Google announced three AI-powered updates to Search that extend how users plan and book travel within AI Mode.
The company is launching Canvas for travel planning on desktop, expanding Flight Deals globally, and rolling out agentic booking capabilities that connect users directly to reservation partners.
The announcement continues Google’s push to handle complete user journeys inside Search rather than directing traffic to publisher sites and booking platforms.
What’s New
Canvas Travel Planning
Canvas creates travel itineraries inside AI Mode’s side panel interface. You describe your trip requirements, select “Create with Canvas,” and receive plans combining flight and hotel data, Google Maps information, and web content.
Canvas travel planning is available on desktop in the US for users opted into the AI Mode experiment in Google Labs.
Flight Deals Global Expansion
Flight Deals uses AI to match flexible travelers with affordable destinations based on natural language descriptions of travel preferences.
The tool launched previously in the US, Canada, and India. The feature has started rolling out to more than 200 countries and territories.
Agentic Booking Expansion
AI Mode now searches across multiple reservation platforms to find real-time availability for restaurants, events, and local appointments. The system presents curated options with direct booking links to partner sites.
Restaurant booking launches this week in the US without requiring Labs access. Event tickets and local appointment booking remain available to US Labs users.
Why This Matters
Canvas and agentic booking capabilities represent Google handling trip research, planning, and reservations inside its own interface.
People who would previously visit multiple publisher sites to research destinations and compare options can now complete those tasks in AI Mode.
The updates fit Google’s established pattern of verticalizing high-value query types. Rather than presenting traditional search results that send users to external sites, AI Mode guides users through multi-step processes from research to transaction completion.
Looking Ahead
Google provided no timeline for direct flight and hotel booking in AI Mode beyond confirming active development with industry partners.
Watch for whether Google provides analytics or attribution tools that let businesses track bookings initiated through AI Mode. Without visibility into these flows, measuring the impact of AI Mode on travel and local business traffic will be difficult.
