Today, Expedia Group introduced more than 30 new and enhanced features across Expedia, Hotels.com, and Vrbo to make it easier for travelers to plan, book, and manage their entire trip. Together, these updates help travelers make more informed decisions, create flexibility and value, and personalize experiences across the whole trip.

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Expedia Activity Planner

Expedia Activity Planner

“Travel is a series of decisions, and travelers want the joy of discovery and planning to last through every stage of the journey,” said Shilpa Ranganathan, Chief Product Officer at Expedia Group. “That’s why we’re building AI-powered experiences across our brands that help travelers make informed decisions, give them flexibility and value, and personalize every step of their trip. And when travelers need a person, our human agents step in with the full context to make things right.”

Expedia, the ultimate travel companion where you can search, compare and book the whole trip all in one place.

Family vacations mean balancing dates, destinations, room configurations, and everyone’s preferences. According to industry research, over a third of parents say finding fun, unique activities for the whole family is one of the most stressful parts of vacation planning, while more than half of family travelers place a high value on.1 New Expedia features help families through the whole trip by finding options that work for them, coordinating the details and managing more of the itinerary in one place.

  • A homepage experience that feels personal: Looking for inspiration, a deal, picking up a search, or getting ready for a booked trip? Expedia’s refreshed homepage brings relevant recommendations, deals, recent activity, and useful next steps together in a richer, more visual experience that responds to travelers’ needs at every stage of their journey.

  • More flexible packages: Bundling flights, stays, and cars is still the best way to unlock savings, and now packages bend to fit complex trips travelers want. Travelers can fly into one city, stay in another, and add a hotel or rental car only for the days they need.

  • Activity Planner: Now that the trip is booked, it’s time to move on to the experiences that make it special. Our conversational Activity Planner turns that list into tailored activity, restaurant, and event options that travelers can quickly save, book, or later add to an itinerary. If they need inspiration, it provides tailored suggestions based on trip context and preferences.

  • Property Expert: Travelers can ask specific questions about a property — before or after booking — and receive AI-powered answers grounded in property details, guest reviews, and their own reservation, helping them decide on a stay or confirm what it includes.

  • Multi-room booking: Booking for a larger family or group? Multi-room booking makes it easier to find and book multiple room types that fit everyone’s needs, pay for them together, and manage in one itinerary.

  • Family-friendly maps: An interactive map lets travelers explore neighborhoods, see family-relevant details — like beaches, playgrounds, and restaurants — and find properties in the right area for their trip.

  • CLEAR+ discounts: Designed for a seamless airport experience, CLEAR+ helps travelers speed through airport security and get to their gate faster. Now, all One Key members can get a discount on CLEAR+, surfaced right after they book a flight. Pricing and discounts for each membership tier are available at expedia.com/product/clear.

  • Free lounge access for delayed flights: Travelers deserve to be comfortable during unexpected flight delays, which is why Expedia steps in regardless of the airline. Gold and Platinum One Key members and up to nine travelers in their party can receive complimentary airport lounge access or OneKeyCash when an eligible flight is delayed 90 minutes or more. Gold and Platinum members who book eligible flights in the Expedia app can also receive free One Key Price Drop Protection. If the price drops before departure, Expedia automatically provides the difference in OneKeyCash. Free lounge access for delayed flights is available for qualifying flights booked through Expedia by 12/31/27. Terms apply.

Hotels.com makes finding the right stay simple and rewarding

Finding the right hotel can mean bouncing between search results, maps, reviews, and cancellation policies. New Hotels.com features make it easier to find the right stay, adapt your experience for work or leisure trips, and help you get the most important details from search until you’re ready to book your next trip.

  • An easier way to compare: Hotels.com’s enhanced AI Compare experience lets travelers compare shortlisted properties in one place. It delivers personalized, plain language comparisons based on expressed interests that matter most, such as location, amenities, price, and policy details, and lets travelers ask follow-up questions to better understand the trade-offs between options.

  • A homepage that adapts to the type of trip you booked (work or leisure): Surfaces the most useful next step on the Hotels.com homepage, bringing links to manage a booking quickly, or when nearing the end of a trip, options to extend the stay or access receipts for easy work trip expensing.

Additional Hotels.com experiences include Natural Language Search, Loved by Guests and Business Shopping Experience, and enhancements to Property Expert. See here for more information.

Vrbo, the group planner expert

Vrbo helps group planners find the perfect vacation rental that fits their needs to make lasting memories. But group travel comes with more people, more preferences, and more details to coordinate. New Vrbo features make it easier to find a home that works for everyone, compare options with confidence, and manage the shared stay.

  • Better search: Vrbo’s Natural Language Search lets group planners describe specific needs in their own words — such as a beachfront home in Hawaii with a well-stocked kitchen and outdoor gathering space — instead of piecing it together through traditional filters. Vrbo’s search goes beyond keywords to understand complex group-trip needs and explain why each home is the right fit.

  • Better ways to pay: Coming soon to Vrbo, Reserve Now, Pay Later will allow travelers to reserve eligible homes with $0 due at booking, giving group planners flexibility to confirm who is coming, collect contributions, and manage the cost of the entire stay.

  • Better arrival experiences: The enhanced Arrival Experience brings key information for a stay into one place, including check-in and checkout times, door codes, directions, and house rules, so groups can prepare for arrival without searching through multiple messages.

  • Better support: Get support faster through a conversational voice experience that can handle common requests and connect to a human agent when needed with the call context they need to help, reducing repetition and moving the call forward more efficiently.

Additional Vrbo experiences include smarter savings for travelers who book early or stay longer through Monthly, Weekly, and Early Booking deals. Travelers can also grab Last-Minute deals, and on select stays, Stacked Savings apply for even more value. Plus, Member Prices are available to those who sign in.

For more information, visit: expedia.com/product/release/fall2026

Frequently Asked Questions

What recent updates did Expedia Group announce?

Expedia Group’s Fall 2026 Product Release announced more than 30 new and enhanced features across Expedia, Hotels.com and Vrbo designed to help travelers make more informed decisions, create flexibility and value, and personalize experiences across the whole trip. The announcements include Natural Language Search and Reserve Now, Pay Later on Vrbo, a new Activity Planner feature on Expedia, and faster ways to compare hotels with Hotels.com.

How is Expedia’s new homepage more personalized?

The enhanced homepage helps travelers move forward at every stage of their journey, from browsing for inspiration and booking a trip to preparing for departure and managing it while traveling. Across web and app, it creates a personalized experience, surfacing relevant recommendations, deals, recent activity, and next steps in a richer, more visual experience that responds to travelers’ needs in real time.

How do I get a CLEAR+ discount through Expedia?

All One Key members in the U.S. can enroll in CLEAR+ at a tier-based discount after booking a flight on the Expedia app or Expedia.com.

I have a question about a hotel on Expedia/Hotels.com. Where can I go for help?

Property Expert is available on Expedia and Hotels.com (U.S., web and app) and helps travelers ask specific questions about a property and receive answers grounded in property information and guest reviews. Once you’ve found a hotel you’re interested in, either tap the floating “Ask” button in the bottom corner of the property page, or scroll down until you see a banner showing “Questions? Just ask.”

What’s the best way to compare hotels?

Hotels.com’s AI Compare helps travelers compare shortlisted Hotels.com properties side by side, matching the perfect property to the unique needs of their trips. It makes it easier to identify meaningful differences and ask questions about factors such as location, amenities, value, and flexibility. It’s available on the Hotels.com app and Hotels.com in the U.S.

How can I find things to do on my trip?

Expedia’s Activity Planner is a conversational shopping assistant that helps travelers find things to do once they’ve booked a trip. Activity Planner will surface bookable activities and tours, restaurants, and local points of interest, plus some helpful non‑bookable ideas like walks or free tours, that are tailored to their group. It also lets travelers save favorites to a trip board and build a daily itinerary. It’s available in the U.S. on the Expedia app and Expedia.com.

What is Vrbo’s Natural Language Search?

Vrbo’s Natural Language Search allows travelers to describe the hotel or vacation rental they want in their own words rather than being limited to an existing set of fixed boxes and filters. It is available in the U.S. English web and app experience on Hotels.com and Vrbo.

What is Homepage Trip Companion on Hotels.com?

Homepage Trip Companion on Hotels.com puts the relevant information front and center on the Hotels.com homepage (app and web), such as continuing a search, revisiting a saved property, or managing an upcoming stay.

Does Vrbo have flexible payment options?

Coming soon to Vrbo, the Reserve Now, Pay Later payment option allows travelers to reserve eligible homes for $0 at the time of booking by placing a credit card on file, giving group planners more time to confirm who is coming, collect contributions, and manage the cost of the stay.

What help is available if my flight is delayed?

Expedia offers Gold and Platinum members free lounge access for flights delayed 90 minutes or more. The benefit extends to up to nine travelers in the party. Available for qualifying flights booked through Expedia by 12/31/27. Terms apply.

Can I book more than one room for a group on Expedia?

Multi-Room Booking on Expedia lets travelers select different room types at the same hotel and pay for them together. A family can reserve a Deluxe King Suite for the parents and a Premium Ocean View room for the rest of the group, then manage the stay through one itinerary.

What is the best way to plan a family vacation with different preferences?

Expedia brings several family-planning tools together, including family-friendly maps, multi-room booking, Property Expert, and Activity Planner. Travelers can explore neighborhoods, find room configurations that work for their group, ask property-specific questions, and build an itinerary around activities, restaurants, and events.

How can I find a family-friendly area to stay?

Expedia’s family-friendly maps let travelers explore neighborhoods and see relevant details such as beaches, playgrounds, and restaurants. Travelers can use the map to find properties in an area that fits the needs of their trip.

What discounts does Vrbo offer?

Vrbo offers Monthly, Weekly, and Early Booking deals, as well as Last-Minute deals. On select stays, Stacked Savings may provide additional value, and Member Prices are available to travelers who sign in.

What’s the best site to book a vacation rental for a large group?

Vrbo is designed to help group planners find a vacation rental that fits their needs, compare options with confidence, and manage the shared stay. Its new search, payment, arrival, and support experiences are designed around the coordination challenges of group travel.

Notes to Editor:

* Family Travel Association, US Family Travel Survey 2025 (December 2025)

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About Expedia Group

Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE) is the global travel marketplace with one purpose: to help travelers explore the world, one journey at a time. Expedia Group™ connects travelers, partners, and advertisers through its trusted brands, leading technology, and rich first-party data, delivering predictive, personalized experiences that shape the future of travel.

Expedia Group’s ecosystem includes three flagship consumer brands — Expedia®, Hotels.com®, and Vrbo® — the largest B2B travel business, and a premier advertising network. Guided by an experienced and passionate global team, Expedia Group helps millions of travelers in more than 70 countries explore the world with confidence and ease.

© 2026 Expedia, Inc., an Expedia Group company. All rights reserved. Expedia Group and the Expedia Group logo are trademarks of Expedia, Inc. CST: 2029030-50.

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1 familytravel.org/assets/pdf/FTA-Survey2025-Report/

 

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