Eia

Your AI Travel Twin Is Here: How Eia Plans Trips Indians Actually Take

May 15, 2026

6 mins Read

By Supriya Sahu

Turn saved reels into bookable trips. Hotels, city passes, visas, eSIMs. One conversation. Meet Eia, in beta on alike.io.

It starts the same way every time. A reel of Meghalaya waterfalls at midnight. A friend's Bali photo that makes you close 11 tabs and open 12 new ones. A Cannes red carpet moment that makes you think: why haven't I been to Paris?

You save the reel. You screenshot the hotel. You send yourself a voice note. And then, like every other time, nothing gets booked.

The space between wanting to go and actually going is exactly where most Indian travellers stay permanently. Not because they don't want to travel. Because planning is exhausting, fragmented, and built for someone who doesn't travel the way we do.

Eia doesn't just plan your trip. She understands why you travel.

Eia is Alike's AI travel twin, currently in beta. That word, twin, matters. A planner takes your inputs and returns a list. Eia learns what you want from the content you share, the vibe you describe, the budget you name, and builds a trip that feels like yours. Hotels, experiences, transport, visas, eSIMs and city passes, all booked in one conversation without switching apps.

Indian travellers in 2026: inspiration is everywhere, booking is still broken

Indians are the world's most visual travel planners. We don't read about Coorg. We watch it: the coffee estate reels, the misty morning stays, the pre-monsoon green that hits different in May. We find out about Dubai through a friend's story, Meghalaya through a creator's reel, Paris through Cannes coverage that makes the city feel like it belongs to everyone for two weeks.

The finding part is easy. The booking part is where it falls apart.

Seven tabs open, zero decisions made. Skyscanner, MakeMyTrip, TripAdvisor, Google Maps, Instagram, a WhatsApp group and ChatGPT. Each one has a piece of the answer. None of them talk to each other.
Visa confusion for Indian passport holders. Every destination has different rules. Visa on arrival, e-visa, embassy, processing time. One wrong assumption and the trip doesn't happen.
Currency blindness. Most tools quote in dollars. You're converting at 3am, getting the maths wrong, and calling nothing booked.
The group chat problem. Four people, four opinions, one shared Google Doc that nobody updates, and a trip that gets planned six months too late or not at all.

Eia was built for exactly this. As the friend who has already done the research, already knows your budget, already factored in the visa, and is waiting to tell you: here's the trip, here's when to go, and it's already bookable.

What's trending from India right now, and where Eia sends you

May 2026 is a particular moment in Indian travel. The summer school break is here. Pre-monsoon domestic windows are closing fast. Two of the world's biggest cultural events are on right now: the Cannes Film Festival (May 13 to 24) and Roland Garros (May 25 to June 8). Both are pushing France and Europe searches from India sharply upward.

International: the destinations with the highest intent from India

Dubai and UAE: Perennially at the top. Visa on arrival for Indian passport holders who hold a valid US, UK or Schengen visa, or apply for a UAE tourist visa online before travel. Direct flights from every major Indian city. Alike's Dubai city pass covers 70+ attractions with savings of up to 50% compared to buying individually.
Singapore: Alike's Singapore city pass is one of the highest-converting products on the platform. Indians are searching 'Singapore Malaysia combo trip' in volume right now. Visa required for Indian passport holders, typically 3 to 5 working days processing. Tell Eia your dates and she'll build the two-country itinerary in one conversation.
Thailand: Visa-free for Indian passport holders for up to 60 days, with a TDAC digital arrival card required before landing. As of May 13 2026, Thailand is proposing to reduce this to 30 days pending Cabinet approval. Current rule still 60 days at time of publishing. Phuket, Krabi, Koh Lanta, Pai. Eia can map all of it and handle your eSIM and transport in the same booking.
Bali: Visa on arrival for Indians at Bali airport, 30 days, USD 35. Eia works from what you actually saved. If you saved Ubud reels, you get Ubud. If you saved Seminyak, you get Seminyak. The reel you saved at 11pm becomes the specific version of Bali that is yours.
Japan: Visa required for Indian passport holders, typically 5 to 7 working days at the Japanese embassy. Cherry blossom season is over, which is exactly why May in Japan is underrated and underpriced. Eia can build the Tokyo-Osaka-Kyoto flow with your eSIM sorted through Alike's marketplace.
France, Paris, Nice, the Riviera: Schengen visa required for Indian passport holders. Apply at least 4 to 6 weeks before travel, given peak season processing times. The Cote d'Azur is genuinely beautiful in May. Nice, Antibes, Monaco as a day trip, then Paris. Alike's Paris city pass covers major attractions with pick-and-choose flexibility. Tell Eia your travel dates and she'll build the itinerary with the pass in the same cart.
London: Alike's London city pass launched in January 2026 alongside Dubai, Paris and Singapore. UK visa required for Indian passport holders. If you're combining Europe cities, Eia can plan London and Paris with both passes in one booking conversation.

Roland Garros starts May 25. Tell Eia you want Paris for a match and she'll build the itinerary around the date you choose. Apply for your Schengen visa now.

Domestic: the Indian trips that are peaking right now

Coorg, Karnataka: Pre-monsoon Coorg in May is arguably the best version of Coorg. The green is extraordinary, the crowds are gone and the coffee estates are in full production. The right two-day weekend before the rains. Tell Eia your dates and she'll handle the stay and experiences.
Meghalaya: Rising fast in search, very thinly covered by quality travel content. Living root bridges, Dawki river, Shillong. May is pre-monsoon shoulder, so the waterfalls are starting but the roads are still passable. Most planners won't tell you that.
Kashmir: Peak season. Gulmarg green, Pahalgam in full bloom, Srinagar houseboats that sell out weeks in advance. Kashmir family searches from Delhi and Mumbai are climbing sharply right now.
Spiti Valley: The Manali-Spiti road typically opens in May. A high-altitude trip that needs careful pacing. Eia can build the itinerary with rest days factored in so you don't spend day two at altitude unable to move.
Andaman Islands: The pre-monsoon window closes by end of May. Right now, Andaman is the strongest value alternative to Maldives for Indian travellers watching their budget. Eia can run the comparison for your dates and group size.
Goa in the off-season: May Goa is underrated. Off-season pricing, empty beaches, the tourist rush is gone. Eia knows which stays and experiences run year-round and can build you the quieter, better-priced version of Goa.

What Eia actually does, confirmed

Every major travel platform now has an AI feature. The difference with Eia is that she books it. She doesn't hand you a list and step away.

Reels to bookable trips

Share a saved TikTok, Instagram reel or YouTube link with Eia in chat. She turns it into a real, bookable trip plan, tailored to how you actually travel. Confirmed live functionality on alike.io today.

Everything booked in one conversation

Hotels, experiences, transport, visas, eSIMs, city passes. All booked through Eia without switching apps. Alike offers 50+ services in one place. You can pay in instalments or use loyalty points from airlines, hotels and credit cards you already hold.

City passes with real savings

Alike's customisable city passes for Dubai, Abu Dhabi, London, Paris and Singapore let you pick only the attractions you want rather than buying a fixed bundle. Savings of up to 50% compared with purchasing tickets individually. The passes go into the same cart as your hotel and eSIM. One checkout.

In-trip support

Once you're booked, Eia keeps the trip on track. Daily reminders, real-time updates and proactive alerts before changes become problems. If something goes wrong mid-trip, Alike's travel specialists are available.

Earn from every itinerary you share

Every itinerary you publish on Alike becomes a bookable trip for other travellers. Every booking it generates earns you a revenue share. There are already 12,000+ trip plans shared by real travellers on the platform.

10% off when you book through Eia

Plan your itinerary and book through Eia on alike.io and you get 10% off. No code. No conditions around specific dates or routes. Plan through Eia, the discount applies.

How to use Eia as your travel twin

Save what speaks to you. Coorg reels. Meghalaya waterfalls. Dubai skylines. Paris cafe footage from a creator you follow. Don't organise it. Just save it.
Bring it to Eia. Head to alike.io and open Eia in chat. Paste Instagram or TikTok links directly, describe a vibe, or just tell her your budget and dates. She'll ask the right follow-up questions, conversationally.
Let Eia build the plan. Destination, flights from your city, accommodation that matches your saved aesthetic, day-by-day itinerary, visa requirements, eSIM, city pass if relevant. Everything in one conversation.
Tweak it. She recalculates. Remove a day. Add an experience. Change the hotel. Ask for a slower pace. Eia adjusts the plan and re-prices everything accordingly.

Book. One cart. One checkout. Hotel, city pass, eSIM, experiences, all confirmed in one place. Pay in instalments or use your loyalty points. Your 10% booking discount applies.

Your friends are still in the WhatsApp group. You could already be booked.

Show Eia a reel. Or just tell her where you want to go.

Eia is in beta on Alike.