AAA’s Trip Canvas push

AAA is using Trip Canvas to push scenic drives and short getaways, steering travelers to its own platform for weekend-trip planning. (aaa.com) Trip Canvas is AAA’s travel-planning site, where users can browse destinations, save articles, hotels, restaurants and attractions, and book hotels, tours, cruises and attraction tickets. AAA says the platform also includes member savings and benefits. (aaa.com) The road-trip section now lists 122 preplanned routes, from a 16.1-mile Illinois Ohio River Historic Byway drive to Colorado’s 865.1-mile San Juan Skyway and a 1,141.2-mile Grand Ole Music trip. AAA’s separate Road Trips planner also breaks routes out by region, including 91 trips in the Pacific Southwest and 62 in the Mid-Atlantic. (aaa.com 1) (aaa.com 2) AAA built Trip Canvas as a digital version of services it long sold through travel agents, maps and TourBooks. A 2022 AAA club magazine article described the launch as a new planning platform that lets travelers explore destinations, save ideas and book flights, rental cars or train tickets in one place. (hoosier.aaa.com) (midstates.aaa.com) The push comes as AAA keeps adding inventory and booking tools to the platform. In May 2023, AAA added more than 18,000 verified hotel reviews through Feefo, and in February 2024 it added campgrounds and recreational vehicle parks through RoverPass. (newsroom.aaa.com 1) (newsroom.aaa.com 2) AAA is pitching Trip Canvas as more than inspiration. Its overview says users can “dream, plan and book” in one place, combining editorial travel ideas with Diamond-designated hotels and restaurants that AAA inspectors have already evaluated. (newsroom.aaa.com) (aaa.com) That strategy gives AAA a bigger role in trips that start as casual browsing and end as paid bookings. AAA says it now serves more than 65 million members across North America, including nearly 58 million in the United States. (newsroom.aaa.com 1) (newsroom.aaa.com 2) For travelers, the pitch is simple: start with a weekend drive, save a few stops, and keep the booking inside AAA’s system. For AAA, Trip Canvas turns the old road-trip map into a storefront. (aaa.com) (aaa.com)