Google launched a new online site called Trips, which consolidates its existing travel services into a single portal, making it easier to plan your travel itinerary — from airline tickets to hotel reservations to travel packages — directly from your desktop. Trips combines the advantages of the mobile Google Trips app, Google Flights, Google Hotels, and its search functionality for a streamlined experience that you can access from any device and pick up where you left off. You can start using the new portal by typing in a destination search term or “hotels in London” to access a wealth of information in one go.
Trips lets you access all booking information within your itinerary, including confirmation codes, and travel information as well as weather forecasts for your travel time. Google says this launch is the beginning of an evolution for its travel services, and that it plans tighter integration between Google Search, Google Maps, and additional services for the future.
Trips is a continuation of a travel-based undertaking that Google began last year when it rounded up reservations for hotels and flights to a trip timeline for users signed into their Google accounts and who received Gmail confirmation. Now, you can go to google.com/travel and make edits directly to your trip’s timeline. Within a few weeks, Google says you’ll be able to add new reservations yourself as well as access the local weather for your travel time.
The information flow doesn’t stop once you’ve arrived at your destination. When in Rome, for example, Google Maps will not be content with simply pointing out places to see, restaurants to try, and things to do. It will now pinpoint popular neighborhoods nearby and what they may be famous for. Google intends Maps to be the ultimate go-to for all information while you travel, as your trips — including reservations for hotels and restaurants — will soon be accessible in Google Maps.
Google tracks your recent searches, saved places and flights and adds them automatically to your trips if you’re signed into your Google Account, and Google plans to add items you viewed and saved, including hotels, to your trips so you don’t have to reinvent the wheel or keep track of all the details yourself. But what if you don’t want Google recording your entire thought process as you plan? No problem. Whereas Google can track all of your research, you can also opt out by changing your private results and web & app activity settings.
