This Content Is Only For Subscribers
Booking.com has unveiled a suite of new AI-powered tools aimed at simplifying the car rental experience ahead of the peak road trip season.
The company says the new features are designed to reduce common frustrations around rental bookings, including confusing terms and conditions, unclear pick-up requirements and unexpected costs.
Booking.com says road trips remain popular with New Zealand travellers, with 40 per cent planning to take one, driven by flexibility, spontaneity and cost savings.
ChatGPT integration
One of the new features allows travellers to search for rental cars through the Booking.com app in ChatGPT.
Users can describe the type of vehicle they are looking for — such as “an automatic SUV in Queenstown” — and receive tailored rental options before being redirected to Booking.com to complete their booking.
The feature is available globally through the ChatGPT integration.
AI support tools
Booking.com has also launched an AI Car Rental Helper designed to answer common customer questions about bookings, payment methods, insurance, pick-up requirements and reservation details.
The company says early testing resulted in fewer customer support calls, booking changes and disrupted pick-ups.
The tool is now available for English-speaking customers in New Zealand, Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States and Singapore, alongside several European languages.
Review summaries and smarter search
The platform has also introduced AI-generated review summaries to help travellers quickly understand customer feedback about rental suppliers.
The summaries draw on recent traveller reviews and highlight themes including service quality, cleanliness, parking and location.
Booking.com says the summaries are designed to reduce the need for travellers to read through large numbers of individual reviews before booking.
A new Smart Search function has also been added, allowing users to filter rental cars by specific preferences such as seat numbers, automatic transmission and unlimited mileage.
‘Important part of many travel journeys’
Booking.com senior vice president of trips Eve Henrikson says rental vehicles remain a key part of many travel experiences.
“With these latest AI-powered features, we aim to make it even easier for customers to both search and book car rentals and ensure they have a seamless experience when they pick up their car,” Eve says.
Booking.com says the rollout reflects the growing role AI tools are playing throughout the travel planning and booking process.
