12 questions people ask before they invite someone.

The 12 questions

1. Does my partner or a friend have to pay to see the trip?
2. Does my partner need a Votum account?
3. What is the difference between inviting someone and sharing the view-only link?
4. Who can see my trip?
5. What does the view-only link show, and what stays private?
6. What does import understand from ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini?
7. Can my partner change the plan too?
8. Does Votum work without signal, on the plane or abroad?
9. What do we see while we travel?
10. How do I delete a trip?
11. Can I publish our trip so other people can use it?
12. Can I skip the copying and pasting?

1.Does my partner or a friend have to pay to see the trip?

No. Inviting your partner or friends is free, and so is opening a view-only link. There is nothing to buy to see a trip, follow it day by day, or add photos to it.

2.Does my partner need a Votum account?

Only if you invite them to the trip. An invite gets them a free account with just their email, and they open the same trip you see. If they only want to look, share the view-only link instead: it opens without an account.

3.What is the difference between inviting someone and sharing the view-only link?

An invite puts someone on the trip. They see everything, including confirmation numbers, notes, photos and the chat, and if you leave "They can change the plan" on they can edit it with you. The view-only link is for someone who just wants to see the plan, like a parent or a friend who is not coming. It opens without an account, shows the itinerary and estimated costs, and keeps the private parts hidden. You can turn the link off any time.

4.Who can see my trip?

Only the people you invite, plus anyone you give the view-only link to while that link is on. Nobody else, and nothing is searchable. A trip only becomes public if you publish its story afterwards, and you can take a story down any time.

5.What does the view-only link show, and what stays private?

It shows the trip name, destination, dates, how many people are going, each day's places with their links, and estimated costs. Confirmation numbers, private notes, who is on the trip, photos, chat and budget lines stay inside the trip. Anyone with the link can open it or pass it on; turning the link off stops it working at once.

6.What does import understand from ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini?

Days, and on each day the flights, trains and transfers, where you are staying, activities, meals and notes, each with its time, place, cost, booking confirmation and website link when the agent gave one. Ideas you liked but did not schedule land in a separate list. It works best when the agent replies in Votum's format, which is what the short message you copy from the import screen asks for. If you paste a plain itinerary instead, Votum can tidy it with AI; that is optional and you choose it each time. Votum does not plan or book the trip itself.

7.Can my partner change the plan too?

Yes, if "They can change the plan" was on when you invited them. Then either of you can add a flight, a hotel or an excursion, move something to another day, or mark it booked, and the other sees it straight away. Turn it off and they follow along instead: they see everything, the live screen, the moments and the chat, but only planners change the plan, add moments and photos, or write in the chat.

8.Does Votum work without signal, on the plane or abroad?

Votum needs a connection to open a screen; there is no offline mode yet. A screen you already have open stays on your phone, so open today's plan before you lose signal, or take a screenshot of it. Confirmation numbers, addresses and booking links sit on each entry, so one screenshot of the day usually covers it. Abroad, Votum works in any browser and as a home-screen app on iPhone and Android.

9.What do we see while we travel?

A live screen for today. It shows what is up next and how long until it starts, the rest of today, a look at tomorrow, and where you are sleeping tonight, all by your phone's clock in the trip's time zone. Directions, the confirmation number and the booking link are one tap away on each entry. The whole day-by-day plan sits underneath.

10.How do I delete a trip?

Only the organizer can. Open the trip, tap Edit, and choose Delete trip at the bottom. This removes the trip, its plan, chat and costs for everyone on it, with no undo. A finished trip with photos asks you to type DELETE first, and that also removes its photos, moments and any story you published. To delete your whole account instead, open Privacy and account deletion from your account page; you can download a copy of your data first.

11.Can I publish our trip so other people can use it?

Yes, after the trip, as a story on the Votum feed. A story shows days as Day 1, Day 2 and so on, never your dates. Confirmation numbers, notes, addresses and booking links stay private, and prices show only if you choose to share the cost. Someone who likes your story can hand it to their own agent and plan their version from it. You can take a story down any time from your account page.

12.Can I skip the copying and pasting?

Yes, with Claude or ChatGPT. Add Votum once as a connector and say "Save this trip to Votum" in the chat; the trip lands in Votum and you invite your people from there. Gemini has no connector yet, so pasting is the way there. The steps are on the Use Votum in Claude or ChatGPT page.