The Highest Paid CEOs in Online Travel

Skift Take

Was TripAdvisor's CEO Stephen Kaufer worth $39 million in 2013? That amount is a bit of an anomaly as it includes $38 million in stock options, and he won't be eligible for more until the Summer of 2017. Although there are complaints that TripAdvisor gives geographic growth a higher priority than short-term shareholder return, we don't see anyone complaining.

The highest CEO compensation in online travel in 2013 went to TripAdvisor CEO Stephen Kaufer, who earned more than $39 million -- and his peers weren't even close.

Kaufer's $39 million compared with $15 million for Jeffery Boyd, chairman and then-CEO of the Priceline Group; $7.46 million for Expedia Inc.'s Dara Khosrowshahi; $5.26 million for Orbitz Worldwide CEO Barney Harford, and $3 million for then-Sabre CEO Michael "Sam" Gilliland. [See table below.]

The TripAdvisor CEO's compensation even made the $19.6 million pay that Wynn Resorts' CEO Steve Wynn earned in 2013 seem a relative side note. Wynn was the highest paid hotel CEO in 2013 among public companies.

Kaufer's 2013 compensation amounted to a 510% raise over his 2012 pay.

While Boyd of Priceline took second-place honors in total compensation among publicly listed U.S. online travel companies in 2013, his successor Darren Huston, who became Priceline CEO January 1, 2014, would h

The Highest Paid CEOs in Online Travel

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