Mid-winter blues – new software uses your brain to find a holiday

Recent research commissioned by a travel company found that 68 per cent of Scots find choosing a destination is the most challenging part of booking a holiday.

And 58 per cent claim it takes more than two weeks to plan their trip from start to finish.

Explore have therefore launched emotion-tracking software to help customers find their ideal holiday, and they visited Edinburgh’s Gyle Centre today to try it out.

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The software harnesses a technique known as electroencephalography (EEG) which tracks emotional reactions to visual stimuli.

Ashley Toft, the company’s managing director, said: “There are so many places to go and things to see so how do you navigate those choices.

“We can make a holiday recommendation based on your emotional responses.”

Dr Jessamy Hibberd, a chartered clinical psychologist from the British Psychological Society, said: “Research shows that doing more of the things you enjoy will make you feel good.”