Google AI Mode adds flight price tracking, rewards rates and more

We recently reported that Google made AI Mode in Search much more useful for trip planning. You could connect supported third-party apps, compare live flight and hotel information, look for recommendations, and even build an itinerary without constantly bouncing between different searches.

Now, the company is taking that a step further. AI Mode can keep an eye on flight prices for you, show what flights and hotels will cost in points or miles, and even help you book a hotel once you’ve found the right one. So, it’s moving beyond helping you plan a trip and getting much closer to helping you actually book it. The addition I suspect most people will appreciate is flight price tracking. Google Flights has offered price alerts for years, but Google is bringing the feature directly into conversations with AI Mode.

You can tell AI Mode where you want to go, roughly when you’d like to travel, and any other requirements you have. It can then pull current fares from more than 300 airlines and travel websites and show you relevant options. If the prices aren’t quite tempting enough yet, you can simply ask AI Mode to track them.

For example, say you’re planning a week in Tokyo in November and have already narrowed things down to a couple of flights, but tickets are still more expensive than you’d like. Instead of remembering to search for the same flights every morning, you can ask AI Mode to watch the prices. Once you confirm the alert, Google will email you when the fare changes.

And if you decide the price is good enough, you can continue building your itinerary in AI Mode before heading to the airline or booking service to actually buy your ticket. Google says flight price tracking through AI Mode is available in more than 180 countries and territories.

AI Mode is also becoming more helpful for anyone sitting on a pile of airline miles or hotel points. Rather than visiting individual rewards websites to figure out whether you have enough points for a trip, you can ask AI Mode directly. Give it your destination, dates, and the rewards program you want to use, and it can show how many points or miles matching flights currently require.

The same works for hotels. Say you’ve collected Hilton points and you’re planning a weekend in Chicago. You can ask it to find suitable hotels and show their current points rates, giving you a much quicker idea of whether redeeming your rewards makes sense or whether you’re better off saving them for another trip. This feature is available globally, although the number of supported rewards programs is still fairly small. Google is starting with Alaska Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, American Airlines, Choice Hotels, Hilton, and Wyndham. Accor, Flying Blue, Hyatt, LATAM Airlines, and Lufthansa Group are expected to join the list in the coming weeks.

The final addition takes AI Mode even further into traditional travel-agent territory: Google can now help you book a hotel. You can describe the place you’re looking for. Maybe you need somewhere close to downtown, with strong reviews and free breakfast, while staying below $200 a night. AI Mode can return a visual selection of hotels and surface useful information to help you compare them.

Once you’ve settled on one, you can ask AI Mode to help with the reservation. Supported listings will offer a Continue on Google option, after which you can choose a room, check details such as the cancelation policy, and complete the payment with Google Pay. Google isn’t actually selling you the room, though. The hotel or booking platform remains responsible for the transaction and any customer support you might need afterward.

Hotel booking is beginning to roll out in English in the US over the coming weeks. Google is launching it with Booking.com, Choice Hotels, Expedia, Hilton, Hotels.com, IHG Hotels & Resorts, Marriott International, Priceline, Trip.com, and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts.

We’ve been able to track flight prices, redeem points, and book hotels online for years, but that usually means jumping between several websites and apps. AI Mode is slowly bringing those scattered pieces together. That could make planning and booking a trip a lot quicker and easier.