Skift Take
Boosting tour visibility can yield profits for Viator, but the benefit to operators may lessen if most operators join in. It's a bit like when people in the front row of a concert stand up and everyone else has to stand up.
Tripadvisor's Viator has long been one of the largest online travel agencies for tours and activities. But to juice its revenue, it began letting tour operators spend more for better placement in Viator search results.
So, how lucrative is it?
Viator's Accelerate program started in February 2022, and it's still too early to call it a success. It recently introduced a beta 2.0 version available in the U.S. but has yet to launch it in all markets.
The upgraded service is seeing wider adoption among tours and attractions operators that list over 300,000 tours with Viator.
"The program's upgrade to Accelerate 2.0 has further driven operator participation, with significant double-digit growth in product opt-ins and an increase in the weighted average margin," said Matthew Goldberg, Tripadvisor CEO, during an investor update Tuesday. "This has resulted in improved take rates, indicating a successful exchange of higher commissions for greater exposure and business growth on