ChatGPT’s Travel Apps, Hilton’s New Brand and Kyoto’s Record Hotel Tax

OpenAI is turning ChatGPT into an app platform, with travel brands like Expedia and Booking.com embedding apps directly into chat so users can start trip planning in natural language and receive bookable options without extra downloads. Hilton unveiled its 25th brand, the Outset Collection, aimed at upscale independent hotels, with more than 60 owner conversations underway and the first property slated to open in November. Meanwhile, Kyoto will impose Japan’s highest hotel tax starting next March—about $67 per night on stays roughly $660+—to fund infrastructure and combat overtourism.

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