AI technology now enables travelers to discover and book hotels throughout British Columbia through new methods.  AI-based trip planning affects your hotel business regardless of whether you operate in an urban center or a small town.  The time to prepare has arrived.

The 2025 travel study from Pacific Blue Cross reveals that Canadian travelers use AI for trip planning at a rate of 47% while British Columbians lead this trend.  AI enables users to evaluate different prices and discover new locations while generating customized travel plans that match their financial limits and personal preferences.  The number of people using AI for travel planning continues to rise at a rapid pace.  The selection process for guests becomes more popular after AI tools generate their shortlists.  The AI revolution affects all types of accommodations, including big city hotels to small independent guesthouses.​

Tourism data has advanced to create structured information which powers AI-based systems.  Destination Canada, together with its partners, developed the Canadian Tourism Data Collective.  The national platform uses AI and modern infrastructure to analyze and store tourism data, which supports tourism organizations through accurate shared data for marketing and operational decisions.  The system operates as a business tool for industry professionals but does not provide direct access to consumers.​

Hotels throughout Canada, including those in British Columbia, can now use AI technology to enhance their operations.  The current tools help hotels manage guest communication, provide virtual concierge services, optimize revenue and room pricing, along with developing content.  The technology operates in parallel to property management (PMS) and central reservation (CRS) systems.  The systems enhance response times through automated answers for common questions while generating customized promotions for individual guests.  The AI chatbot system operates as a booking assistant, which provides answers to guest inquiries at all times.  The revenue management AI system uses demand data to set room prices, which results in higher profits.​

Hotels operating need to focus on maintaining consistent data systems.  Your website and all online travel agencies (OTAs) and data partners must maintain identical room descriptions and rates, and amenities for AI platforms to function correctly.  AI protocols will display your hotel correctly when you maintain accurate and clean data.  AI systems will choose generic OTA content when your data is inconsistent or poor, which damages your brand image and decreases guest bookings.​

Independent hotels operating in areas like Revelstoke, Tofino, the Okanagan, and the Kootenays need to handle specific business challenges while exploring new business possibilities.  The implementation of affordable AI tools, including chatbots and FAQ bots, and automated email responders, helps independent hotels decrease their workload while maintaining quick responses to guests.  Canadian hospitality experts endorse these tools for independent hotels which want to deliver personalized service despite their limited resources.​

Smaller hotels need to present their distinctive features prominently throughout their marketing materials.  The availability of pet-friendly accommodations and ski access and wellness programs, and cultural activities needs to appear clearly on OTA listings and tourism websites and hotel websites.  AI systems will connect your hotel to relevant guest inquiries through detailed, structured descriptions, which boost your chances of appearing in recommendation lists.​

The way guests interact with hotels has shifted from using keywords to asking questions through AI systems.  The system generates brief sets of recommended options to users that can be managed.  The success of marketing efforts depends more on clear data management than on promotional activities.  

To enhance your operations, some suggestions for you to consider:

• Maintain complete accuracy in your online listings by updating descriptions and photos, and amenities across all platforms, including OTAs and tourism sites and your official website.

• Make sure your technology partners receive live structured data feeds from you to enable AI platforms to retrieve current rates and room availability.

• Your hotel staff could focus on delivering high-value sales and personalized service because AI tools now handle basic guest communication tasks.

Hotels that start using AI technology will establish themselves as trusted options for AI-based trip planners, regardless of their size or location in urban or rural areas.  AI tools will generate more bookings for hotels because they provide accurate recommendations to users.  Your guests need AI to deliver quick, accurate responses along with suitable recommendations.  Your hotel needs to become accessible to AI systems because this will help you attract customers from the expanding market.

For more sales advice, contact Brent O’Connor – brent.o@telus.net