ORLANDO, June 26 — Against the backdrop of a travel industry increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence, Visit Orlando has introduced a new digital planning companion named OPAL — Orlando Planning Assistance by Locals — now live on the organisation’s website and available around the clock. The tool, powered by the travel technology firm Mindtrip, is designed to function much like a human vacation planner. It draws on a combination of human-curated knowledge from local experts and global travel data aggregated from more than 40 sources, including Google Places and TripAdvisor.
This is not merely another chatbot; OPAL has been trained by local specialists, giving it a distinctly Orlando flavour in an AI market often criticised for its generic recommendations. What is at stake here is the visitor experience in a destination that, as Visit Orlando’s president and CEO Casandra Matej put it, is “complex.” In the corridors of the city’s tourism board, the thinking is clear: travellers today want personalised, instantaneous advice, and they want it in a conversational format.
OPAL provides exactly that, generating custom itineraries based on individual needs and highlighting local businesses in the process. “This is a natural evolution of how Visit Orlando helps travellers plan their trip,” Matej said in a statement. She noted that the destination is “continuously expanding ways we connect people to experiences they value most — from Michelin-recognised dining in local neighbourhoods to the newest attractions or entertainment options for the whole family.” The wider picture includes Visit Orlando’s existing suite of planning resources, which remain available.
These include one-on-one consultations with destination experts and a moderated Facebook group, “Plan Your Orlando Vacation,” which has grown to more than 22,000 members. The group offers daily topic discussions and connections with recent visitors.
Personalised guidance is also available in multiple languages, including Spanish and Portuguese. OPAL’s launch comes at a moment when AI travel tools are proliferating, but few are built on a foundation of local expertise paired with verified global data. Visit Orlando’s approach is an attempt to bridge the gap between automated convenience and the kind of insider knowledge that only a local can provide.
For the Italian or European traveller accustomed to the curated intimacy of a small travel agency, OPAL may feel like a curious hybrid — part algorithm, part local confidante. But in a city that welcomes millions of international visitors each year, the tool represents a quiet shift in how destinations manage the sheer volume of questions, preferences and languages that cross their desks. The question now is whether this blend of human and machine will prove as effective as the real thing.
For Visit Orlando, the answer will be measured in itineraries built, businesses discovered and, ultimately, holidays well spent.
