Expedia launches world’s first itinerary building from IG reel feature

Dhaka: Booking platform Expedia has announced a “Trip Matching” feature—world’s first—that allows travelers to build itineraries directly from Instagram reels, transforming inspiration into real-world plans.

Social media users can now share any publicly-available content with Expedia and in return, they will receive “customized itineraries, destination ideas, and travel tips”, Expedia said in a release.

“It is no secret people are getting their news, inspiration and travel ideas from influencers and content creators, with a recent study showing that 80 percent of millennials rely on social media for travel decisions,” said Jochen Koedijk, Chief Marketing Officer, Expedia Group.

“We want to be where consumers get their inspiration, which is through social media. Now with Expedia Trip Matching, travelers can seamlessly build an itinerary based on reels found on Instagram and book it directly on Expedia.”

However, the booking platform breaks the “dream-to-reality” process into four steps in its press materials. First users need to “find inspiration” by scrolling Instagram. Next, they share it with Expedia, by using the @ icon to seek out the @Expedia account and send the reel. After that, “fast results” are promised, thanks to AI-generated replies that provide “personalized travel recommendations, itineraries, and trip planning.” The only stage left is booking, which can be carried out “directly from the customized itinerary”, Expedia points out.

Expedia Trip Matching is now open for beta access and will become available to US customers in the “upcoming weeks.” The tech solution means that Expedia is the first online travel agent (OTA) to integrate real-time, AI-powered travel planning directly into Instagram, a feature the firm says “reflects the company’s commitment to innovation and meeting the next generation of travelers where they are—inspired, mobile, and social-first,” as per the release.