Macao, Alibaba, and Sands China to drive tourist spending through AI and digital mapping tools
Macao’s Government Tourism Office (MGTO), Alibaba’s navigation app Amap, and Sands China have signed a tripartite cooperation agreement to digitise the city’s tourism ecosystem. The centerpiece is a “flying” street map, developed by Amap, which launched in September 2025, that lets users navigate landmarks in 360-degree aerial view, fix map positioning errors, and make in-store reservations. To pull local merchants onto the platform, the Macao City Life Support Program offers AI-powered digital storefronts, offline training, influencer promotions, and voucher incentives. The program has already logged 380 million visits to restaurants, attractions, and hotels, with heritage bakery Pastelaria Yeng Kee reporting a 23% jump in average daily sales after signing on.
On the food discovery front, Macao has launched a gastronomy ranking system called Macao Authentic Delicacies, covering 985 businesses across six categories, from dim sum and street noodles to milk tea spots and neighbourhood cafes, with 96 selected for a Champion List. Rankings are determined by actual store visit and navigation data, not user reviews. Sands China, which operates over 150 restaurants, is the first integrated resort to plug Amap’s ecosystem into its Sands Lifestyle membership platform, with plans for deeper online-to-offline integration ahead. The moves come as Macao looks to build on its 40 million visitor arrivals recorded in 2025.
RBC taps Hopper Technology Solutions to rebuild Avion Rewards booking platform
RBC has signed a long-term deal with Hopper Technology Solutions (HTS) to power a revamped Avion Rewards Travel portal, set to launch later this year for all Avion Rewards members, Canada’s largest proprietary loyalty program. The new platform will allow members to book flights, hotels, car rentals, activities, and packages using Avion points, and will add a flight price prediction tool based on historical and predictive data to help users identify the optimal time to book. Avion credit cardholders retain existing fixed-points pricing with no blackout dates or seat restrictions on any airline or flight.
Acai Travel and Lumo integrate predictive flight disruption tools
AI travel platform Acai Travel has partnered with flight disruption prediction company Lumo to embed predictive intelligence directly into Acai’s AI Travel Agent, targeting TMCs, OTAs, and airlines. The integration allows travel companies to identify at-risk travellers before disruption occurs, automatically prioritize cases by risk level, interpret fare rules and waiver codes in real time, and execute rebooking, exchanges, or cancellations, all within existing customer service platforms such as Genesys and Dialpad. Outreach can be handled across email, SMS, chat, or voice, with the system supporting both self-serve and agent-assisted resolution. World Travel Inc. is the first company to deploy the combined solution.
The partnership is aimed at reducing the operational strain of disruption spikes without adding headcount, with the goal of cutting average handling time and preventing case backlogs.
Airbnb adds private car transfers in 125+ cities
Airbnb has partnered with Welcome Pickups to offer pre-bookable private car transfers in over 125 cities across Asia, Europe, and Latin America, accessible directly within the Airbnb app after a guest completes an accommodation booking. The transfer feature is the latest addition to Airbnb Services, a marketplace launched in May 2025 covering 10 categories including private chefs, personal training, and spa treatments. No pricing details were disclosed.
AI becomes a top trip planning tool, leaving invisible tour operators behind
Arival research finds two in three travellers now use AI when planning trips, with more than one in four in the U.S. using it to find a tour and nearly one in three to find attractions, a channel that barely registered a year ago. The shift has upended traditional SEO. Rather than ranking web pages, AI tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity pull from across the web and recommend operators directly, often without returning a link at all. Nearly half of AI-using travellers rely on ChatGPT for trip planning, 30% use Gemini, and 22% use AI-powered summaries inside Google search. Smaller operators are most exposed, while LLMs favor authoritative, well-cited sources, giving OTAs like Viator and GetYourGuide a structural advantage over independent operators with thin web presences.
Practical steps include adding FAQ schema markup to experience pages, keeping Google Business Profiles complete and current, building out detailed product pages with logistics, dietary options, and honest context, and maintaining active, review-rich OTA listings, which now function as AI visibility tactics, not just distribution channels. Read the full report here.
