Lead image for Kenya’s tourism competitive edge in AI age.
The way travellers discover and decide on their next destination is changing fundamentally. Not long ago, the journey began with a travel agent, a brochure or a recommendation from friends and family.
Then the internet transformed travel, with visitors turning to search engines, online booking platforms and social media to discover destinations, compare experiences and make decisions.
Today, we are entering another major shift, Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly becoming part of the traveller’s decision-making process.
Rather than searching through dozens of websites, travellers can simply ask an AI tool where they should go, what they should experience and how they should plan their journey. Technology is moving from helping travellers find information to actively influencing the choices they make.
This shift is also changing how the tourism industry operates, according to PwC's AI at the Heart of Tourism and Hospitality – Powering Personalisation, Efficiency and Growth report, tourism and hospitality leaders have moved beyond exploring AI and are now piloting practical applications, signalling a decisive shift from experimentation to implementation.
In Saudi Arabia for instance, AI is central to its Vision 2030, supporting the country's ambition of welcoming 150 million annual visitors and increasing tourism's contribution to GDP from three percent to 10 percent.
Consumer behaviour is evolving just as rapidly, according to the 2026 AI in Travel & Tourism CareerTrainer Report, 62 percent of travellers now use AI-enabled tools, 58 percent say AI recommendations improve trip planning, while 73 percent expect personalised travel experiences based on their data.
The report also found that 94 percent of tourism and hospitality leaders across the region are already experimenting with or implementing AI solutions, highlighting how quickly the technology is becoming mainstream.