Announcing the Launch of Our New Website

We are excited to announce the launch of the new Vacay platform, your go-to resource for all things travel. Our team has worked tirelessly to improve our services, expand our features, and streamline the user experience, culminating in a completely revamped website that caters to travelers' every need.

Our aim at Vacay is to put you, the user, at the heart of your travel discovery and planning journey. The new site reflects this philosophy, integrating advanced AI technologies to provide more personalized recommendations, enhanced understanding and responses, and a more user-friendly design.

Introducing our New Features:

1. Vacay Chatbot: Now equipped with improved AI, our generalist travel chatbot is available round-the-clock to provide you with travel advice, recommendations, and planning support tailored specifically to your preferences.
   ‍
2. Itinerary Builder: This powerful tool allows you to craft your perfect journey down to the finest detail. The new, intuitive design of our trip planner ensures a more seamless experience, reflecting your unique tastes and preferences.
   ‍
3. Thematic Advisors: Discover unique travel experiences based on your interests. Our thematic advisors are now more curated, providing you with tailored recommendations that align with your travel themes and desires.
   ‍
4. Destination Guides: Every destination page on our site now features a custom chat interface. This new design facilitates a more immersive experience to better help you plan and book your ideal trip.

Our traditional search categories - hotels, packages, experiences, live events, and cruises - have also been improved. Now, they provide a more streamlined and engaging experience from ideation to confirmed itinerary.

Shifting Incentive Models

One of the most significant changes we've made at Vacay lies in our approach to the traditional Online Travel Agent (OTA) incentive system. Conventionally, OTAs are driven by high booking commissions, often directing users towards choices that may not align with their true intent or preferences. We believe this model can be challenging for consumers, leading to choices that don't necessarily reflect their desired travel experiences.

At Vacay, we're opting to go direct. We have shifted the focus from maximizing booking commissions to prioritizing user intent. Our custom-designed AI tools understand your preferences and travel desires, then construct direct outbound links to relevant partners – hotels, restaurants, tour guides, and more. This ensures that your recommendations are curated based on what you truly want, rather than what an OTA might prefer to promote.

This model not only benefits you, the traveler, by providing more authentic and personalized experiences, but it also aids the travel operators. By facilitating more direct bookings, we empower hotels, restaurants, airlines, cruises, and tour operators to foster a direct relationship with you, the customer. This generally leads to better prices, favorable treatment and upgrades, and a more genuine travel experience.

To support our platform, we are incrementally rolling out a Premium Plan for full site access, starting in the United States. A Free Plan will remain available for limited, tiered usage.

We view travel as an opportunity for enrichment, immersion, and unforgettable memories. With our new and improved platform, our mission is to catalyze these experiences for you, wherever you may be heading.

As we forge ahead, your feedback remains invaluable to us, and we warmly welcome any suggestions you may have!