ChatGPT for travel: How I used AI for my Toronto trip
In this post, I am going to share with you how ChatGPT helped me craft a complete itinerary in just minutes, saving me precious time!
Introduction
Last week my parents flew in to visit me and my wife in Montreal and we wanted to show them all the nice places in town. A few days after they landed, and out of nowhere, we decided to take them to Toronto, because, why not?
So, on super short notice, we booked nice hotel rooms and just drove to the city the next morning. After a nice 7-hour drive (including the awesome ONroute stops on the 401), we arrived late at night.
As with most parents (I presume), when we woke up, my folks were constantly asking what's the "plan" for the day. I usually just discover things on the go with my wife but the folks prefer to have a solid plan in advance.
Creating the plan with ChatGPT
The wife and I know Toronto very well, so we had an idea about what to do. But to save time and keep things organized, I went straight to ChatGPT and entered the following prompt:
Plan a one-day trip in Toronto from 8:30 AM to 11:30 PM that includes seeing the most important tourist attractions. Things to note: A car will be used for transportation, the weather is good for walking, and optimize spending. The plan is for four people.
To which ChatGPT immediately responded with this:
Certainly! Here's a carefully planned one-day trip in Toronto, optimized for seeing the most important tourist attractions, making the most of the weather for walking, and optimizing spending for four people. Since you have a car, this plan will help you cover a lot of ground efficiently:
8:30 AM - 9:00 AM: Breakfast
Start your day with a quick breakfast at a local café or bakery. Grab some pastries, coffee, and sandwiches to go.
9:00 AM - 10:30 AM: Toronto Islands
Drive to the Toronto Islands Ferry Terminal and take a ferry to the Toronto Islands. Enjoy a leisurely walk or rent bicycles to explore the beautiful islands. Visit Centreville Amusement Park (optional, depending on interests).
10:30 AM - 12:30 PM: CN Tower
Head back to the mainland and drive to the CN Tower. Purchase timed tickets in advance to avoid long lines. Spend time exploring the CN Tower, including the observation deck and the Glass Floor Experience.
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM: Lunch
Drive to the St. Lawrence Market and enjoy a diverse range of lunch options from various vendors. This is a great place to sample local foods.
1:30 PM - 3:00 PM: Distillery District
Drive to the Distillery District, a historic area with charming cobblestone streets, art galleries, shops, and cafes. Explore the unique atmosphere and perhaps do some souvenir shopping.
3:00 PM - 4:30 PM: Royal Ontario Museum (ROM)
Drive to the Royal Ontario Museum and explore its diverse exhibits, which cover everything from natural history to world cultures.
4:30 PM - 6:00 PM: Kensington Market and Chinatown
Drive to Kensington Market and explore its eclectic shops, vintage boutiques, and vibrant street art. Then, head to Chinatown for some shopping and a cultural experience.
6:00 PM - 7:30 PM: Dinner
Drive to Queen Street West and choose from a variety of restaurants offering different cuisines. Queen Street is known for its trendy dining options.
7:30 PM - 9:00 PM: Harbourfront Centre
Drive to Harbourfront Centre and take a leisurely stroll along the waterfront. Enjoy the beautiful views of Lake Ontario and the Toronto skyline.
9:00 PM - 10:30 PM: Toronto's Entertainment District
Drive to the Entertainment District and catch a live performance or show, or simply enjoy the vibrant atmosphere of this bustling area.
10:30 PM - 11:30 PM: Dessert and End of Day
Head to a local dessert spot or ice cream parlor to satisfy your sweet tooth before concluding your day.
Please note that this itinerary is quite packed, so feel free to adjust the timing and activities based on your preferences and the pace at which you like to explore. Make sure to check the opening hours and any COVID-19-related restrictions for each attraction before your trip. Have a wonderful day exploring Toronto!
Optimizing the plan
Perfect, ChatGPT provided me with a properly formatted plan for the day. I liked the fact that it recommended things like the Harbourfront Center during sunset since nighttime views are better (in my opinion). I then Googled every item on the plan to look at pricing and opening hours among other details just to be safe.
We then tweaked the itinerary together and ChatGPT incorporated the changes like a champ!
Magic time 🪄
With the final plan in hand, I wanted to add everything to my calendar. So, I did what every person would do and asked ChatGPT the following:
Convert to this plan to .ics format for Calendar
.ics file, the calendar app can add event details to the calendar.ChatGPT then responds beautifully to my request as follows:
BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
...
BEGIN:VEVENT
UID:unique-identifier1@example.com
DTSTAMP:20230804T083000Z
DTSTART:20230804T083000Z
DTEND:20230804T090000Z
SUMMARY:Breakfast
LOCATION:Local Café or Bakery
END:VEVENT
...
END:VCALENDAR
Travel plan converted to .ics format
I was then able to save the .ics file and load it to my calendar manually.
Now I had a complete itinerary on my iPhone and we were ready to go! 🏃
Conclusion
Never before have we had information assembly and organization tools as powerful as today's LLMs.
In less than 15 minutes, I was able to create a customized fine-tuned plan, which was also beautifully added to my calendar and shared with my wife.
I know that this is not a technical post, but I decided to write about this experience to share with you one of the many ways that AI is transforming our lives.