One of Australia’s most recognisable brand names is making a return, this time with an entirely new identity. Ansett Travel is an intelligent travel platform powered by AI, making travel more affordable and accessible for Australians.

Founded by “AI-native” entrepreneur Constantine Frantzeskos, Ansett Travel revives the beloved Ansett brand, once Australia’s second-largest airline, by reimagining it as a new kind of travel company that is changing the way we travel.

Frantzeskos brings decades of experience in digital innovation and tourism strategy, having worked with Emirates, Saudi Tourism and Dubai Tourism. He’s also a founding director and former board member of LaunchVic and former board member of Swinburne University’s Innovation Precinct.

“The idea was to bring back something Australians trusted, but to rebuild it in a way that reflects how we want to travel today, fast, intuitive and tailored to our lives,” said Frantzeskos. “We’re not just adding AI to an old model. We started from zero and built everything around what AI can do when it’s placed at the core.”

As Ansett Travel grows, the vision is to keep leveraging AI to increase efficiencies and create a dream experience for customers. Eventually, predictive AI will act as a travel concierge tailored to the individual, with members receiving personalised trip recommendations and itineraries based on their preferences, budgets and calendar events.

“Eventually, we believe people won’t have to search or plan holidays at all,” Frantzeskos added. “Your travel concierge will know when the kids are on school holidays or when you need a break, and quietly offer the perfect trip. It’s not about replacing people, it’s about anticipating and tailoring times when we want to have fun or disconnect.”

In the meantime, as of Friday July 18 2025, Ansett Travel is launching a brand new feature allowing members to book trips at exclusive near-wholesale rates. With an annual Ansett Travel subscription, users can unlock savings of up to 25 per cent off standard retail prices on flights and accommodation.

While the Ansett brand evokes a sense of nostalgia for Australians over 35, the new venture is focused on what lies ahead. Designed to scale, adapt and learn, Ansett Travel is aiming to shift the category from reactive booking tools to predictive, AI-driven travel solutions.

TOKYO: On a recent trip to Taiwan, I turned to ChatGPT to ask for recommendations for the best beef noodles in my area – with the very specific request that the shop had to accept credit cards, as I was running low on my stash of local currency.

The chatbot immediately recommended a place that was a short walk and featured some of the most delicious, melt-in-your mouth beef tendon I’ve ever had. I was pleased to be the only foreigner in the no-frills, no air-conditioning joint that was home to a fat, orange cat taking a nap under one of the metal stools. But after my meal, I panicked when the impatient woman behind the counter had to put aside the dumplings she was folding to try and communicate in English to me that it was cash only. 

Even a quick Google search of the hole in the wall would’ve saved me from this fate, and I felt foolish for blindly trusting the AI’s outputs.

Talking to other travellers, I realised I was lucky that the restaurant existed at all, hearing stories of AI tools sending confused tourists to places that were closed or not even real.

Still, I found the tool incredibly helpful while navigating a foreign city, using it not just to find spots to eat but also to translate menus and signs, as well as communicate with locals via voice mode. It felt like the ultimate Asia travel hack.

Acquiring the Ansett brand was relatively straightforward, Frantzeskos said. The trademark had lapsed, and the domain name www.ansett.travel was also available for purchase. He’s confident that despite the painful downfall, there are many Australians – particularly those aged 35 and above – with fond memories of the airline.

“It’s a shame it went away, but I think that brand voice is still compelling, and people have nostalgia for it,” Frantzeskos said. “Just because the corporate entity behind something didn’t work doesn’t mean that the brand still doesn’t mean something. When I mention what I’m doing to people, they get a big smile on their face.”

Frantzeskos, a digital marketing veteran, has worked with Emirates, Saudi Tourism and Dubai Tourism as clients and said that experience will help deliver compelling customer experiences with Ansett. He has partnered with Melbourne-based travel start-up Travlr, which is providing the platform’s technical back-end and customer support infrastructure.

While many of the AI features are yet to be built out, the entrepreneur said he eventually wants to provide travel experiences for customers that would be possible only with AI. For now, customers can book at near-wholesale prices on flights and accommodation and pay a $99 yearly fee for VIP membership.

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“One thing I’m hoping to do is, if you’ve booked a holiday for your family, we’ll know who you are and your name and where you’re going, so I want to give you an AI-written jingle and send it to you so it can be the soundtrack of your holiday,” he said.

“I’m a big believer that you don’t need armies of people out there doing stuff that can be done better with AI. And the cost of implementation is really declining so much – you don’t need thousands of staff and to train them any more. With AI, you can just get going straight away.

“I think there are new, cool, fun experiences we can do what would never be achievable by humans.”

He added that, eventually, he believed people wouldn’t have to search or plan holidays at all.

“Your travel concierge will know when the kids are on school holidays, or when you need a break, and quietly offer the perfect trip. It’s not about replacing people – it’s about anticipating and tailoring times when we want to have fun or disconnect.”

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