A 2026 Study Tested AI Travel Planning.
Here's What It Found.
InsureMyTrip gave three AI tools the same luxury itinerary request. The results show where AI helps and where the details still need checking.
InsureMyTrip, a travel insurance company, gave three AI tools the same request: plan a luxury seven-day trip to Switzerland for four adults, two of them over 60. The company published its findings on March 4, 2026. Forbes reported the tool-by-tool results on March 23, identifying the three tools as ChatGPT, Gemini, and Google's AI Mode.
Each produced a polished itinerary. Each also contained details that did not hold up when the researchers checked them.
What the Study Found
The researchers reviewed each itinerary for accuracy, pricing realism, pacing, sourcing, and total travel time. Structure was the strong point: the routes were sensible, rail travel was well used, and the plans were easy to follow. The problems appeared in the details.
According to the Forbes report, one restaurant ChatGPT recommended did not exist, and Michelin ratings were misrepresented. The Jungfraujoch train journey was listed at the Swiss franc equivalent of $129 to $258 per person; the study found rates start at $342. Hotel availability was not verified in the ChatGPT itinerary. Across the tools, walking-heavy days were stacked back to back, and high-altitude excursions lacked consistent guidance for the travelers over 60.
The researchers were struck by how confident the itineraries sounded, even where the details were wrong.
"When we reviewed the details more closely, inaccuracies began to appear."
Sara Boisvert, Director of Marketing, InsureMyTrip, via ForbesWhy the Details Still Need Checking
AI can help you discover places, compare possibilities, and put an itinerary into shape. Some tools can also retrieve current prices and availability. Even so, a convincing answer can still contain mistakes, miss a booking condition, or underestimate what a day of travel will ask of you.
Before you build your trip around a recommendation, the practical questions matter. Is that room available for your dates? Does the train fare include the journey you intend to take? Will everyone enjoy the pace?
The InsureMyTrip test illustrates why those checks matter. Its findings reflect the responses reviewed for that particular trip request; they do not establish how every AI tool performs today.
The danger is not that the output looks rough. The danger is that it looks finished.
What Aurum Does Instead
Before a recommendation goes into your plan, we confirm the hotel, restaurant, or experience is operating as described, check availability and current rates for your travel dates, and weigh it against the pace and comfort of your group. Where preferred partner benefits apply, we confirm what they include for your stay. Rates and availability can change until a booking is made, so we identify the reservations that should be secured first.
Each day is built around the people traveling: their pace, their physical comfort, and their priorities.
That work takes time, and it is what the planning fee pays for. A polished plan built on unverified details costs nothing upfront and considerably more when something goes wrong.
Switzerland drew more U.S. visitors in 2025 than in any year of the past three decades, according to InsureMyTrip. If you are planning a trip there, or anywhere that asks for precise logistics and a plan that holds up past the first read, that is the work we do.
Your trip deserves verified details.
Begin with a 30-minute consultation to discuss your travel goals and the planning your trip requires.
The $75 consultation fee is credited toward your planning fee when you move forward.