. Easy access ​to outdoor activities is cited as an increasing priority, which could explain ​why Montana and Alaska (including ​Juneau) are emerging in research trends. ​Meanwhile, romantic cabin escapes ​become a ​desired theme, and items such as compression packaging cubes ​and vacuum bags ​are among the main search for travel, a sign that effective packaging remains a ​hot theme.

What’s next for Google’s travel ecosystem?

In its current state, Google creates what it feels like as ​an ecosystem rather than a ​collection of tools. You investigate your search trip, feel inspired and organized through Gemini, book with Flights and Hotels, and gather everything in Maps. Perfect integration offers a ​level of continuity that travel applications have long struggled to provide.

However, deployment is not yet universal. Some features are only US and iOS- first, like ​the screenshot tool on cards, which could raise eyebrows in the Android community. ​However, Google insists that Android support is on its way, although no difficult date has been confirmed.

“If you’re planning a car or continent trip, we want to make ​sure that Google helps ​at every stage,” ​said a representative of the research team.

In the end, these updates mark a silent ​but important change: Google no longer wants to answer its questions – it wants to be part of the ​conversation. As travel and curiosity grow, these IA-driven tools can change not ​only ​the way we plan travel, but also the way ​we dream about it.

With summer on the horizon ​and vagrant ascension, Google’s latest updates could ​be just the travel partner I didn’t know I needed.