Expedia Unveils Romie, an AI-Powered Travel Planner

The question of whether AI can (or will) replace travel advisors has just taken a step forward, with the introduction of Romie, an AI-enable “travel buddy” that can help consumers with travel planning, shopping, and booking, courtesy of Expedia.

“At Expedia Group, we embrace the transformative power of AI to create personalized travel experiences,” said Ariane Gorin, CEO of Expedia Group. “Our long-standing investments in this space enable us to capitalize on the breathtaking pace of AI innovation…”

According to Expedia, Romie, which is currently only available on EG Labs (a hub for experimental products available to anyone in the U.S. who wants to sign up for it), can assist with planning, shopping, and booking, and “even lends a hand” when something unexpectedly changes – “serving as your travel agent, concierge, and personal assistant, all in one.”

Additionally, the more a user utilizes Romie, the better it gets to know that person, “learning who you are, remembering what types of trips you like, and even if you prefer Italian food and boutique hotels or an afternoon hiking through nature.”

Romie’s essential uses break down into:
Group Chat Trip Planning: Invite Romie to join your SMS group chat and listen to your vacation plans. When you want advice, just @Romie to get suggestions on where to go or what to do, “like you would a travel agent.”

Smart Search: Ask Romie to summarize your group chat and bring what it learned about your trip straight into your Expedia shopping experience. You can customize the search even further by adding filters such as rooftop views or early check-in to find the right hotel faster.

Itinerary Building: Romie can use the information from you group texts and emails and suggest restaurants and activities near your hotel that it thinks you and your group will enjoy.

Dynamic Troubleshooting: Romie can help when things don’t go as planned. Acting like a personal assistant, Romie monitors for weather changes and other last-minute changes that can impact your plans and has alternative suggestions ready.

Real-Time Assistance: Romie will keep the itinerary updated in real time and anyone in the group chat can @Romie for reminders of where they need to be and when.  

“We believe in re-imagining the traveler experience, and then using the latest in AI to bring it to life, and with Romie, we’ve done just that,” said Rathi Murthy, CTO at Expedia Group. “We created an AI assistant with hyper personalization in mind so that travelers can choose when they want Romie’s help on their own terms.”

While Romie appears to be able to do many of the tasks a travel advisor can do, an Expedia spokesperson was adamant that the tool is not intended to replace advisors.

“Romie is not intended to replace live travel advisors,” the spokesperson said. “Instead, it’s set to provide more options for travelers when it comes to planning and booking their trips. As the demand for travel advisors has actually increased in recent years, Romie is intended to serve as an option for those that either don’t have access to a travel advisor or enjoy planning their own trips and just want a bit of assistance.  

Supporting travel advisors is a key priority for Expedia and the company will continue to roll out new capabilities to also empower advisors to deliver on their promises to clients and extend the reach of its suppliers.”

Romie (which Expedia refers to as a “them, they”) is currently still in testing through Expedia’s EG Labs.

“We’re testing them in EG Labs to get feedback so we can make improvements,” the spokesperson for Expedia said. “When they are mature, we intend to roll them out globally.”

Other AI-powered tools
Romie is not the only AI-powered DIY tool that Expedia will be rolling out soon.

Starting this summer, people using the Expedia app in the U.S. will be able to create customized itineraries for upcoming trips based on AI-generated recommendations.

Also starting this summer, Expedia and Hotels.com users will be able to “navigate hassle-free” changes, cancellations, and air credit redemptions directly in the app or on the web.

A third AI-powered tool, also launching this summer, will be a price comparison for hotels and flights across dates, as well as a destination comparison tool.