United’s Fees, Consumer Confidence, and Google’s AI Plans

Here are three of the most common questions our answer engine Ask Skift 2.0 has fielded recently and a brief summary of the answers it provided.

What Are the New Fees and Benefits for United Airlines’ Credit Cards and Lounge Memberships?

United Airlines announced an increase in fees for its credit cards and lounge memberships last month, which the company said would make its cards more valuable to its customers. Here are the changes in fees that United implemented alongside its banking partner JPMorgan Chase:

• The United Explorer Card annual fee has increased from $95 to $150.
• The United Quest Card annual fee has increased from $250 to $350.
• The United Club Card annual fee has increased from $525 to $695.

A United credit card provides benefits for holders such as complimentary Instacart memberships and rideshare credits. And regarding its United Club lounge network, passengers without elite status now pay $750 for individual memberships.

How is Consumer Confidence Influencing U.S. Travel Bookings?

Data from a survey released in March 2025 by The Conference Board indicated, despite a fourth consecutive month of declining consumer confidence, an increase in consumers planning to spend more on travel and vacations.

Skift reported in April that travel tech executives have seen early signs of weakening demand in U.S. travel, which is closely related to fluctuations in consumer confidence and economic uncertainty. 

Lighthouse, a company tracking hotel market data, recently reported a 3-5% decrease in average hotel prices across major U.S. destinations over a 30-day period, with CEO Sean Fitzpatrick noting that it’s tracking continued downward revisions for summer bookings. Mews founder Richard Valtr also said he’s seen early signs of weakened summer bookings.

Executives at Hostaway and Guesty, two companies that both provide operations tech to short-term rental managers, believe that an economic strain may encourage Americans to choose less expensive domestic trips instead of international travel.

Note: The Bank of America Institute said that spending on travel and tourism was down in February and March.

How Is Google Using AI in Travel Search and Planning?

Google unveiled two AI-powered travel tools last month: hotel price alerts and a feature for turning screenshots into trip plans.

The alerts are an expansion of a tool on Google Flights, and they enable users to track hotel prices across specific areas and receive notifications when prices drop. The feature also allows users to set preferences based on criteria such as dates and hotel brands.

Meanwhile, Google Maps — using AI from Gemini — automatically saves places mentioned in screenshots to help users plan trips. The user can approve those items and view them later.

Google also recently rolled out features on Gemini that it said could help travelers during trip planning. Updates to Gemini include features that allow the AI to connect with Google apps. For example, Gemini can now use photos from a recent trip to develop a travel itinerary based on places visited, or offer restaurant recommendations based on previous food-related searches.

The Gems tool allows users to store personalized chatbots within the Gemini chat library. The user can instruct the chatbot to focus on a specific topic — like a trip to Bermuda — as the user asks questions.

Aside from the Gemini AI search engine, Google has been experimenting with integrating generative AI into traditional search. Since 2024, an AI-generated summary called AI Overviews has appeared at the top of some search results. The company earlier this month began publicly testing AI Mode as an expansion of that tool. AI Mode is shown as a tab in search results alongside the other tabs, like Images.