AI application proves useful to improving tourists’ experience

Chatbot Danang Fantasticity has been regularly updated with tourism information (Source: danangsensetravel.com)

Hanoi – Like e-commerce and retail, customers in the tourism and hotel industry now tend to book tours on the websites providing customised travel experiences.

Some surveys show that the mushrooming of social networks has facilitated new forms of communication via automatic interaction like chatbot.

Chatbot hasn’t been used widely in Vietnam. However, Da Nang, a tourism hub in the central region, has become the second city in Southeast Asia to apply chatbot to tourism.

To help holidaymakers easily check information, the municipal Tourism Department coordinated with the Hekate Technology JSC to develop and pilot Chatbot Danang Fantasticity, the first automatic tourism information searching and support channel via text message conversation in Vietnam.

During the first six months since its debut, the app has been frequently updated with relevant information about famous destinations, events, weather, ATM locations, and hotlines, among others, according to the Da Nang Tourism Promotion Centre.

HCM City has stepped up the digitalisation of destinations to increase interaction with travellers (Photo: VNA)

In Ho Chi Minh City, most of the tourists trying this type of artificial intelligence (AI) application held that this is a modern and useful tool for many circumstances that require quick response.

This shows the rich potential of AI applications like chatbot in assisting customers and reforming tourism products and services.

Tran Binh Giang, founder of Tripi.vn - a travel e-commerce website, said since his company’s operations were semi-automated, the customer satisfaction score (CSAT) has surged by 98 percent, and expenses for each order halved.

Given the benefits from AI apps, many experts said Vietnam’s tourism sector should promote the widespread application of AI achievements by building an AI development process and continually applying them in reality to measure their compatibility with the set targets.

They noted that in the tourism sector, chatbot has just been used to help customers book rooms, services, and products. It is necessary to connect with the suppliers of relevant products and services so as to create a complete chatbot ecosystem for tourism.

Pham Trinh Hong Phi, a representative from the Dien Thien Investment - Trading - Services Co. Ltd, recommended enterprises step up comprehensive reform of the tourism sector, strongly connect with those in the same industry, and create a dynamic digital environment by boosting IT reform.