Experiences

You've heard other online travel companies talk about the "connected trip." But Tripadvisor focuses instead on the "considered trip" as its north star. CEO Steve Kaufer said engaged travelers, who use his brand to plan all parts of a trip, are his top target.

GetYourGuide's Johannes Reck is underplaying the Google threat in tours and activities. Sure, Google has much larger priorities, but how much will it cost to build the GetYourGuide brand with Google controlling the airspace?

With competitors like GetYourGuide, Klook, Airbnb and Booking.com strengthening their asrsenals, market leader Viator will enforce new quality standards that would make it more user-friendly and efficient. If these and other moves don't work, then look out for a new No. 1.

TUI/Musement's new strategic partnership with Booking.com has the potential to reshuffle the powers that be in tours and activities, especially in Europe. But TUI doesn't have a stellar track record in online offerings, and much of the promise will depend on its execution.

It is highly risky for Airbnb to pivot to compete directly as an online travel agency, and it needs to seriously think about whether its sharing model truly extends to the activity, experience provider because in reality it doesn't.

Operators of tours, activities, and attractions are taking a crash course in online classes, virtual tours, and digital souvenir sales. We doubt these efforts can fully replace the revenue of in-person experiences. Yet there are needs to fill. Many housebound people and remote teams could use the human connection, while many hosts are eager for income.

Airbnb initially made a pro-guest decision on refunds, but it now realizes its policy and its outreach to hosts was clumsy and unsatisfactory. Hosts still won't be pleased, but the optics and financials aren't as bad as before.

Whether building tours and activities or vacation rentals, acquiring companies soon find out that this stuff isn't as easy as it looked. From confidential internal documents obtained by Skift, it's clear Booking.com found out that scaling experiences on its own wouldn't be a cakewalk, and it's turning to Musement to kick off a preferred partnership strategy instead.

When Tripadvisor first started diversifying away from its hotel-auction business several years ago, it was mostly aspirational because its experiences and dining businesses were relatively small. Now there is a bit of revenue meat on those bones. Still, meaningful profits will be slow going in this competitive climate.

Tripadvisor is trying to squeeze more revenue and profits out of its newly restructured tours and activities business. There's a danger, though, that well-funded rivals might undercut Tripadvisor's efforts.