29.05.2026

AI applications in tourism – Where is the journey headed?

The AI-Tour research project at IMC Krems provides initial answers from practical experience. Chatbots, automated texts, smart guest analytics – the possibilities sound compelling. The AI Tour project at IMC Krems is investigating for which businesses and tasks AI actually makes sense. At the "Future Wine Tavern" at Göttweig Abbey on May 27th, businesses, researchers, and experts met and openly exchanged experiences from their daily operations.

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Project manager Claudia Bauer-Krösbacher presents the advantages and opportunities that AI offers in the tourism industry.

Between Possibility and Reality

Anyone reading about AI in tourism today will primarily find examples from large hotel chains or international booking platforms. A winery in the Kamptal region or a small inn in the Mostviertel region operates under different conditions. Limited staff, tight budgets, and a high degree of seasonality – the idea of AI quickly sounds abstract in such situations.

This very gap between technological possibility and operational reality is the starting point of the AI Tour research project at IMC Krems. Project leaders Markus Walter Eitle and Claudia Bauer-Krösbacher and their team are investigating which AI applications are actually being implemented in Austrian tourism and what they achieve in practice.

An Evening of Honest Answers

On May 27, 2026, the House of Digitalization hosted a "Future Wine Tavern" on AI and Tourism at Göttweig Abbey. Gerhard Reisinger, Markus Walter Eitle, Claudia Bauer-Krösbacher, Eveline Gruber-Jansen, and Nino Begic shared their experiences from various perspectives. Business owners and tourism managers from the region described where they are already experimenting with AI and where questions remain. This led to more concrete discussions than in a traditional lecture setting.

One observation resonated throughout the evening: The technology itself is rarely the real obstacle. What takes time is the learning curve. An AI tool delivers good results when you know how to define its tasks. And this knowledge doesn't come with the first attempt.

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Mr. Peter Brandstetter from DIH-Ost supports the presentation with his expertise.

What the research shows so far

Three areas are emerging from the AI-Tour project where smaller tourism businesses can particularly benefit from AI.

In guest communication, automated answers to frequently asked questions save time once properly configured. This requires the team to define typical questions and appropriate answers beforehand.

Many businesses are already using AI to create marketing texts for websites or social media. However, the results are only convincing if someone revises the text and adapts it to the business's own language. Raw AI-generated texts usually don't sound like the business itself.

The analysis of guest reviews is a third area. Businesses with hundreds of comments on various platforms can use AI to identify patterns that would be difficult to find manually – recurring criticisms, seasonal differences in satisfaction, or specific wishes of certain guest groups.

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Project manager Markus Walter Eitle is also a speaker at the workshop and enthusiastically tells the audience how AI and tourism are developing synergistically.

Support for Businesses in Lower Austria

The House of Digitalization supports tourism businesses in Lower Austria in determining whether and how AI can be implemented for their specific operations. The hub at IMC Krems serves as the primary contact point in the region.

Those interested in participating in the AI Tour project or learning more about its results can contact IMC Krems directly. The contact persons are Markus Walter Eitle (markus.eitle@imc.ac.at) and Claudia Bauer-Krösbacher (claudia.bauer-kroesbacher@imc.ac.at).