AI trip planning luxury travel UK won’t replace the human concierge — but it is reshaping what “luxury service” looks like for UK premium agencies

AI trip planning vs human concierge: UK luxury travel agencies’ new playbook

For AI trip planning luxury travel UK queries, travellers often want inspiration first, then human validation.A luxury trip has always been sold as effortlessness. The client describes a mood (“quiet”, “celebratory”, “reset”), and a good advisor translates that into the right hotel, the right table, the right timing — plus a safety net if anything shifts.

What’s changed is that many travellers now arrive with an AI-generated shortlist before they ever speak to an advisor. UK industry research from ABTA shows the share of people using AI for holiday inspiration doubled to 8% (from 4% the year before) — “one in 12” by ABTA’s wording. And that use is concentrated among younger adults: ABTA’s Holiday Habits 2025–26 report notes 13% of 18–24s using AI for inspiration, with 25–34s using it the most, and other reporting tied to that research highlighted 18% of 25–34s using AI tools such as ChatGPT for trip ideas.

So the question for UK premium agencies isn’t “AI or concierge?” It’s: how do you let AI handle the predictable parts without letting the experience feel automated?

What AI is already doing in luxury travel (in the open)

The “AI vs human” framing is a bit misleading, because several luxury travel players are publicly positioning AI as an input rather than a replacement.

A clear example is UK-founded luxury operator Black Tomato, which launched an AI-augmented tool called the Feelings Engine as part of its “Pursuit of Feeling” platform — inviting users to start from how they want to feel, then surfacing trip ideas. Black Tomato explicitly describes it as combining human insight with AI-augmented technology.

In parallel, luxury travel networks have been emphasising that tech should remove “busywork” and leave more room for human judgement. Virtuoso CEO Matthew Upchurch has repeatedly stressed the value of human connection in luxury travel; one published interview headline captures that stance directly (“authentic human connection is irreplaceable”).

And at an industry level, ABTA’s messaging around AI adoption is essentially “yes, but responsibly”: it has launched an AI governance helpline offering members 30 minutes of free expert advice covering areas like data protection, AI risk assessments, transparency and accountability.

Where AI helps — and where it reliably falls short

There’s broad agreement across industry commentary and research that AI performs best when the job is structured (constraints, options, optimisation) — and struggles where the job is relational (taste, judgement, discretion, and accountability when things go wrong).

A McKinsey–Skift report on “agentic AI” in travel describes accelerating AI adoption and notes persistent consumer wariness about giving AI full autonomy for bookings (Skift’s State of Travel 2025 finding referenced in the report puts willingness to give AI full autonomy at 2%). That same body of research also points to the risk of “hallucinations” (AI producing plausible but wrong outputs) as a trust barrier.

In luxury, that trust gap matters because the promise isn’t “a good itinerary.” It’s certainty — confirmations, contingency plans, and a single accountable human who can fix the problem.

“Luxury feeling” is mostly invisible work

If you strip away the glamour, the luxury feel comes from a set of behaviours that clients notice only when they’re missing:

• Consistency of taste (the hotel is “you” every time, not just “5-star”).

• Discretion with personal details (dietary needs, health notes, family dynamics).

• Proactive problem-solving (re-routing, last-minute changes, quiet upgrades).

• A single point of accountability (someone owns the outcome).

  
  

AI can support parts of this — but it doesn’t own the outcome. That’s why, in practice, the agencies most likely to “use AI without losing luxury” are using it behind the scenes.

How UK premium agencies can use AI without making clients feel “processed” (facts + compliance reality)

You asked for facts only, so here’s the cleanest way to put it:

1) Use AI for drafting and options — not for final truthBecause hallucinations are a documented risk, the safest pattern described in the McKinsey–Skift work is AI as a productivity layer with human oversight, not full autonomy.

2) Treat data protection as part of the luxury promiseIn the UK, the ICO’s Guidance on AI and Data Protection sets expectations around lawful processing, fairness, transparency and accountability when using AI with personal data. ABTA’s helpline focus on compliant use (risk assessments, transparency, accountability) reinforces that travel firms are expected to take governance seriously, not casually “plug in” tools.

3) Keep the human concierge visible at the moments that define luxuryThe “human connection is irreplaceable” position isn’t just sentiment; it’s repeatedly stated by luxury travel leadership (e.g., Virtuoso CEO) as central to what clients value.

The practical middle ground emerging in luxury travel

If you combine what’s happening in-market (Black Tomato’s AI-augmented discovery) with what trade bodies/regulators are emphasising (governance, transparency, human accountability), the “middle ground” model looks like this:

• AI helps start the conversation (inspiration, themes, first-draft itineraries).

• Humans curate and verify (availability, routing logic, supplier fit, and quality control).

• Humans stay responsible (a named advisor remains accountable for the trip).

  
  

That’s also consistent with ABTA’s public framing: the sector should harness AI’s potential while continuing to champion the value of personal expertise.