AI reshapes tourism visibility: Industry urged to integrate systems

Source: ©Sergey Skripnikov via 123RF

That was the focus of a session titled Outranked or Outmanoeuvred? Regaining Control in a Travel Market Run by Algorithms, held on the Future Stage at World Travel Market Africa, whcih was held from 13 to 15 April 2026 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.

The session was facilitated by Lizanne du Plessis, CEO of Eco Africa Digital, and brought together speakers working across marketing, hospitality technology, video production and AI transformation.

Du Plessis opened by asking the room how people were feeling about algorithms and AI. The responses were mixed, but there was a clear sense of uncertainty in the room.

Her framing cut through quickly: “Not how to control the AI, but how to make the algorithms work for you.”

She followed it with a more practical point: “The simple answer is to make sure that your systems are reliable.”

That idea stayed central throughout the session. Not tools. Not platforms. Systems. Because the real issue, as she and the panel unpacked, is not lack of access to technology. It is fragmentation.

Fragmentation is what breaks algorithm performance

Across the discussion, one issue kept coming up in different ways. Most tourism businesses are still operating in silos.

Content is separate from CRM. Booking engines are separate from marketing systems. Data exists, but it is not always connected.

Du Plessis explained how this affects visibility in a changing search environment. The shift is no longer just about keywords, but about structured content that answers full sets of traveller questions.

Instead of isolated SEO terms, the focus is now on building content clusters around intent.

For example, not just “luxury safari Botswana”, but everything around that journey:

• When to travel
• What to pack
• Who is it suitable for
• Health and safety
• Experience expectations

The shift is towards completeness, not keyword density.

Video now has to be structured, not just creative

Rory Appleton, director at Sledgehammer Studio, spoke about how video is changing in an AI-led discovery environment.

His point was that video can no longer just exist as a standalone creative output. It needs to function as a system. "We’re creating systems, rather than random acts of content.”

He explained that video now has to be structured in a way that allows AI systems to understand context, not just visuals. That includes transcripts, metadata, and narrative clarity that can be indexed and surfaced by search systems.

The idea was not to reduce creativity, but to make it readable in a machine-led discovery environment.

Integration is where conversion is won or lost

Louise Hibbert, senior director of business development at SHR Group, focused on what happens after discovery.

Her point was simple. If systems are not integrated, conversion weakens immediately.

CRM, PMS, booking engines, and marketing platforms need to work together, not operate independently.

When they are disconnected, personalisation breaks down. When they are connected, guest behaviour becomes visible in real time.
She also pointed out that automation does not fix inefficiency. It exposes it faster.

Booking is a process, not a moment

Dean Aviv from Profitroom spoke about how guest behaviour has shifted.

Travellers rarely book on the first interaction. They move between platforms, return multiple times, compare options, and only then convert.

That makes consistency across digital touchpoints essential. He also highlighted mobile as the dominant booking channel, which reinforces the need for seamless, simplified user journeys.

AI amplifies whatever system you already have

Dr Danie Maritz, strategy and AI transformation at Green Everest, brought a broader strategic view.

He argued that AI does not create structure. It amplifies what already exists. "If systems are fragmented, AI scales fragmentation. If systems are aligned, AI scales performance."

He also spoke about how quickly AI has moved from emerging tool to embedded infrastructure, changing expectations around speed, decision-making and visibility.

The panel takeaway: Tourism is still human, but discovery is not

Across the panel discussion, a consistent point emerged.

Tourism itself remains deeply human. People travel for culture, connection and experience, but discovery is increasingly mediated by systems that are not human-led. That creates a gap between how businesses think they are being found and how they are actually being surfaced.

The panel repeatedly returned to one idea. AI should support tourism, not replace or distort it.

What this means for tourism businesses

The direction from the session was clear.

Tourism businesses are now operating in an environment where:

• Discovery is algorithm-driven
• Content needs structure, not just output
• Conversion depends on system integration
• Personalisation depends on clean data

The differentiator is no longer volume of content or presence alone. It is whether systems are connected enough to be understood by the platforms now shaping visibility.

The session ended on a grounded point: AI is not a future disruption anymore. It is already part of the system.

The question is no longer whether tourism should adapt. It is whether tourism businesses are structured enough to be read correctly by the systems that now sit between them and the traveller; and in that environment, fragmentation is still the real risk. Not algorithms.