Generating travel queries in response to free text queries

A computer-implemented method, comprising:

• receiving, by one or more computing devices associated with a general search engine, a free text query, wherein the free text query is input by a user into a search interface for the general search engine presented on a client computing device;
• deriving, by the one or more computing devices and using the free text query, terms corresponding to particular travel constraints including terms corresponding to an origin location, a destination location, and a departure date, each having a respective probability of being related to a query for travel information;
• determining, by the one or more computing devices, whether a combined probability of the terms being related to a query for travel information exceeds a threshold value;
• in response to determining that the combined probability exceeds the threshold value:
• generating, by the one or more computing devices, a travel query from the terms derived from the free text query, wherein the generated travel query expressly specifies the derived origin location, destination location, and departure date as travel constraints, and wherein each of the origin location, the destination location, and the departure date travel constraints are expressly identified as such in the travel query;
• and
• submitting, by the one or more computing devices, the travel query to a travel search engine distinct from the general search engine to obtain travel search results based on the travel search query and to present the travel search results based on the travel search query via the client computing device;
• and
• in response to the combined probability of the terms being related to the query for travel information not exceeding the threshold value, generating, by the one or more computing devices via the general search engine, search results that satisfy the free text query without using the travel search engine and presenting via the client computing device the search results that satisfy the free text query input into the general search engine.

A non-transitory computer storage medium encoded with a computer program, the program comprising instructions that when executed by one or more computing devices cause the one or more computing devices to perform operations comprising:

• receiving a free text query, wherein the free text query is input by a user into a search interface for a general search engine presented on a client computing device;
• using the free text query to derive terms corresponding to particular travel constraints including terms corresponding to an origin location, a destination location, and a departure date, each having a respective probability of being related to a query for travel information;
• determining whether a combined probability of the terms being related to a query for travel information exceeds a threshold value;
• in response to determining that the combined probability exceeds the threshold value:
• generating a travel query from the terms derived from the free text query, wherein the generated travel query expressly specifies the derived origin location, destination location, and departure date as travel constraints, and wherein each of the origin location, the destination location, and departure date travel constraints are expressly identified as such in the travel query;
• and
• submitting the travel query to a travel search engine distinct from the general search engine to obtain travel search results based on the travel search query and to present the travel search results based on the travel search query via the client computing device;
• and
• in response to the combined probability of the terms being related to the query for travel information not exceeding the threshold value, generating, by the general search engine, search results that satisfy the free text query without using the travel search engine and presenting via the client computing device the search results that satisfy the free text query input into the general search engine.