One in Five Guests Is Using AI to Find You

One in five UK travellers is already using AI to plan their trip.

Not searching Google. Not browsing Booking.com. Using AI-powered tools that surface recommendations based on personalisation signals, context, and preference patterns.

Meanwhile, mobile accounts for over 67% of all online travel bookings. OTAs hold 65% of the UK online travel market.

The booking journey has fundamentally changed. And it's changing faster than most hotel commercial teams are moving.

What AI trip planning means for hotels

Traditional search was keyword-based. A guest types "boutique hotel York" and gets a list. They click, compare, book.

AI trip planning is different. The guest describes what they want — "a characterful hotel near York for a foodie weekend with my partner" — and the AI surfaces options based on how well your property matches that description. Not your bid amount. Not your ranking. Your relevance.

This changes the game in two ways.

First, your content has to be rich, descriptive, and up to date. Across your website, your OTA listings, your Google Business profile. Every text field, every image, every review response is training data for AI recommendation engines. Thin content means you're invisible.

Second, personalisation becomes the competitive edge. Properties that can demonstrate relevance to specific traveller needs will be surfaced more often than properties with generic positioning.

Mobile isn't a channel. It's THE channel.

67% of bookings happen on mobile. If your direct booking experience isn't genuinely mobile-first — not mobile-responsive, mobile-first — you're losing bookings to OTAs every single day.

This means: fast load times, minimal form fields, one-thumb navigation, native payment options (Apple Pay, Google Pay), and a booking flow that takes fewer taps than an OTA.

Most hotel websites I audit fail this test. They're desktop sites that shrink on mobile. That's not the same thing.

The DMCC Act: a regulatory tailwind

Here's something working in hotels' favour. The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act is tightening price transparency rules. The "drip pricing" tactics that made OTAs look cheaper — showing a base rate then adding fees at checkout — are now under regulatory scrutiny.

This levels the playing field. If OTAs have to show total prices upfront, the perceived price gap between OTA and direct narrows. For properties with genuine best-rate guarantees, this is an opportunity to convert more direct bookings.

Dynamic packaging regulatory reforms are also set for June 2026, which will make it easier for hotels to compete with OTA package offerings.

What to do this quarter

Audit your content for AI discoverability. Not just SEO keywords. Rich, descriptive language that an AI recommendation engine can match to traveller intent. Think about how a guest would describe their ideal stay, then make sure your content speaks to that.

Test your mobile booking flow. Time it. Count the taps. Compare it to booking the same room on Booking.com. If your direct flow is harder, longer, or less intuitive, that's your conversion leak.

Invest in CRM and personalisation. Guest data is your competitive advantage over OTAs. Use it. Personalised pre-arrival emails, tailored offers, repeat-guest recognition. Build the relationship that an OTA marketplace cannot replicate.

Prepare for DMCC compliance. Audit all booking flows for total-price display. No hidden fees, no surprise charges at checkout. Full transparency isn't just a legal requirement — it's a conversion advantage.

The window to close the gap on OTAs is opening. But only for operators who are genuinely investing in their direct channel. Not just talking about it.

Mobile-first. AI-discoverable. Personalised. That's the standard now.