Back in 1998, I was traveling to Amsterdam from New York City. I had to go to the airline’s office to buy the tickets, and I had to talk to someone who had gone to Amsterdam to make an itinerary. My rough estimate would be five hours to do everything I just mentioned.

Fast forward to 2025, I can do the exact same stuff within minutes, provided that I have internet access, which I do have from Spectrum Internet (my reliable home WiFi offering great service).

The point is that a lot has changed in the space of technology and the internet. I mean that in a good way. First, it was just sending text messages, it improved to calls and messages, and then here we are connected all across the globe via the internet. It might sound cliché, but it is true – everything is just a tap away.

This leads to a million-dollar question: Is this the peak of technology? Is this where breakthroughs end?

Well, I don’t think so. The next generation is already here. 5G will unlock more possibilities and with the help of AI.

“What might that be?”, you must be wondering. This is the exact point that I will explore today.

I will talk about how exactly 5G and AI are helping the travel industry, and what you should expect in the future. If you find it interesting, then without further ado, let’s talk about that in detail.

Let’s Understand 5G and AI First

Starting with 5G, it is basically the 5^th generation of the mobile internet. You won’t be able to understand it, unless I sketch the difference between 5G and previous generations, so here you go.

In the 5^th iteration of the mobile network, the latency and ping are drastically reduced while the speed of the internet is pushed beyond 1 Gigabit. This unlocked multiple crazy possibilities like Extended Reality, super-fast gaming, holograms, and, of course, better travel experiences (more on that coming up).

On the flip side, 4G was limited, and it enabled regular tasks like watching a movie, video calling a friend, and stuff like that. With tech like hologram and VR, you need high-speed with minimum latency, and this was only possible on 5G.

Then there comes AI, which stands for Artificial Intelligence, and is the ability of computers to mimic the intelligence of humans.

When 5G was brought to the masses, tech giants wanted to make the most of it by providing consumers with the power of AI. And there we have it. With the help of powerful AI tools, we can create itineraries, automated workflows, and improve the overall travel experience.

How 5G and AI Work Together to Enable Smart Tourism

Now that we know what 5G and AI are, it is time that I talk about how they (positively) impact the travel industry.

Improved Real-Time Translation

If I am going to be honest, one of the worst things when traveling is the language barrier. When I traveled to Amsterdam, it was pretty difficult for me to communicate in Dutch. I sucked at it. I couldn’t get medicine at a local drug store, so I had to get help from a local who knew how to speak Dutch and English.

Now, imagine this on a business trip. You would have to learn the language to communicate effectively. This is another time-consuming aspect apart from the fundamentals of the meeting.

Well, it is not the same anymore. 5G enabled the tech giants to make impressive translation tools that no longer literally translate words. For example, ‘En las mismas’ is the true Spanish translation of the idiom ‘in the same boat’. If you had attempted to translate the same sentence in 2010, it would have literally translated to ‘En las mismas barco’.

The point is that modern AI-powered translation tools would know the context behind the sentence, and they don’t translate word-for-word. This comes in super handy because, through the borders and in different cultures, each word might convey a different meaning, which is understood by modern translation tools.

VR Experience Before Visiting the Destination

VR and AR are the next breakthrough things I am expecting from the tech space.

Previously, Apple dumped a lot of money into the R&D of their Apple Vision Pro, which made it to the headlines, and now Samsung has come up with their own Galaxy XR headset.

How was this possible? It was because of the 5G technology. Slow-speed internet can never manage the heavy feed on the VR headset, but 5G can.

Now, does it make the travel better? Imagine that you want to visit Monaco. It is a freakishly expensive country within France. You might spend a ton of your hard-earned money only to come back disappointed.

VR technology eliminates this hassle by offering you an experience of what it would feel like to visit the place you want to go.

The Samsung Galaxy XR headset, which is powered by the Gemini (Google’s AI-powered assistant) can walk you through the different places across the world where Gemini will be your personal guide. If you don’t like the place, you can remove it from your checklist before visiting the place.

This can save you from a lot of hassle and wasting your money. VR helps, and that is true.

Chatbots to Help with Itinerary

Chatbots like ChatGPT, Gemini, and more are super helpful. I know when OpenAI launched ChatGPT, it was the fastest-growing online tool of the 21^st century.

Why did it happen? Well, it was one of its kind yet genuinely helpful. I mean, Google search would land you on a relevant website with the information scattered across the whole webpage. On the flip side, ChatGPT will collect all the relevant information you need and will present it in an easy-to-read format. It sounds simple, but that’s what most businesses do.

Anyway, now, you can create an itinerary by using these chatbots. Want to visit Norway in the winter to see the Northern Lights? No problem. Chatbots can create that for you within minutes. Want to create a checklist before packing? It can do this for you as well.

There are so many use cases that people have already implemented. But the bottom line is that these chatbots are super helpful.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How does AI improve airport efficiency?

First things first, AI helps with predictive maintenance. It analyzes data from sensors on vehicles and equipment to predict failures and schedule maintenance proactively. Then it is the crowd management. It monitors passenger flow in real-time to manage queues and minimize crowding. Last but not least, baggage handling, where AI-assisted computer vision streamlines baggage handling and minimizes errors. 

What role does 5G play in transportation systems?

Since 5G is fast, it helps with the ITS (Intelligent Transport System) and autonomous systems. By connecting all the vehicles on the road, it can update the drivers in real-time. This, in turn, will help with the flow of traffic and minimize the possibility of accidents on the road.

What are the main challenges for the widespread adoption of 5G and AI in travel?

There are multiple challenges in the adoption of 5G and AI in travel. The first is the cost of the 5G-powered systems, then it is the maintenance of such systems. And lastly, it is the quality of the data that is needed by the AI chatbots to refine the results. In simple terms, it is mainly the cost.