Tripadvisor News

As one of the most influential platforms in travel planning and user-generated content, Tripadvisor plays a critical role in shaping consumer behavior and digital strategy across the industry. PhocusWire tracks the latest Tripadvisor news, providing detailed coverage of its business evolution, product innovations, and strategic direction within the broader travel ecosystem.

Updates and insights on Tripadvisor’s role in global travel

Explore how Tripadvisor continues to adapt to changes in search, social media, and AI-driven personalization. Our reporting examines the company’s tech investments, its evolving marketplace model, and the shifting dynamics of online reviews and booking tools. From new B2B services to advertising partnerships and sustainability initiatives, Tripadvisor’s activity signals larger trends across the travel and hospitality landscape.

TripAdvisor to close VirtualTourist travel guide site
News / Online
TripAdvisor to close VirtualTourist travel guide site
By Kevin May | January 6, 2017
VirtualTourist, one of the first brands focused on providing online guides to travellers, is being axed by its parent company. TripAdvisor subsidiary Smarter Travel Media, home to a number of high- Read More
TripAdvisor gets Instant Booking nod from Expedia
News / Distribution
TripAdvisor gets Instant Booking nod from Expedia
By Kevin May | December 20, 2016
Just over 12 months on from what was heralded as a major development in its drive to offer Instant Bookings for hotels, TripAdvisor has now inked a deal with Expedia Inc. The Priceline Group was th Read More
How Airbnb reckons it can change the traveller experience
News / Distribution
How Airbnb reckons it can change the traveller experience
By Viewpoints | December 19, 2016
There has been a great deal of discussion around what the launch of Trips means for Airbnb... and for travel more broadly (if anything). Commentary has come from all quarters, both within the compa Read More
TripAdvisor leads $5.2 million round in travel data specialist Traxo
News / Technology
TripAdvisor leads $5.2 million round in travel data specialist Traxo
By Kevin May | December 13, 2016
Traxo has landed another sizeble investment round - this time a Series B injection led by TripAdvisor to the tune of $5.2 million. The user review giant joins existing backers Thayer Ventures, Adva Read More
Hafner isn't having it — Kayak's CEO critiques Google, Airbnb, and others
News / Online
Hafner isn't having it — Kayak's CEO critiques Google, Airbnb, and others
By Sean O'Neil | November 18, 2016
Steve Hafner, co-founder and chief executive of Kayak, is living up to his reputation for being one of the liveliest annual on-stage interviewees at the Phocuswright Conference. On-stage he says th Read More
Airbnb claims most significant development in its history - moving beyond accommodation
News / Distribution
Airbnb claims most significant development in its history - moving beyond accommodation
By Kevin May | November 18, 2016
It's big rhetoric time at Airbnb this week, with the home sharing giant claiming at its annual hoedown that it is going to "make travel magical again". The worst kept secret in recent months has se Read More
TripAdvisor sees hotel revenues fall, overall takings up just 1%
News / Distribution
TripAdvisor sees hotel revenues fall, overall takings up just 1%
By Kevin May | November 9, 2016
TripAdvisor has conceded that it is yet to show how it will turn around the company's recent downturn in financial performance. The review giant saw revenues increase by a slim 1% year-on-year to $ Read More
Tripadvisor's Instant Booking and Book on Google: compare and contrast
News / Distribution
Tripadvisor's Instant Booking and Book on Google: compare and contrast
By Viewpoints | November 7, 2016
This past year, Google and TripAdvisor revolutionised the travel industry by launching Book on Google and Instant Booking respectively. Comparing one with the other will help us understand them both. Read More
TripAdvisor invests in social dining service EatWith
News / Online
TripAdvisor invests in social dining service EatWith
By Kevin May | November 3, 2016
TripAdvisor is putting its money behind EatWith as part of an investment round that will see "social dining" added to restaurant listings. Greylock Partners is joining the undisclosed level of fund Read More
Hostels remain outsiders (but staying the course) in chaotic accommodation world
News / Distribution
Hostels remain outsiders (but staying the course) in chaotic accommodation world
By Kevin May | November 2, 2016
"Alternative accommodation" is a title that has been banded around for a years now, primarily as a tool to separate hotels from everyone else. The umbrella term has come to prominence in particular Read More
TripAdvisor delves into traveller types and booking trends
News / Distribution
TripAdvisor delves into traveller types and booking trends
By Linda Fox | October 25, 2016
TripAdvisor is the latest to put travellers into groups according to behaviour. As part of the company's ongoing TripBarometer, it commissioned Ipsos to identify different traveller profiles. The r Read More
Rumours versus reality (with a bit of mischief thrown in) for travel search
News / Distribution
Rumours versus reality (with a bit of mischief thrown in) for travel search
By Kevin May | October 21, 2016
Even before the latest in a Long Line Of Unsubstantiated Rumours about Skyscanner materialised, many were pondering the fate of the travel search sector this week. The trigger, somewhat inevitably, Read More
Didi and TripAdvisor China talk the full service ecosystem talk
News / Technology
Didi and TripAdvisor China talk the full service ecosystem talk
By Martin Cowen | October 21, 2016
In the wider scheme of things, TripAdvisor doing something with 100 hotels wouldn't blip the radar. Unless those hotels are in China, and TripAdvisor is doing something with Didi, China's biggest t Read More
Book on Google - answers to hoteliers' questions
News / Distribution
Book on Google - answers to hoteliers' questions
By Viewpoints | October 14, 2016
Google has burst onto the hotel transaction scene via Book on Google, awakening plenty of curiosity and questions about the real interest Google has with this move. NB This is a viewpoint by Pablo Read More
TripAdvisor scraps bookings for hundreds of attractions featuring animals
News / Distribution
TripAdvisor scraps bookings for hundreds of attractions featuring animals
By Kevin May | October 11, 2016
After months of discussions with lobbying groups, TripAdvisor will stop selling tickets for attractions and tours that do not meet guidelines for animal welfare. The change in policy will affect bo Read More