Booking.com bets on connected trip to counter AI disruption

Ambitious platform vision faces significant execution gaps and uncertain competitive prospects

In a recent McKinsey interview, Booking Holdings CEO Glenn Fogel positioned the company’s “connected trip” vision as a way to compete in an AI-driven travel landscape, aiming to integrate flights, accommodation, transport, experiences, and payments into one seamless journey. However, current business realities suggest the strategy is still far from maturity, with accommodation bookings continuing to dominate revenue and customer perception. Compared with emerging AI-native travel platforms, fintech ecosystems, and direct supplier innovation, Booking appears to be playing catch-up rather than leading. The connected-trip concept therefore looks more aspirational than operational at this stage, with its ultimate success still uncertain.

Key takeaways

• Hotels still drive the business: Accommodation bookings remain the overwhelming revenue foundation, limiting how quickly Booking can reposition itself as a full travel platform.
• AI competition accelerating faster: Tech giants, AI assistants, and supplier direct channels are advancing rapidly, potentially outpacing Booking’s platform transformation.
• Connected trip still early-stage: Integrated, multi-component travel bookings represent only a relatively small share of overall transactions today.
• Execution complexity is substantial: Payments, flights, mobility, and experiences involve regulatory, operational, and margin challenges beyond traditional hotel distribution.
• Brand perception lagging strategy: Consumers largely associate Booking.com with hotels, not as a holistic travel operating system.
• Outcome remains uncertain: While diversification may strengthen long-term positioning, it is not yet clear that Booking can successfully compete with AI-native travel ecosystems at scale.

Source: McKinsey

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