7.1 Introduction

The speed of revolutionary transformations that automation brings to everyday life will likely affect the travel experience of the future. The opening scenario in the first chapters of this book presents a hospitality and tourism technology–customer experience from start to finish in 2068. Grounded in current theoretical foundations and technological advancements, this scenario shares a vision of how the development and integration of different automation technologies may alter and shape the travel experience in the state of robonomics, or the robot-dominated economy (Ivanov, 2017). The scenario envisions a couple of travellers who use a virtual assistant to search for and book a trip according to personal preferences and budgetary constraints (Yanishevskaya et al., 2019); benefit from the joint efforts of a virtual assistant and autonomous vehicles to be reminded of the appropriate departure time to arrive at the airport on time (Cohen & Hopkins, 2019); employ biometric technology for precise and speedy traveller recognition facilitating seamless passage through airport security (Negri et al., 2019); use mobile technology to check in to the hotel at a requested time; and enjoy personalised services offered to them based on past consumption history and guest preferences learned from the consumer’s behaviour.

This chapter revisits the dimensions of the service experience to adjust them to the realities of robonomics, highlighted by Tussyadiah (2020) and Xiang et al. (2021). The chapter then re-examines the sequence of service and the technological points of contact in the service exchange. It begins with examining the service selection stage (Choose), including a review of booking options and capabilities, takes the reader through the travel experience (Go) to the check-in and stay experience (Live), as well as dining (Eat) and fitness (Exercise) experiences, and culminates with post-departure follow-up technology (Review).