speaker-0 (00:00)
If you've started planning a trip recently, there's a good chance you've opened up an AI tool and asked it to build you an itinerary. And honestly, that's not a bad place to start. You can get ideas very quickly. You can compare destinations. You can even map out a rough version of what your trip could look like. But here's where things start to break down. AI doesn't know what it doesn't know. It assumes connections are easy.
It assumes timing works. It assumes everything runs exactly the way it's supposed to. And anyone who's traveled, even a little, knows that that's not how it works. So today, we're going to talk about using a travel advisor and where AI fits into travel planning, and also where it falls short. We'll break down how working with a travel advisor actually works, because there's been a lot of misinformation
around lately, especially when it comes to the cost of working with a travel advisor. And if you're someone who's always helping friends and family plan trips, we'll show you how that could turn into something more.
Speaker 2 (01:15)
We're Scott and Melissa, The Sunshine Travelers.
Speaker 1 (01:17)
We're all about exploring the world and sharing the journey with you. Whether you're a seasoned traveler, dreaming of your next adventure, or just here for the stories.
Speaker 2 (01:25)
No matter where you are on your travel journey, we've got first-hand experiences, tips, and plenty of inspiration from some of the most amazing places on Earth.
Speaker 1 (01:34)
So buckle up and get ready to travel with us.
speaker-0 (01:42)
Well, so we've been seeing a big shift lately in how people are planning travel. And a lot of that's being driven by companies like Google rolling out more advanced AI tools or the advanced capabilities in tools like Claude You can ask for a full itinerary and in seconds you've got flights, hotels and things to do all mapped out. And to be fair, that's helpful, especially early on when you're trying to figure out what a trip
could look like. But where we start to see problems is when people treat that output like it's ready to just go ahead and book. Because at the end of the day, AI is really just organizing information. It's not drawing from any kind of experience or it doesn't even really know that three minutes between trains isn't enough because it's never caught a train before.
We've also seen AI blunders firsthand. Just on our island where we live, we came across an article that was clearly AI generated and it recommended going up into the lighthouse is one of the top things to do. Well, this would be a great suggestion, except you can't go up into the lighthouse. It's not open to the public.
And we've also seen recommendations for restaurants that have been closed for years before the article was ever even written. And that's the issue is that AI doesn't know what's current. If it doesn't have updated data that it can input, it's going to make some assumptions and it doesn't know what's actually possible.
speaker-1 (03:20)
And even when it gets something technically right, it just doesn't have context. You might ask it to find you a specific hotel brand in a destination and it will give you one if there's one there. But it doesn't know if that hotel is convenient to everything else you're planning to do or the things that you want to do. And here's a great example that we noticed recently in Fez, Morocco.
Now we didn't book any hotels, I was just curious because we had not seen any chain hotels if there were some in the area. We like to use Marriott sometimes so I just went to the Bonvoy app and just happened to look. There was a Marriott hotel and the address was in Fez but it was like 20 minutes outside the Medina.
And was a massive like Marriott Resort as well.
And the Medina is the epicenter of most of the tourism in Fez where you're actually going to want to spend your time. And when most people go to Morocco they think I want to stay in a Riyadh or something like that. You can stay in a Marriott hotel anywhere else in the world. the cost is probably not going to make sense.
Morocco as well. So that's just like one small example of where something like that is just not going to give you the best result.
speaker-0 (04:34)
Exactly. And what's interesting is if you go back and you challenge the AI tool that you're using, it'll often agree with you. You can point out a better option to it and it'll come back and say, you're right. That is a better suggestion, which kind of proves the point. It's not making judgment calls. It's reacting. It's using predictive analysis that certain things will go together and travel
planning, real travel planning, is about judgment, knowledge, and expertise. So let's talk about an example of something that we're dealing with on the trip that we're on right now. We were trying to figure out how to get from the Amalfi Coast over to Puglia and we don't have a car.
Right, so we're traveling on this long trip, we're trying to use trains and things like that as much as possible. And the obvious answer usually in Europe is to catch a train.
But when you look at it, the route doesn't make any sense. So we would have to go north first and then make a connection and go back south to Puglia. And it turns out to be a really long and inefficient travel day. So instead, here's where we decided we would rent a car in Salerno and we would drive across. We wanted to have a car once we got to Puglia anyway.
So we just rented the car in Salerno and now we're gonna drive to Puglia rather than taking the rail transportation. And this is the kind of decision that comes from our own experiences. Looking at all the options and choosing what actually works best, not just what seems obvious.
speaker-1 (06:23)
Scott, the other thing I think about that is people assume in Europe you can take trains everywhere. If you are in southern Spain, that's not going to be the case. You might be able to take trains to the big cities, but then you're going to have to take a bus. Right now, because they've had lots of flooding and things like that in southern Spain, the trains have actually been canceled.
being able to work with somebody and talk to somebody who has that experience. The other thing, like for example, the UK is very well connected, but let's say you want to go into the little villages in the Cotswolds, using the bus is going to be hard to do that. and so if you're not working with somebody who knows that, I can give you more examples, Ireland, Scotland, it's just going to be much more difficult to get around. So the perception that you can take trains everywhere,
in Europe is just not necessarily the case.
And so I think that's the difference. When you're working with someone, they're also gonna help you think through how your day is actually going to feel. Not just what technically gets you from one place to the other, but what is gonna make it smoother and easier and more enjoyable. And sometimes the more people you have, the train for example, or the buses are gonna end up being...
really, really expensive and it might make more sense to take a taxi or to rent a car. And I'll give you another example. when we arrived in Bologna, apartment host messaged you and said,
you can take the shuttle to the Marconi Express, then walk 15 minutes. But then she said, but if you've got two people, it just makes sense to take a taxi.
So I have no idea what in those cases AI is gonna suggest to you.
speaker-0 (08:10)
So one of the things that prompted this episode was a recent article that suggested you should use a travel advisor to plan your trip and then go book everything on your own to save money. Well, on the surface, I guess that might sound like a smart move. To me, it's unethical, right? You're taking someone's time and experience and then, not compensating them for it.
But in reality, it's just wrong in how everything works. In many cases, when you use a travel advisor, it doesn't cost you anything at all.
A couple of examples, if you're booking a cruise or an all-inclusive resort, the supplier is paying the advisor a commission. The traveler doesn't pay any of that. Matter of fact, you're paying the exact same price you would pay if you went and did all of the work and booked it yourself. And in some cases, you might even end up with a better rate or added perks because of the relationships and access that advisors
have with those suppliers.
speaker-1 (09:18)
Scott,
I just wanted to chime in on that. I book a lot of Disney trips, for example. I know when the discounts come out. I know how to look for them and how to go through the system. I can't tell you how many times I have saved my personal clients money by knowing what to look for and when to change into certain things and how to swap them over when deals come out. Now all companies don't have that ability. A lot of times
the price you pay when you book, but that's just a perfect example and then can go through and do that for all my clients.
And then beyond that, you're also getting someone who's managing everything for you. So you're not tracking when payments are due. You're not coordinating with suppliers to try to figure out what happens if something changes. You're not having to worry about getting the reminders of, you know, booking dining reservations or extras that might come along with whatever that trip is that you're booking. All that's handled for you and getting reminders and, and maybe even having the advisor do that for you
just depending on what the situation is. I think that's something that people don't always factor in, the time and effort that goes into managing a trip, even after it's booked.
speaker-0 (10:31)
Exactly. You're not just paying for a booking. You're getting the experience that goes behind it, the support that comes with it. know, several years ago, we used an advisor to help us book a Mediterranean cruise. The advisor had just recently sailed on that very particular ship and was able to help us choose between staterooms based on her experience. It actually saved us some money because we ended up choosing a room that said partially obstructed view, but she
that it meant there was a half wall on our balcony. It was a cheaper room and we still had this amazing view. And now there are some situations though where a travel advisor may charge a planning fee. If you're putting together a custom itinerary like a trip through Tuscany, a safari or something with multiple stops and lots of moving parts, that fee reflects the time, the complexity,
and expertise that's needed to make sure that everything works together. a good example or a good analogy to use is you could go and do your own taxes. But if you have complicated business taxes or expenses or income probably best to seek out the help of an experienced tax expert.
I know this from consecutive years where I got under reporting notices from the IRS, right? And we decided this is getting too complicated for us to manage ourselves. And would you expect,
that tax expert to do all of that work for free? No. Well, the same goes for the time and expertise you're getting from a travel advisor.
And then sometimes when you're booking travel, it may make sense to actually do it yourself. For example, if you're booking two nights at a hotel as a part of a long weekend getaway, that's probably something you can handle yourself. Go to the hotel website or booking.com and book the room. We would always ask that you use our affiliate link on booking.com.
from our website when you do this, but it isn't something that requires the help of a travel advisor unless you just don't want to do it yourself.
Sometimes, especially on long trips with moving parts, there are hidden costs that you aren't aware of, and this is where a travel advisor really helps out.
We've seen a real example of this recently. Someone we know had an itinerary mapped out and decided to book it on their own, thinking that they would save money. And what ended up happening was quite the opposite. The trip went from what should have been about a 14 hour journey to nearly three days of travel, multiple connections that weren't available as an extension of the first part of the itinerary. All of this
turned into extra airport hotel stays, had more transportation costs that were mixed in there. And when you add it all up, not just the cost, but the time, it ended up being significantly more expensive for this traveler.
speaker-1 (13:40)
And that's where I think usually things go wrong. It's not the big decisions. It's the small ones that really add up. A slightly cheaper flight that adds hours to your day. A connection that looks fine on paper but leaves absolutely no room for delays. We know firsthand that a two hour international connection at London Heathrow just absolutely is not enough.
and you'll likely miss your connecting flight.
experienced travel advisor is aware of these potential pitfalls and will work with you to try to avoid them everywhere possible because an extra hour in a layover might save you hours and hours in a misconnection. And misconnections is one of the things that can completely change a great trip into a disaster, especially when you're jet lagged.
speaker-0 (14:29)
Yeah,
we ran into this coming back from Slovakia. We just didn't have enough time at Heathrow. And that's why we wanted to talk about this. We had a little bit of a delay in leaving and we had some tight connections that need to be made. And so by the time we got into London Heathrow, we went through all of the, customs and border
control went up to the gate to get on to our next flight because
We were gonna try to get away for the weekend and go to Brussels. Neither of us have ever been to Belgium. And we missed that flight. Now it turned into a great weekend. We made the best out of it. And we learned about Hampton Court Palace in London. And I absolutely love it. But guess what? We've never been to Belgium still. It's still on our list of places to go. And that was because we didn't have enough time.
But those are things that we've experienced and now we can share that with our travelers.
Then there's also the part of travel that AI just can't replicate, which is the experience itself. If you take a recent trip to Morocco,
and you went to AI and you asked it, what should I do in Morocco? It'll give you a solid list. In Marrakesh, explore the winding streets of the Medina, visit the souks, go out to the desert. All of those things are 100 % valid. Now as a travel advisor, I would recommend that you have a guide in Morocco, someone that can show you around the Medina, help you navigate the souks, and even bargain to get
best price on that souvenir that you want. They will also give you some history of the Medina, they'll explain the difference between the architecture and the Jewish neighborhoods and the Muslim neighborhoods, and these are the things that AI can't do for you. AI can't connect you to what makes those places very special or very meaningful. It's not going to introduce you to a nomad family in the desert
or have a cup of tea with them under their tent. It's not gonna range for you to sit down and have lunch inside a traditional Berber family's home. those are some of the things that became highlights of our recent trip and if we had just asked
AI for an itinerary, we would have missed all of that.
speaker-1 (16:52)
And that's what makes the difference between seeing a place and actually experiencing that with local people. And those are the moments that we will remember for the rest of our lives. It will be part of the story that we get to tell you and our family and our friends about our trips, not just what we saw, but who we met and how it felt to be there and those connections that we made. And so to summarize, think AI is amazing and the things that it does
really really well and it can be very helpful. Finding a restaurant, taking a walk, but we encourage you to seek out an experienced travel advisor like ourselves and let them help you plan your perfect trip.
If you'd to talk to us about helping you with upcoming travel needs, go to sunshinetravelersexperiences.com or to make it easy, Sun X Travel, sun the letter X travel dot com and click on the link that says plan. Give us a little information and we'll be happy to help you plan an incredible trip.
speaker-0 (17:51)
Now Melissa, let's pivot for just a second and let's talk a few minutes about the experienced travelers that are listening to the show right now. We know that many of the people listening have tons of experience in coordinating their own travel. Maybe you're the person that all of your friends, neighbors, and relatives reach out to for travel advice. So you're already doing this in some way. You're helping friends.
you're sharing recommendations on social media, you're answering questions about the trips that you've taken, and most of the time you do that for free.
speaker-1 (18:28)
Yes, and these are the people who need to pay close attention to what we're going to talk about. We have an opportunity for you to join us as an independent travel advisor at Sunshine Travelers Experiences. It doesn't have to be complicated and it's not complicated to get started. If you're thinking to yourself, this sounds interesting. I'm not sure where to start. We can help you with that. one of the easiest ways to get
booking trips and making a commission on them is focusing on the types of trips you already know well. If your friends enjoy cruises, share deals on upcoming cruises that will appeal to them.
Each cruise line offers content that travel advisors can use on their social media to advertise these deals. This includes social media ready pictures and graphics. We have one advisor who loves Viking cruises. He and his family regularly cruise with Viking. He even like tells people so much about booking, you know, Viking cruises. You need to take this trip on Viking. We love this one. So we talked to him about becoming an advisor just to focus on Viking and being our Viking expert. He's so
good at he actually sold us on a Viking trip in 2027 and so he's going to lead us on that trip.
If your circle or network likes to book and go to all inclusives, you can focus on that. One of our newest advisors is an expert on sandals. She and her husband have been to so many properties within their network. They know how it works. They know which ones they like best. They have all the tips.
They are the experts we go to when someone is interested in sandals. It doesn't mean that they can only book sandals, but that is her niche. And they are the ones I would trust when wanting to book an all-inclusive and have somebody to talk to and ask questions about. But if you're that person who's really good at putting together custom itineraries,
like a trip to Tuscany to visit wineries for a week, then there is definitely a market for your knowledge and experience as well.
My sister Stephanie is great at putting together custom itineraries and loves to share her experiences on travel around the world and her tips and that tends to be her niche.
speaker-0 (20:32)
Yeah, Cruises and All Inclusives are a great place to start and they tend to have really strong commissions
and they are fairly straightforward to book. So if you're already helping people take trips that they want to take, you can just turn that into something that benefits you as well.
At the end of the day, we're looking for people with real experience. We'll provide some tools in the community to support you, but your experience is the part that makes a real difference. People who understand how travel actually works and enjoy helping others do it better.
So if you're listening and you want to know more about becoming a travel advisor, Go to sunshinetravelersexperiences.com or like Melissa said, sun, the letter X, travel.com and click on the link at the top that says become an advisor. And if you have questions from there, reach out to us. We'd love to talk to you more.
speaker-1 (21:31)
So we're not saying don't use AI to plan trips. It's a great tool to get ideas and start shaping a trip. But there's a big difference between building an idea and building something that actually works once you are on the ground in that destination. We're not competing with AI. We just bring the experience and real world knowledge that it does not. And that's what turns a trip into something exceptional.
speaker-0 (21:56)
We all agree AI is changing the way that people plan travel. And in a lot of ways, that's a really good thing. Travel advisors are using AI as well. It makes information more accessible. It helps people get started. But great travel planning still comes down to the experience. Understanding how destinations actually work, knowing where things can go wrong and how to avoid it, and helping people build trips that fit
they want to travel, not just what looks good on a screen. If you're planning something and want to make sure you get it right, that's where working with a travel advisor can make a real difference. And if you've ever thought about turning your love of travel into something more, we'd love to talk to you.
Speaker 1 (22:48)
Well that's it for today's episode. Wherever you're listening from, we hope we've added a little spark to your travel dreams today.
Speaker 2 (22:55)
If you've been enjoying the show, a five-star review on your favorite podcast platform goes a long way. It helps new listeners join our Sunshine Travelers family.
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Be sure to follow or subscribe so you never miss an episode.
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and join us on Instagram or Facebook at Sunshine Travelers Podcast. Remember, that's Travelers with one L.
Speaker 1 (23:13)
And if the stories, tips, and adventures we share bring a little sunshine to your week, you can even buy us a cup of coffee now. You'll find the link in the show notes.
Speaker 2 (23:22)
And of course, share this episode with a friend. Adventure is always better together.
