Tourists traveled to Australia for its famous hot springs. There was just one problem – they didn’t exist

(CNN) — This week in travel news: Australian travelers descended on an imaginary tourist attraction, a woman recalls the night she unexpectedly bunked with a pair of traveling nuns, and the turning point for REAL ID has arrived.

Getting into hot water

Hundreds of tourists are flocking to hot springs in a small town in Tasmania, Australia. However, there was one small wrinkle in their trip planning. The hot springs are actually an AI “hallucination” that erroneously appeared on a travel advice website and was widely shared before people figured out what was happening.

While this particular anecdote is funny, it speaks to a larger, more alarming trend in the travel industry.

Anne Hardy, adjunct professor in tourism at Southern Cross University, Australia, told CNN that about 37% of tourists use artificial intelligence-powered large language models like ChatGPT for travel advice or itineraries.

Are you thinking about using AI to plan your next vacation, but not sure how to tell what’s real and what’s fake? Five CNN Travel staffers in five different cities tried to follow AI-created itineraries in their own hometowns, with varying degrees of success. Follow their experiences – and learn from their mistakes – here.

‘Sister Act,’ travel edition

“Great Escapes” is a new CNN Travel series about how journeys sometimes don’t go as planned — and what happens next. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be bringing you the first three articles in the series, which are also available in audio form.

This week’s story is about Diann Droste, who in 1973 was a 16-year-old high schooler traveling around the US by Greyhound bus when a massive snowstorm threatened to strand her alone in a small town in Minnesota.

Luckily, though, Diann wasn’t alone. Two guardian angels emerged – in the form of nuns. The two women saw broke, scared Diann alone in the lobby of a motel and invited her to stay with them. That night, the unlikely trio had dinner and the nuns taught Diann how to play the card game Canasta.

These days, Diann is a mom whose kids can’t believe she once roomed with total strangers. But, as she explains, that’s the kind of thing people did before cell phones and the widespread use of credit cards.

The next morning, the snow had cleared enough to let the bus continue on its journey, and Diann went home to her family. However, she has never forgotten – even after all this time – the kindness of the two women who made sure she was safe on that snowy night.

Ready for REAL IDs?

Starting this Sunday, February 1, the Transportation Security Administration says it will charge airline passengers who do not have a REAL ID $45 to verify their identity.

CNN’s Pete Muntean explains what this means for travelers.

Unexpected ingredients

One of the most fun parts of visiting a new place is trying the local specialties. That was certainly the case for actor Tony Shalhoub, who tried rye bread ice cream in Reykjavik, Iceland, during the “Breaking Bread” series that he hosted on CNN.

The grain-meets-dairy concoction is topped with rhubarb syrup and house-made whipped cream. Although Shalhoub was skeptical at first, he ended up loving the surprising treat.

And that’s not all. Sometimes a simple ingredient like olive oil is best tried not as part of a bigger dish but as a tasty treat in its own right. Shalhoub and CNN’s Anderson Cooper tried out olive oil shots – that’s right, drinking it straight, just like tequila or vodka. The verdict? Four thumbs up.

In case you missed it

America’s largest World War II cemetery isn’t in Europe.

It’s in Manila, capital of the Philippines.

France’s high speed rail system is offering a kid-free cabin.

It has stirred up plenty of controversy.

A former flight attendant scammed a bunch of free flights.

He did it by pretending to be a pilot.

A major layoff. A death-defying climb. A panda farewell.

What do you remember from the week that was?

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