Booking the Feeling: Emotion, Brand & the Connected Trip at Booking.com

Booking the Feeling: Emotion, Brand & the Connected Trip at Booking.com

From Future Proof by Kantar & Saïd Business School, Oxford University

February 4, 2026 · 17 min

About this episode

This episode discusses how Booking.com is integrating emotion into the travel booking experience with insights from Ben Harrel.

Travel is emotional, but booking a trip often isn’t. As expectations rise, Booking.com is working to bring emotion to moments that usually feels purely functional. Convenience isn’t the only game in town. In this episode, Jane Ostler talks with Ben Harrel, Managing Director, US at Booking.com. They discuss how the brand blends performance and long‑term storytelling to spark that Booking.yeah feeling, how creators help the brand speak authentically to different travellers, and how Gen AI is enabling more tailored and relevant communication at scale. Ben also shares a practical vision for the connected trip: a future where flights, stays, cars and attractions seamlessly work together, as well as how they can step in proactively when things go wrong, working towards a frictionless experience. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

People in this episode

Host: Jane Ostler

Guest: Ben Harrel

Topics covered

  • travel
  • emotion
  • branding
  • technology
  • artificial intelligence
  • customer experience

Keywords

  • Booking.com
  • travel
  • emotion
  • Gen AI
  • customer experience
  • branding
  • connected trip

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Booking.com, Kantar, Saïd Business School, Oxford University

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