Alma in 2025: From a Smart Search Tool to a Digital Tourism Advisor

The upgrades were developed on the basis of tens of thousands of user interactions and clearly identified patterns:

• Users want concrete information (e.g. parking, timing, pricing, access),
• They value structured itineraries,
• Dissatisfaction rises quickly when logistical information is incomplete in response to specific questions (activities at the destination, public transport, events, accessibility).

Below is an overview of the key upgrades implemented in 2025, from the perspective of user experience and content value.

Key upgrades in 2025

More effective answers: Alma knows how to ask follow-up questions

One of the most important content upgrades in 2025 was the introduction of follow-up questions. Instead of providing generic answers, Alma now guides users with short, targeted questions (e.g. when are you travelling, where are you going, what are you interested in) to collect key parameters for a more relevant response (location, interests, time of visit).

Why does this matter?

Analyses showed that the lowest-rated answers were those that remained too general. After the introduction of follow-up questions, a noticeable increase in engagement and satisfaction was observed for itineraries and logistical topics, particularly in English and Italian.

Alma on destination pages: local context, greater relevance

In 2025, Alma was prepared for expansion to individual destination pages. This means that users visiting a destination website receive answers that are already contextualised to that specific location.

Why is this crucial?

Reports show that users often ask “what can you do here?”, “where can I park?” or “what is nearby?”.

Local context reduces the number of follow-up questions and strengthens the perception of Alma as a digital local guide.

Specific pilot integrations on individual destination pages are planned for 2026.

Voice: voice input, text (and future voice) output

In 2025, Alma gained voice-to-text functionality, enabling users to ask questions using voice input. This is particularly important:

• on mobile devices,
• while travelling,
• for quick, practical questions (e.g. “where is the nearest parking area”).

User behaviour patterns show that mobile use is where the least friction and the greatest immediacy are expected.

Parking and access: addressing users’ biggest pain point

The topic of parking, vignettes and accessibility consistently appears across all 2025 reports.

In 2025, Alma gained:

• improved indexing of parking areas and access points,
• links to public transport, rail services and timetables,
• clear “yes/no + explanation + source” answers, which users had been missing the most.

This upgrade directly addresses one of the most negatively rated topics in previous months.

Accommodation as part of recommendations, no longer a separate category

In 2025, accommodation was fully integrated into Alma’s responses for the first time. This means that Alma can include accommodation suggestions directly within its answers, rather than presenting them only as separate recommended content or side/bottom links (especially relevant for the mobile experience).

This is important because users very frequently ask “where to stay”.

Outputs within the AI response: less clicking, more value

In addition to displaying recommendations alongside the answer, Alma now:

• presents key outputs (activities, accommodation, routes) directly within the response,
• structures information into lists, steps or day-by-day segments.

This has proven particularly effective for itineraries, as well as for accommodation-related queries and suggested hiking and cycling routes.

Itinerary building: one of the highest-rated functionalities

Personalised itineraries were among the highest-rated responses in 2025:

• Alma now creates hour-by-hour daily itineraries tailored to the user’s time frame,
• integrating parking details and smart alternatives in case of crowds or unfavourable weather,
• and linking all recommendations directly to maps and precise, real-world locations.

This confirms the project’s core direction: Alma is no longer just an answer, but a planning tool.

Weather as context, not a standalone piece of information

In 2025, weather was integrated primarily where it has a real impact:

• in short-term itineraries,
• in outdoor activities,
• in alternative suggestions (“if it rains”).

Users consistently recognise this as added value – especially families and international visitors.

Integration with Outdooractive: more data for active travellers

With the integration of Outdooractive, Alma gained access to:

• hiking and cycling routes,
• difficulty levels, distances and elevation profiles,
• GPX data frequently requested by users,
• verified routes contributed by Slovenian partners (destinations) to the Outdooractive platform.

This is a direct response to the strong interest in active tourism, which emerged as one of the most prominent themes in the 2025 reports.

Alma in 2025: a smart, data-driven digital advisor

Overall, 2025 firmly positioned Alma as a smart, data-driven digital tourism advisor that:

• understands user context,
• knows how to ask the right questions,
• delivers concrete, locally relevant answers.

Upgrades were implemented in line with user needs and expectations, based on feedback (like/dislike ratings) and user engagement with different content types.

Annual statistical overview

2025 marked Alma’s transition from an experimental phase to a mature, widely used digital tourism advisor. Over the past year, Alma processed approximately 83,000 user questions. A clear pattern emerged throughout the year: users no longer rely on Alma merely for inspiration, but increasingly for specific decision-making and travel planning support.

The most active users came from Italy, followed by users from Slovenia, Germany, Austria, Poland, the United States, Hungary, France, Croatia and Spain.

This is reflected in longer conversations, more consecutive questions and the growing importance of personalised itineraries, logistical answers and recommendations adapted to time, location and interests.

Analytics consistently confirmed that the highest-rated responses were those that reduced user uncertainty – for example, clear information on access, parking and rules, as well as structured suggestions combining accommodation, activities and alternative scenarios. December further reinforced this trend: Alma proved to be a relevant source even outside the main tourist season, with strong interest in wellness experiences, festive offers and winter itineraries.

A high share of positive ratings at the end of the year confirms that the 2025 upgrades directly addressed real user needs and laid solid foundations for further development.

Alma as a response to AI challenges in tourism

At a time when artificial intelligence and generative search tools increasingly answer user questions without directing traffic to websites, many national tourism organisations are facing a decline in organic traffic.

The Slovenian Tourist Board addressed this challenge strategically by developing its own destination-focused AI system, Alma, alongside a technically and content-wise enhanced slovenia.info portal. This positioned Slovenia as a primary, trusted source of information for users and for generative AI systems alike. Alma draws its knowledge from the rich content base of the Slovenia.info portal.

As a result, despite global trends, Slovenia achieved a 9% increase in organic traffic to the Slovenia.info portal in 2025, maintained high user satisfaction (over 91% positive likes on responses after the 2025 upgrades), and strengthened Alma’s role as a concrete, data-driven digital tourism advisor.

Looking ahead: Alma’s learning system and the long-term vision of a mobile tourism guide

Future upgrades of Alma are planned based on real usage analytics, internal development insights, rapid advancements in artificial intelligence, and smart redirection of tourist flows when needed.

A key focus is the establishment of a learning system for Alma that will enable simple, controlled and distributed knowledge contributions by various stakeholders. In this way, Alma is gradually evolving into a platform co-created by the entire tourism ecosystem, while maintaining a high level of reliability, accuracy and structured data.

In parallel, a long-term vision is emerging that goes beyond incremental upgrades: the mobile tourism guide as the “holy grail” of Alma’s development. This concept combines technological and tourism trends – Alma as a companion that guides users through destinations in real space, adapts to their location, time and interests, alerts them to crowds, suggests sustainable alternatives, and connects places, stories and experiences through a personalised audio and visual journey.

This vision represents the long-term development direction, in which Alma no longer merely answers questions, but becomes an active, contextual part of the travel experience itself.

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