Traveling Used to Be a Private Getaway. Now Each Step Is Monitored

Travel used to mean escape. A moment to disconnect, to slip away from the routine, to embrace anonymity. You packed your bags, you left, and the world didn’t follow. Your time away was yours alone, a private sphere where nothing else intruded. 20 years ago, I had a cell phone, but when traveling I used to leave it back home. No chance I would bring it abroad. 

But not anymore. Not in this age of hyper-connected surveillance.

Today, your journey starts with a digital trail. You search for flights, and Google knows where you’re going before you’ve booked. Before you even search. You browse hotels, and Facebook ads show you options you hadn’t considered. Even before you’ve left home, you’ve surrendered your plans to systems that track, analyze, and profit from every click.

Even in remote disconnected areas like in the Himalayas or Sahara with no internet connection or mobile phone coverage, someone might take a picture of you and eventually share it. Or you take photos, and once you’re online, the devices are updated. You are tracked going in and out, and whenever you get connected. Scary shit. If you ask me.

A Peer-to-Peer Surveillance Network

Let’s start with Tripadvisor. It’s not just a website for recommendations; it’s a social media and a global surveillance system, monitoring hotels, restaurants, tour operators and tourists. But it’s not Tripadvisor that’s doing the heavy lifting. The work is done by us, the travelers. Every year millions of travelers browse billions of reviews across millons of lodgings, restaurants, and attractions.

When you dine at a restaurant, you might rate it on a scale of 1-5. You might upload a photo of your meal, or leave a detailed review. Tripadvisor’s algorithm doesn’t determine the value of the restaurant; it simply aggregates the data you and others have provided. It calculates an average score, ranks the establishment, and makes the results visible to millions.

And the monitoring doesn’t stop at businesses. Users are ranked too. Post a review? That’s 100 points. Upload a photo? 30 points. Cast a vote on someone else’s review? 1 point. Accumulate enough points, and you’re promoted to higher levels, unlocking perks along the way. But if you violate the rules, perhaps by threatening a business with an unjustified review, you could be penalized or kicked out altogether.

This is peer-to-peer surveillance. Everyone grades everyone else. Tripadvisor doesn’t need cameras or advanced biometric systems; it relies on millions of human users who voluntarily submit data. The algorithm’s job is merely to organize and publish what we’ve already given.

Google: The Silent Observer

If Tripadvisor and their likes like Yelp, Trustpilot etc relies on human-generated content, Google takes surveillance to an entirely new level. It doesn’t just aggregate what you share; it predicts, profiles, and preempts your actions.

When you search for flights, Google Flights tracks not only your destination but also your timing, preferences, and budget. It monitors price trends and sends alerts, subtly guiding your decision-making process. When you search for hotels, Google Maps logs your location, your route, and the places you spend time researching. Even your “offline” planning isn’t truly private. Have you ever noticed how an ad for the hotel you just checked out pops up on a completely unrelated website? That’s Google’s tracking system in action, monitoring your every click and tying it to a digital profile that grows every day.

But it goes deeper. Google Maps doesn’t just provide directions; it tracks your movements in real time. GPS, Wi-Fi, and even Bluetooth connections combine to create a detailed map of your life. Your morning coffee run? Logged. The museum you visited last weekend? Tracked. The “private” dinner at a friend’s house? Documented as a location pin.

And then there’s the integration. Google Photos tags your images with locations and timestamps. Google Pay records your purchases. Gmail scans your emails for travel itineraries and links them to your calendar. Each tool seems innocuous on its own, but together they weave a comprehensive narrative of your habits, preferences, and future plans.

Unlike Tripadvisor, Google doesn’t need you to participate actively. It’s a passive observer, silently collecting and correlating data from every corner of your digital life. The result? A surveillance system so seamless that you forget it’s even there.

OTAs: The Gatekeepers of Travel Data

Expedia, Booking.com, Airbnb—the Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) that dominate the travel industry, aren’t just platforms for booking your next trip. They are massive data-collection machines, logging every detail about your preferences, habits, and spending patterns.

Every time you search for accommodations on Booking.com, the platform tracks more than just your destination. It notes your budget, the length of your stay, the types of properties you favor, and even the time of day you browse. The platform uses this data to refine its recommendations and send you targeted emails, urging you to book before prices go up or availability runs out.

Airbnb goes a step further. When you browse listings, Airbnb collects data on your preferences, such as the amenities you prioritize, the neighborhoods you explore, and the types of experiences you book. This information feeds their algorithm, ensuring that the listings you see align with your habits. But it also builds a profile that Airbnb can use to predict your future travel behavior.

Expedia, with its portfolio of brands including Hotels.com and Vrbo, gathers and cross-references data across platforms. When you book a flight through Expedia and a vacation rental through Vrbo, the system links these transactions to form a comprehensive picture of your trip. It knows where you’re going, how you’re getting there, and what kind of lodging you prefer. And it doesn’t stop there. Data on your cancellation patterns, loyalty points, and even your browsing history adds depth to this profile.

These platforms claim to use your data to enhance your experience, offering personalized recommendations and seamless booking. But the cost is your privacy. The OTAs monetize your information, selling insights to advertisers and leveraging it to negotiate better deals with suppliers. In essence, your travel plans become a commodity, traded in a market you never agreed to enter.

AI: The All-Seeing Eye

There are over one billion CCTV cameras around the world, many of them powered by artificial intelligence. AI can now recognize your face, track your movements, and link them to other pieces of data about you. Every time you pay with a card, use your phone, or step into a monitored area, you leave a trace.

Yuval Noah Harari warns that this level of surveillance is unprecedented. Historically, people have always been watching each other. But now, technology has taken this to an entirely new level. AI doesn’t just observe; it analyzes. It learns your patterns, predicts your behavior, and makes decisions based on that knowledge. In the realm of travel, this means that from the moment you step into an airport, AI systems know who you are, where you’ve been, and where you’re going.

Facial recognition systems in airports can match your face to a passport photo in seconds. AI systems in hotels can analyze guest behaviors to improve service, or flag unusual activity. Payment systems track every transaction, tying your spending habits to your location. Even public transport systems are increasingly integrating AI to monitor passenger flow and optimize routes. But all this convenience comes at a price. Our privacy. Our anonymity.

In this world of AI-driven surveillance, every traveler becomes a data point. Every move is logged, every action analyzed. The escape you sought when you traveled? It’s now part of an algorithm.

The Cost of Visibility

Last week a two famous influensers visited a restaurant in Oslo. A small cozy place. They documented every minute of their stay on camera. On social media. A waiter went to them and asked firmly to stop using flashlight in the restaurant. Then hell broke out. They posted in social media about the worst threathment ever, all they wanted was to post pictures and recommend the restaurant they said. The food apparently looked  better with flashlight. Luckily other guests saw this, it became a media case and eventually the influencers had to apology. The restaurant have had a lot of bookings since. 

Once, the relationship between a customer and a waiter was semi-private. You entered a bistro, shared a moment with the staff, and left. Unless something dramatic happened, that interaction stayed between you. A rude waiter? You might tell a friend, but that was the end of it.

Now, every misstep is immortalized online. If the staff at your hotel, your guide or waiter fails to meet expectations, the restaurant could face a negative review that influences thousands of potential customers for years.

The power dynamic has shifted, tilting in favor of the customer.

This erosion of privacy extends far beyond restaurants. Tour operators, guides, hair-dressers, all find themselves under constant scrutiny. The moment you enter their space, you bring cameras, microphones, and a global audience with you. Every interaction is subject to evaluation, comparison, and public judgment. The once-private service industry is now the foundation of a non-governmental surveillance network.

Social Media: The Always-On Camera

Platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook amplify this reality. Travel is no longer a private escape; it’s content. You don’t just visit a destination, you document it. You share photos, tag locations, and post stories, inviting others to comment, like, and judge.

Behind the scenes, these platforms track your every move. Instagram analyzes your engagement to decide what you see next. TikTok’s algorithm learns your preferences down to the second you linger on a video. And each post, each tag, feeds an ecosystem of data collection, where your habits become commodities sold to advertisers. Apparently there are around one billion CCTVs in the world. On top of the billions of pocket sized cameras we all carry around.

As mentioned, Google, the silent observer, takes this even further. Every search, every map route, every hotel booking adds to your profile. Even if you think you’re offline, cookies, GPS, and other tracking mechanisms ensure your movements are logged. Your digital footprint grows with every step you take.

The Illusion of Choice

These systems claim to offer convenience. Tripadvisor helps you find the best restaurants. Instagram connects you with beautiful destinations. Google ensures you never get lost. Expedia, Booking.com, and Airbnb simplify the booking process. But the cost is hidden in plain sight: your privacy, eroded one click at a time. 

The line between public and private has been obliterated. Travel, once a retreat from the world, is now a stage where every moment is monitored, curated, and judged. The escape has become the performance. You probably use social media to do research. Or Google. Your research is no longer about choice, it is about what algorithms find for you. They give more of the same. More of what’s popular. Ever wondering why we get overtourism?

Are algoritms choosing for us?

What Now?

Myself and many of you are working to make tourism better. Perhaps the question isn’t how to travel better but how to reclaim the essence of travel itself. How do we create space for true disconnection? How do we protect the private sphere in an age of constant surveillance?

It starts with awareness. Recognizing the systems at play. Choosing moments of intentional disconnection. Valuing experiences for their intrinsic worth, not their social capital. Because if we don’t, the places we go to escape will become just another screen we can never turn off. The endless surveillance is scary shit.

And just hours ago, Donald Trump was sworn in as the new president, standing alongside the three richest tech entrepreneurs in the world. These are the individuals who own many of the largest platforms globally. Talking about scary.

Are we just at the beginning?