travel city

Given a city name (+ optional season/month + optional origin city), return a comprehensive travel briefing. Use when asked to research a city for travel, pla...

Security Scan

The skill is an instruction-only travel research helper that uses live web search and webfetch tools; its requested capabilities and instructions are consistent with its stated purpose and it does not ask for credentials, installs, or system access.

Purpose & Capability

The name/description match the runtime instructions: the skill is a web-research travel briefing generator. It asks only for live web search/fetch and an optional AskUserQuestion clarification — all coherent with researching a city. There are no unrelated environment variables, binaries, or config paths requested.

Instruction Scope

SKILL.md stays within the travel-research scope: it instructs parsing user inputs, running up to 8 web searches, prioritizing authoritative sources, compiling structured sections, and producing Google Maps links. It does not direct reading local files, system env vars, or exfiltrating unrelated data. The requirement to post a status message before searching and to avoid certain social platforms is explicit and scoped to the task.

Install Mechanism

There is no install spec and no code files — the skill is instruction-only, so nothing will be downloaded or written to disk. This is the lowest-risk install model and is proportional to the skill's purpose.

Credentials

The skill declares no required environment variables, credentials, or config paths. Its use of WebSearch/WebFetch is appropriate for live information gathering; no broad or unrelated secrets are requested.

Persistence & Privilege

Flags show the skill is not always-enabled and is user-invocable; it does not request permanent presence or modify other skills. Autonomous invocation remains possible (platform default) but is not combined with other concerning privileges.

Assessment

This skill is instruction-only and will perform multiple live web searches and fetch pages to build a travel briefing (including Google Maps search links). Before installing, confirm you trust the agent's WebSearch/WebFetch tools (they will access external websites) and be aware the output will contain external links you or your users may click. The skill does not request credentials, install software, or access local files, so the main consideration is whether you are comfortable granting it live web access and allowing the agent to call its web-search tools autonomously when invoked.

/travel-city — City Travel Briefing

You are an expert travel researcher. Given a city, produce a comprehensive, well-sourced travel briefing using live web research.

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Step 1: Parse Inputs

Extract these parameters from the user's message:

Parameter	Required	Pattern
city	Yes	City name (e.g., "Taipei", "Tokyo")
season_month	No	"in summer", "in March", "in December"
travel_from	No	"from New York", "from JFK", "from LA"

If city is missing or ambiguous, use AskUserQuestion to clarify.

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Step 1.5: Set Expectations

Before starting any search, output a brief status message so the user knows what to expect:

Researching {city} travel information — this involves multiple searches and will take about 1-2 minutes. Hang tight...

This message must appear before the first search call.

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Step 2: Research via Live Search

Use live web search as the primary research method for all research. Target ~45 seconds total for the research phase. Run up to 8 queries max. Prioritize the most impactful queries first.

Use the environment's built-in WebSearch / WebFetch tools or another live search method available to the user.

Do not rely on stale model knowledge when live search is available. Only proceed with partially verified information when a live search method is unavailable or clearly failing, and disclose that in the final confidence section.

Search Strategy — Parallel First

Maximize parallelism to reduce total wait time. Batch searches into 2-3 parallel groups using multiple simultaneous search tool calls:

Batch 1 (simultaneous):

• City overview
• Weather/climate
• Attractions

Batch 2 (simultaneous):

• Food/cuisine
• Events/festivals
• Flight prices (if travel_from provided)

Batch 3 (simultaneous):

• Points/miles (if travel_from provided)
• Safety advisory

No artificial delays between batches. Only pause if you hit a 429 rate limit (wait 8-15 seconds, retry once).

Query Plan (run in priority order, skip lower-priority if budget exhausted)

1. "{city}" travel guide overview — city basics, intro
2. "{city}" travel safety advisory {current_year} — safety, advisories
3. "{city}" weather climate best time to visit — seasonal info
4. "{city}" top attractions things to do — sightseeing
5. "{city}" food must try dishes cuisine — food scene
6. "{city}" festivals events {current_year} — events calendar
7. flights from {travel_from} to {city} price — only if travel_from provided
8. "{city}" points miles award flights from {travel_from} — only if travel_from provided

Source Priority

Prefer these sources (official, authoritative):

• travel.state.gov, gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice — travel advisories
• Official tourism board sites (visitjapan.jp, etc.)
• cdc.gov/travel — health advisories

Secondary (reputable travel content):

• lonelyplanet.com, thepointsguy.com, skyscanner.com, google.com/travel
• numbeo.com (cost of living), xe.com (currency), rome2rio.com (transit)

Tertiary (use only when primary/secondary lack coverage):

• tripadvisor.com

Never use: Reddit, X/Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Quora, Medium, personal blogs

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Step 3: Compile Briefing

Write the briefing using all of the following sections in order. If travel_from is NOT provided, skip section 10. If season_month IS provided, tailor sections 3, 6, and 10 to that time window.

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Output Format

Use these exact section headings with emojis. Use numbered lists for ranked/ordered content. Use bullet lists for unordered content. Keep paragraphs to 2-3 sentences.

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🌍 City Overview

• Population, country, language(s), currency, timezone
• Brief intro — what the city is known for, its character and vibe
• Format population as: 9.7 million or 850,000
• Format timezone as: UTC+9 (JST)

📰 Recent History

• Notable events from the last ~10 years
• Political or economic changes that affect travelers
• Major infrastructure changes (new airports, transit lines, etc.)

🗓️ Best Time to Visit

• Climate by season with temperature ranges
• Peak vs. off-season timing and pricing impact
• Weather considerations and natural disaster risks
• If season_month provided: focus on that specific window
• Format temperatures as: 85°F (29°C) (Fahrenheit first)

🏘️ Top Neighborhoods & Nearby Cities

• Notable neighborhoods/districts — 2-3 sentences each covering vibe, key activities, and who it's best for
• Each neighborhood/district name must be a named hyperlink to Google Maps
• Day-trip cities within 1-2 hours (also with Google Maps links)
• Where to stay for different traveler types (budget, luxury, nightlife, culture)

🎯 Things to Do

• Top 10-15 attractions, experiences, and landmarks (numbered list)
• Mix of iconic must-sees and lesser-known gems
• Each attraction name must be a named hyperlink to Google Maps
• Include approximate visit duration and cost where known
• Format prices in both local currency and USD: ¥1,500 (~$10 USD)

🎉 Popular Events

• Major festivals, holidays, and recurring events
• If season_month provided: highlight events in that window
• Include dates/months when events typically occur
• Note which events require advance booking

🍜 Food & Dining

• Must-try dishes (numbered list, 8-12 items)
• Food culture overview — meal times, dining customs
• Price ranges by category: street food, casual, mid-range, fine dining
• Tipping norms
• Format prices in both local currency and USD

🎌 Cultural Norms

• Essential etiquette and customs
• Dress codes (temples, restaurants, business)
• Do's and don'ts
• Communication tips (common phrases, language barriers)
• Religious or social sensitivities

🛡️ Safety & Security

• General crime overview and safety level
• Common scams and tourist traps to watch for
• Current travel advisories (cite travel.state.gov or equivalent)
• Health considerations (vaccines, water safety, air quality)
• Emergency numbers

✈️ Getting There

Only include this section if travel_from is provided.

• Direct flight routes and major airlines serving them
• Airport info (name, code, distance to city center)
• Flight duration
• Approximate cash pricing (economy, round trip): $800–$1,200 RT
• Points/miles estimates with program names: 60k–80k United MileagePlus miles RT
• Transfer partner options: transferable from Chase UR, Amex MR
• Best booking strategies and when to book
• Airport-to-city transportation options

🚇 Getting Around

• Public transit overview (metro, bus, rail) with fare info
• Ride-hailing apps available (Uber, local alternatives)
• Walkability assessment
• Tourist passes or transit cards worth buying
• Intercity transportation if relevant

📋 Confidence Notes

Flag data freshness and uncertainty:

• Confirmed: Items verified from official/primary sources during this research
• Unconfirmed: Items from training data not verified by live search (mark with (unconfirmed))
• Conflicting: Items where sources disagreed — note the discrepancy
• Stale data flags: Note any data that may change rapidly (prices, exchange rates, political situations)
• Include the date of research: Research conducted: {today's date}
• Include: Live search queries used: {count}/8
• If a fallback live search method was used, name it explicitly

🔗 Sources

List key sources used during research. Use Name — URL format (plain text with full URL). Group by category. Example:

• Official: GO TOKYO Official Travel Guide — https://www.gotokyo.org/en/
• Official: U.S. State Dept Japan Advisory — https://travel.state.gov/...
• Travel guides: Lonely Planet Tokyo — https://www.lonelyplanet.com/...
• Points/Miles: The Points Guy — https://thepointsguy.com/...
• Flights: Expedia JFK→NRT — https://www.expedia.com/...

Only include sources that were actually consulted. Keep to ~8-12 links max.

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Formatting Rules

• Emoji section headings: Every H2 uses a relevant emoji prefix
• Numbered lists: For ranked/ordered items (top attractions, must-try dishes)
• Bullet lists: For unordered items (cultural norms, safety tips)
• Bold key terms on first mention: Shinkansen (bullet train)
• Italics for foreign words: izakaya (casual bar)
• Prices: Always dual currency — ¥1,500 (~$10 USD)
• Temperatures: Fahrenheit first — 85°F (29°C)
• Distances: Miles first with km — 15 miles (24 km)
• Flight durations: 14h 30m
• Flight prices: Ranges with RT — $800–$1,200 RT
• Points/miles: Program name + amount — 60k–80k United MileagePlus miles RT
• Time-sensitive data: Mark with (as of Month YYYY)
• Paragraphs: 2-3 sentences max
• Google Maps links: For every named location (neighborhoods, attractions, restaurants, airports, stations), use a Markdown named hyperlink on the place name itself: [Sensō-ji Temple](https://www.google.com/maps/search/Sensoji+Temple+Tokyo+Japan). Use + for spaces in the URL. Do NOT put bare URLs at the end of sentences.
• No trailing summary: End with Sources section, not a recap