How to Compete With Travel Marketing in 2026
Whiteboard Friday | Chloe Osun-Sami, Head of Digital PR at Aira
Overview
The travel landscape has evolved rapidly with AI-powered search adoption. 84% of people globally plan to use AI when preparing for future trips — choosing locations, accommodation, activities, and full personalized itineraries. Travel brands must appear in these spaces to compete.
Digital PR has returned to the spotlight — not just for links (which correlate with traditional search performance), but for brand mentions, one of the biggest correlating factors with AI visibility.
Research Background
Aira surveyed senior digital PRs and interviewed in-house travel marketers, travel journalists, and editors on the current state of digital PR.
Key findings:
- 81% expect digital PR to become even more critical over the next 2–3 years
- 57% of digital PRs reported increased demand from travel brands over the past 12 months
- The 2025 "word of the year" was AI slop — AI-produced content isn't going away, making authentic PR more important
5 Key Areas to Stand Out and Land Coverage in 2026
1. Personalized Stories
Understanding your target persona has always mattered, but now it's essential to go deeper — what audiences value, plus real-world and economic factors affecting their travel plans. Target audiences increasingly want personalized itineraries tied to their hobbies and passions. Journalists are already following this trend; brands need to as well.
2. Human-First Narratives
This is what separates PR content from AI-produced content — AI cannot replicate it. Tactics include:
- Behind-the-scenes insight
- Untold angles
- Case studies
Journalists are already seeking this within their stories.
3. Always-On Approach
- 95% of digital PRs use data-led creative campaigns to land coverage effectively
- 71% layer in newsjacking and reactive tactics to maximize coverage opportunities
- This approach has grown more important over the last 3–5 years
Consistent coverage increases brand mentions and supports AI visibility. Data-led stories must feature unique, robust data to withstand scrutiny and avoid any association with AI-generated content.
4. Tailored Outreach & Relationships
Journalists highlighted the need for PRs to understand:
- Writers' areas of interest and expertise
- Their editorial styles
Critically, journalists source expert commentary from people within their existing network — they don't put out open calls. Without established relationships, brands won't land those placements.
What to Expect from Results
Digital PR is a long-term play — not an overnight fix for AI visibility.
- Quality and relevancy over quantity (though only 38% assign a numerical value to relevancy)
- Per campaign benchmark: 0–9 pieces of coverage = success (cited by ~half of respondents)
- Actual results over the last 12 months: most campaigns secured 10–19 pieces of coverage — exceeding the benchmark
- A tailored, always-on strategy will build visibility over time, but patience is required
Key Takeaways
- The landscape is evolving rapidly — brands must invest in their brand now
- Create personalized stories for your target audience
- Focus on human-first narratives to differentiate from AI content
- Take a tailored approach to outreach and build genuine media relationships
- Be patient — results build visibility across both traditional and AI search over time