At the 2026 TravelDaily Digital Intelligence Conference in Beijing on May 21, TravelDaily Partner and Chief Content Officer Han Peng unveiled the "2026 China AI Travel Application Trends Report (H1 2026)." The report zeroes in on two primary travel scenarios: leisure and business travel. Leisure travel, with its more open-ended nature, accounts for roughly 70% of all AI-powered travel usage.
The survey indicates that 90% of respondents are aware of AI travel tools, 70% have used them, and 22.5% are frequent users. This penetration at the front end of travel decision-making is deeper than many in the industry anticipated. The typical AI travel user is female, young, and middle-to-high income—a profile that closely mirrors the industry's most valuable customer segment.
Affluent Women in Lower-Tier Cities Drive AI Adoption
When broken down by city tier, a striking pattern emerges: a group the researchers call "affluent women in lower-tier cities" exhibits higher AI adoption rates than users in Tier 1 and New Tier 1 cities. The hypothesis is that travelers in major metros are already mature consumers with strong financial resources, broad travel experience, and access to diverse information channels, making them less reliant on AI for discovery. In contrast, consumers in lower-tier markets have strong spending power but limited access to travel information and social networks, so they lean more heavily on AI tools for insights and inspiration.
The two most popular AI use cases are destination research and audio-guided travel experiences. These are closely linked; for instance, Mafengwo has developed AI solutions sold directly to local governments and destination marketing organizations to enhance tourism promotion. The third most popular use case is flight and hotel price comparison and booking. Notably, users strongly desire AI to compare prices and filter options, but after receiving AI-generated recommendations, 66.2% still return to online travel agencies (OTAs) to verify information before purchasing.
Three key conclusions emerge for leisure travel. First, AI has become a new entry point for travel planning, but frontline tourism businesses face stiff competition from maps, content platforms, and AI-native services for user attention. Second, the rise of affluent consumers in lower-tier cities could accelerate AI as a mainstream travel gateway. These users have spending power and loyalty, and their adoption may push AI-driven recommendations closer to transaction conversion faster than expected. Third, AI today remains primarily a content and information service, but user migration should not be underestimated. This stage mirrors the early days of mobile internet a decade ago, when many doubted its disruptive potential—yet mobile ultimately reshaped the digital landscape. AI may follow a similar trajectory in travel.
For travel professionals, this report underscores the need to integrate AI into customer engagement strategies. As AI tools become more prevalent, companies like Scale UK are already hosting conferences focused on AI in short-term rentals, signaling the technology's growing footprint. Meanwhile, destinations like Thailand are leveraging digital payments to enhance the travel experience, a trend that AI can further amplify. The industry must prepare for a future where AI not only inspires but also drives bookings.
