expedia-competitors

Top 12 Expedia Competitors and Alternatives

Expedia is a US-based online travel company where travelers can book flights, rental cars, hotels, cruises and vacation packages. It’s a part of Expedia Group, which has over 3 million lodging properties and 875,000 hotel listings.

Founded by Microsoft in October 1996 in Seattle (Washington), Expedia was spun off into a public company in 1999. In July 2001,  IAC/InterActiveCorp bought the company from Microsoft.

Maybe Expedia is one of the best sites in the travel industry, but that doesn’t make it immune to market forces. Their revenue dropped from $12 billion in 2019 to $5.2 billion in 2020 due to the pandemic. They lost 95% of their business reducing revenue by 50% in that year. In comparison, they generated around $6.57 billion in 2021, an 87% increment from the last year.

While Expedia is an excellent place to find better deals, there’re several competitors in this market. If you’re looking for the cheapest deal or unique services, here’re the top competitors and alternatives to Expedia.

1. Airbnb

airbnb

Airbnb is one of the Expedia competitors that’s popular for its online hospitality service. It acts as an online marketplace that connects people who want to rent out their homes with travelers looking for a space to stay in. According to the latest data, there’re 2.9 billion hosts and over 7 billion listings on Airbnb worldwide. Currently, 220 countries and regions have active Airbnb listings.

In 2021, the total annual revenue was $5.992 billion, a 77.37% increase from the previous year ($3.378 billion). Whereas the revenue for the quarter ending 30 June 2022 is $2.104 billion, a 57.59% increase year-over-year.

To refine and improve service, Airbnb has brought over 100 upgrades. There are now three new ways to search: Flexible Dates, Flexible Destinations and Flexible Matching, to find accommodations quickly. Airbnb is the best alternative to Expedia for finding temporary rentals.

2. Booking Holdings

booking holdings

Booking Holdings is a travel technology company in America that owns and operates travel fare aggregators and metasearch engines. It’s the world’s leading online travel and related services provider in 220 countries and is available in 40 languages.

Users can book flight tickets, rental cars, travel reservations and vacation packages through the mobile app or website. In 2021, customers booked about 591 million room nights of accommodations, 15 million flight tickets and 47 million rental cars via the site. In 2022, the company ranked 340th on Fortune 500.

Booking Holdings own six primary consumer-facing brands, including Priceline, Kayak.com, Booking.com, Agoda, OpenTable and Rentalcars.com. It also has a network of subsidiary brands: Rocketmiles, HotelsCombined, Fareharbor, Momondo and Cheapflights. This travel company made $4.294 billion by the end of 2022 Q2. The total revenue for the 12 months ending 30 June 2022 is $14.646 billion, a 104.01% increment year-over-year.

3. American Express Global Business Travel (GBT)

american express global business travel

Headquartered in New York, GBT is a multinational business travel management company. It provides software and travel solutions to manage business trips, meetings, events and expenses for different companies. The company currently has 13,500 employees in over 140 countries.

GBT operates as one of the most important marketplaces in B2B travel. In 2022 Q1, their revenue increased 179% to $350 million and in Q2, it increased 217% to $486 million. Transaction growth till the end of Q2 is 346% compared to the same that of 2021.

On November 2, 2021, GBT successfully acquired Egencia from Expedia. As a part of the deal, Expedia became a shareholder in GBT. So, when it comes to B2B travel management, GBT is one of the best alternatives to Expedia.

4. Priceline

priceline

Priceline is an online travel agency famous for its huge discounts on hotels, cruises, rental cars and flight bookings. It has made the platform easier to navigate and offers some best deals in different cities.

Priceline had a bidding system, “Name Your Own Price”, that allowed users to bid on accommodations depending on how much they could pay. However, the company has ended this service and replaced it with “Pricebreakers”, “Express Deals” and “VIP Program”.

In 2021, Priceline.com reported revenue growth of approximately $1.141. billion. In the 1st quarter of 2022, the company made $2.695 billion.

5. Orbitz

orbitz

Orbitz is a similar site to Expedia that offers bookings for hotels, rental cars, vocational rentals, cruises and flights. Like Expedia, users earn rewards on Orbitz as hotel savings and exclusive travel perks. To get VIP access, users need to subscribe to Orbitz Silver, Gold or Platinum service.

In addition, Orbitz has a price guarantee system where users can find a better deal on the same accommodations somewhere else. They’re also popular for their best customer support that others in the same industry often can’t provide.

In 2021, the company took a historic step by introducing a dedicated search tool for LGBTQIA travelers. It comes with many perks, like getting $50 cashback after reserving a stay at an LGBTQIA property. This has made Orbitz unique in this travel industry.

6. Booking.com

booking com

Booking.com is an Expedia competitor renowned for its travel and accommodation services. It’s a Dutch online travel agency that only offers lodging reservations and travel products. The agency is a subsidiary of Booking Holdings and their site has over 28 million listings in 43 languages.

The agency offers many benefits. Like no booking fee on accommodations after reservation, free cancellation on most rooms and travelers can change booking details anytime. Additionally, subscribed members often get amazing deals on bookings.

Booking.com has contracts with its listed hotels and takes 10% to 30% commissions when a booking is made via its site. They also have a hotel and lodging mobile app for iPhone, iPad and Android.

7. TripAdvisor

tripadvisor

TripAdvisor is an online travel company that provides user-generated content and comparison shopping services. Users can make online hotel reservations and bookings for restaurants, lodging, transportation and travel experiences. With 463 million visitors, the site has become one of the biggest Expedia competitors.

Tripadvisor and Expedia are both travel management companies. But Tripadvisor also works as a review site with over 570 million reviews covering 7.3 million accommodations, restaurants, attractions and airlines. It helps travelers to make their travel choice.

In June 2021, the company brought the “Tripadvisor Plus” subscription for $99/year. It offers discounts in 100,000 global hotels where members can save around $350 per stay. The company has generated $262 million in Q1 2022, a 113% increase year-over-year. In contrast, they earned a total of $902 million in 2021 and $604 million in 2020.

8. Flipkey

flipkey

Flipkey is a vacation rental marketplace where owners can rent their properties and travelers book directly with them. It’s a subsidiary of Tripadvisor.

Flipkey has more than 830,000 properties in 190 countries. It’s popularly known for offering multiple rental choices, not only in the main destination but also in upcoming neighborhoods and outside of locals. Since they sometimes offer 5000 deals each day, it’s easy to save some bucks on bookings.

Additionally, the site verifies the property owners’ identities to avoid scams. Other facilities are guests can have refunds on booking cancellations, 24/7 customer support, different payment options, mobile app, etc. Their annual revenue in 2021 was around $15 million.

9. CWT

cwt

CWT (formerly Carlson Wagonlit Travel) is a leading Business-to-Business-for-Employees (B2B4E) travel management company. It delivers efficient and innovative services for corporate travel, conferences, meetings, events and exhibitions. Additionally, users can connect with the “myCWT” mobile app to manage bookings and stay updated.

In 2021, CWT had 18,000 employees and the company made a revenue of $1.5 billion. In 2022, they generated $500 million by the end of Q2.

In 2022, this travel firm signed The Code of Conduct to protect children from trafficking and abusive behavior in Travel and Tourism. They’re also committed to encouraging women empowerment, advancing diversity and inclusion, and providing employees health benefits. All of these have made CWT one of Expedia’s competitors.

10. BCD Travel

bcd travel

BCD Travel is a leading corporate travel management service provider. It was founded on 3rd January 2006 and is a part of BCD Group. The company currently operates in 106 countries with a worldwide client retention rate of 97%.

BCD Travel mainly works with corporate clients. They provide innovative tools that keep travelers safe and help them make the best travel decisions. In 2021, the company had 15,900 employees and earned $2 billion in revenue.

Also, in December 2021, BCD Travel got the Most Admired Travel Management Company award for the ninth time. That’s why BCD Travel is the best alternative to Expedia in terms of travel management.

11. Direct Travel

direct travel

Direct Travel is a privately-owned business and personal travel management company. It’s now one of the most respected travel companies delivering corporate travels, events, meetings and leisure services. They offer personalized services to every client’s needs.

In 2021, they had 750 working employees across 70 locations in the UK and North America. In February 2022, the company made a partnership with Crisis24 to enhance travel risk management and other facilities. They also ranked 9th on the Weekly’s Power List.

12. Hotels.com

hotels com

Hotels.com is another great alternative to Expedia, well known for booking hotels online or via telephone. If you’re not looking for a complete vacation package, but just want a deal to stay on a hotel, this is the right place.

The company has 85 websites for different locations and is available in 34 languages. It has listed 325,000 hotels in over 19,000 locations globally.

Similar to Expedia, Hotels.com has a reward program where users can unlock instant savings and get one night free stay in a hotel for every ten nights booking via this site. For VIP benefits, it has a Silver membership where users get free breakfast and spa vouchers on hotels, more discounts, priority customer service, etc.

Did you get any better travel accommodation with these Expedia competitors? Let us know in the comment section. If you find this article useful, please share it with others to help them find the best deal on hotel or car bookings.

Leave a Comment

Stay on top of the latest technology trends — delivered directly to your inbox, free!

Written byMichael Durham
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE