Skift Take
Vacation rentals is another area where Tripadvisor dropped the ball over the past decade. Reviving such a hot category makes sense.
Tripadvisor informed its vacation rental guests and hosts around the world that reservations with check-in dates on or after November 1 will be cancelled, and guests will receive full refunds.
These abrupt cancellations, though, do not spell the end of vacation rentals for Tripadvisor.
A Tripadvisor spokesperson told Skift Tuesday that Tripadvisor vacation rentals “have transitioned to a new business model that leverages third party providers, in line with our hotels offering.”
Hopper is among Tripadvisor’s hotel providers, and recently partnered with Tripadvisor on instant bookings within the Tripadvisor app. However, the Tripadvisor spokesperson said there are no plans to use Hopper for vacation rentals.
The presumed closure of at least some of Tripadvisor’s global vacation rental brands, including Holiday Lettings, FlipKey, and Niumba, which together had of hundreds of thousands of homes, could mean Tripadvisor layoffs, though the Tripadvisor spokesperson declined to comment on the matter.
“Tripadvisor has decided to discontinue the direct booking and management of vacation rentals on its platform,” the Tripadvisor spokesperson said. “This strategic shift aligns vacation rentals with our existing hotels offering and ensures the best experience for our customers.”
$10 Million Liability
Tripadvisor recently disclosed it had $10 million in accrued expenses and additional liabilities due to a regulatory issue related to its vacation rentals business. That is an estimate of the potential loss.
Tripadvisor’s vacation rentals offering is not part of the company’s core business. In its financial reporting, alternative accommodations are lumped together with cruises, car rentals and flights under “other revenue.” Together, they accounted for around $51 million in 2023 revenue, which was less than 3% of Tripadvisor’s total revenue.
More details on the shutdown of Tripadvisor’s existing vacation rentals program can be found here.