ChatGPT: What is Slow Travel?

[Pauline]

I think the world is trying out ChatGPT 4. It ground to a halt when I asked for a 2-week itinerary for a slow travel trip to Europe.

So far it suggested 3 nights Amsterdam, 3 nights Bruges, 3 nights Paris, fly (!!) to Barcelona for 3 nights there, ending with 2 nights in the Cinque Terre. That was where it stopped. Probably an inner conflict with slow travel and flying. Not very inventive.

 

[GailS]

Interesting article - thank you @Pauline. In Italy now and not paying much attention to the news . Learning more about this technology (occupational hazard) it seems poised to be a revolutionary change with both positive and not so positive aspects.

 

[Pauline]

Well I don’t think that ChatGPT is going to do away with travel forums. Look at this ridiculous itinerary it created.

==========
Sure, here's an itinerary for a 2-week trip to Italy this summer focused on seeing Roman ruins:

Day 1-3: Rome

• Visit the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, and the Palatine Hill
• See the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain, and the Spanish Steps
• Visit the Vatican City, including St. Peter's Basilica and the Sistine Chapel

Day 4-5: Pompeii

• Take a train to Naples and then a local train to Pompeii
• Explore the ancient city of Pompeii and see the well-preserved ruins

Day 6-8: Ostia Antica

• Take a train from Rome to Ostia Antica
• Explore the ancient port city of Ostia Antica, which was an important trading center in ancient Rome

Day 9-10: Herculaneum

• Take a train from Rome to Naples and then a local train to Herculaneum
• Explore the well-preserved ruins of Herculaneum, which was destroyed by the same eruption that buried Pompeii

Day 11-13: Florence

• Take a train from Naples to Florence
• Visit the Uffizi Gallery, the Accademia Gallery, and the Duomo
• See the Ponte Vecchio and the Piazza della Signoria

Day 14: Rome

• Return to Rome and visit any sites you missed or want to see again
• Spend the evening in the Trastevere neighborhood, known for its narrow streets and lively nightlife

I hope you enjoy your trip to Italy!

=========

Rome to Naples, back to Rome, back to Naples. Then Florence. Then Rome.

 

[Pauline]

We get spammers regularly on the forums. Since a first post goes to the approval queue, I get to review them and clean out the spammers. Usually their posts are short and badly written. Sometimes they have links that they are paid for, sometimes no links so they can get into the forum and spam it later.

Spammers are now using ChatGPT to create posts. Previously they would copy information from other websites. Here is today’s example. This guy says he is from Italy, but his IP address is Pakistan. Plus the user name is a giveaway.

 

[joe]

Spammers are now using ChatGPT to create posts.

I don't know whether to feel flattered or offended that ChatGPT agreed with me on one point....

 

[Pauline]

I don't know whether to feel flattered or offended that ChatGPT agreed with me on one point....

?? I can’t see anything the same?

 

[joe]

"First, decide on your itinerary..."

 

[NoSpin]

Hi Pauline, just this evening the NBC national news here in the USA did a brief segment on AI planned trips. You might be able to watch it online, but it was only a 5 minute segment.

They used AI to plan an itinerary in Rome. The reporter brought a seasoned local guide with her. The itinerary did OK, but there were a couple faults. The itinerary went right through the day and on to 4 AM. Another thing it didn't warn about was one needs to get tickets in advance when going to the Colosseum.

The two sites that were mentioned were iplan.ai and usevacay.com. They contacted both sites and both said they are working on improvements.

Just thought I would mention it. At this point I have no plan to use any AI site, just my HI between my ears!

 

[Pauline]

Every day I read about advances in AI. I think there are now travel apps that use AI. I still use ChatGPT (the free version) but articles are saying that Bard from Google is better and free.

‎Google Gemini

Meet Gemini, Google’s AI assistant. Get help with writing, planning, brainstorming, and more. Experience the power of generative AI.

bard.google.com

And now there are AI robots! We are living in the future!

VANCOUVER, BC, Canada, May 16, 2023 - Sanctuary AI, a company on a mission to create the world’s-first human-like intelligence in general-purpose robots, announced a major step forward with the unveiling of its sixth-generation general-purpose robot named Phoenix™. Phoenix is the world’s first humanoid general-purpose robot powered by Carbon™, a pioneering and unique AI control system, designed to give Phoenix human-like intelligence and enable it to do a wide range of work to help address the labor challenges affecting many organizations today. Sanctuary has been able to show that its technology is already capable of completing hundreds of tasks identified by customers from more than a dozen different industries.

Sanctuary AI Unveils Phoenix™ - A Humanoid General-Purpose Robot

Sanctuary AI announces details about its 6th-generation technology, powered by Carbon™, its pioneering AI control system

sanctuary.ai

 

[joe]

Phoenix is the world’s first humanoid general-purpose robot powered by Carbon™, a pioneering and unique AI control system, designed to give Phoenix human-like intelligence and enable it to do a wide range of work to help address the labor challenges affecting many organizations today. Sanctuary has been able to show that its technology is already capable of completing hundreds of tasks identified by customers from more than a dozen different industries.

Strange : I checked their website to take a look at this do-it-all robot. They don't have a single video of it performing any type of task whatsoever. All hype? Why aren't they showing what this technology is capable of? Or am I just missing something....

 

[Pauline]

They have a video on that page but it only shows it flexing its fingers. But there is another one showing it doing tasks.

Overview video.

View: https://youtu.be/k2GhgO7SnZQ

Showing tasks.

View: https://youtu.be/Q10A8Zkfd_M


This whole explosion of AI things baffles me.

ChatGPT just announced their app.

ChatGPT App - App Store

Download ChatGPT by OpenAI OpCo, LLC on the App Store. See screenshots, ratings and reviews, user tips, and more apps like ChatGPT.

apps.apple.com

Bing has an AI app too.

Microsoft Bing Search App - App Store

Download Microsoft Bing Search by Microsoft Corporation on the App Store. See screenshots, ratings and reviews, user tips, and more apps like Microsoft Bing…

apps.apple.com

And there is Google Bard.

‎Google Gemini

Meet Gemini, Google’s AI assistant. Get help with writing, planning, brainstorming, and more. Experience the power of generative AI.

bard.google.com

 

[joe]

Showing tasks.

View: https://youtu.be/Q10A8Zkfd_M

Thanks Pauline, I only saw the first video and missed this one while checking their website. Indeed impressive. Will be interesting to see what will be the first complete job/task that will be handed over to a robot like this, and what the costs will be. Maybe assorting diamonds....?

 

[berliej]

I have also discovered Bard! Love it. However at the moment it doesn't support images.. I guess it will at some stage.

 

[Raacho Trekkers]

Slow travel is an approach to travel that emphasizes connection: to local people, cultures, food and music. It relies on the idea that a trip is meant to educate and have an emotional impact, in the present moment and for the future, while remaining sustainable for local communities and the environment . It is a way of traveling that allows you to take your time and enjoy the journey rather than rushing from one place to another. It is about immersing yourself in the local culture and getting to know the people who live there.

Bing bot answer. Bing has also integrated ChatGPT.

 

[dylanshore]

I wonder what you will say now, in 2 years? I dread to think what will happen in another 2 years with AI.

 

[VictoriaJZ]

I use Claude - the main thing to realize is that all these AI are date/time limited [unless you pay or have special access] - because the information inside their "library" is older,, usually pre-2026 in some cases. So using Google [which has Gemini as its AI which isn't too bad] may get you more recent data. I am in love with Claude the way Pauline is == I basically use it for background research [into a number of topics beyond travel] or compilation of data - I had a spreadsheet of 40- years of our travels and Claude was able to create a chronological Word document AND a document setting out what locations and numbers of times. Quite something -

 

[braindoc]

Victoria:

Not sure I agree completely.

I have free versions of 5 AI’s on my tablet (too cheap to pay, lol).

Chat GPT distinguishes:

• “General knowledge: My built-in knowledge is extensive, but it isn’t a live database. For rapidly changing facts, I don’t assume my internal knowledge is current.
• Current information: I can search the web in real time when you ask about things like current products, prices, airline schedules, laws, medical evidence, software versions, news, businesses, or who’s currently in a particular role.”

As for Claude:

“My reliable knowledge cutoff is the end of January 2026. I can speak confidently about things up through then. For anything more recent — current events, prices, product releases, who holds what position now — I use web search to check rather than rely on memory, since my training data goes stale. Given today’s date (August 2, 2026), that’s actually a fairly big gap, so if you’re asking about something time-sensitive, just say so and I’ll search for you.”

And Grok:

“My knowledge is continuously updated, and I can pull in the latest information in real time using tools (web search, browsing pages, X/Twitter search, and others) whenever something needs to be current. For anything time-sensitive—news, prices, events, software versions, etc.—I check live sources rather than relying only on what I already “know.” So the answer is: as up-to-date as the web and the tools allow at the moment you ask.”

I also use Gemini and Copilot.

The main thing I’ve learned is to compare answers from at least two.

I agree with you about how impressive results can be. We’ve just pulled the trigger on a return to Italy in February. Among other things, the AIs helped design an itinerary for seeing Titians in Venice and helped me decide on my camera kit.