What are the most popular OTAs for tourism professionals in 2025?
OTAs (Online Travel Agencies) — like GetYourGuide or Viator — have become pillars of global tourism distribution. For tour providers, independent guides, or tour operators, these platforms are often the fastest route to visibility and large-scale bookings.
Definition: An OTA is a web platform that references, markets, and distributes tourism products (activities, tours, transfers, etc.) on behalf of a local provider. It acts as an intermediary: the experience remains yours, but the sale goes through their technological and marketing ecosystem.
Why do these platforms still dominate the market in 2025?
- Massive visibility: they bring together millions of active travelers and credible customer reviews.
- Trust and conversion: their reputation reassures buyers, especially in foreign markets.
- Smooth technology: intuitive interface, mobile app, translation, local payment methods.
- Easy integration: possibility to automatically connect your inventory via a channel manager like guide-channel-manager.
The criteria for selecting an OTA are not limited to commission. In 2025, the real question is: does the platform bring profitable bookings and useful customer data?
What are the strengths and weaknesses of each OTA?
Each OTA has its particularities, advantages, and friction points. Here’s an overview of the most influential ones for tourism stakeholders.
GetYourGuide
- Strengths: exceptional international reach, strong presence on Google, and partnerships with hundreds of destinations. Its marketing tools (promo codes, automatic recommendations, integrated reviews) promote conversion.
- Weaknesses: high commission and strict selection of visuals and product texts.
👉 Discover how to connect to GetYourGuide, with or without Tourbiz!
Viator (Tripadvisor Experiences)
- Strengths: colossal visibility via Tripadvisor, constant traffic volume, trusted history with travelers.
- Weaknesses: high quality requirements, strict moderation, and commissions that can weigh on margins.
Headout
- Strengths: a still young but agile OTA, specializing in urban activities and popular attractions. Technology focused on mobile-first, smooth interface, and good booking performance.
- Weaknesses: still limited presence in some European markets, especially outside major cities.
Funbooker
- Strengths: dynamic French player, specialized in leisure activities and team-building. Perfectly suited for local operators looking to target a domestic audience.
- Weaknesses: limited international reach.
Trip.com (Trip)
- Strengths: power of the Asian market, ultra-optimized mobile experience, large base of loyal users.
- Weaknesses: ecosystem still difficult to read for small European operators and language constraints in customer management.
Ultimately, each OTA is a different gateway to the world. The right choice depends on your positioning, logistical capacity, and visibility priorities — hence the importance of a well-crafted multichannel strategy.
🏆 Comparison of the 5 Best OTAs in 2025
| Criteria | GetYourGuide | Viator | Headout | Funbooker | Trip.com |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Presentation | German platform leading in tourist activities and local experiences | Subsidiary of TripAdvisor, well-known for guided tours and excursions | OTA focused on urban and cultural experiences, with a modern design | French platform specialized in leisure activities and team building | Asian travel giant, offering flights, hotels, and activities |
| Geographical coverage | Worldwide (over 150 countries) | Worldwide (over 200 countries) | Major cities around the world | France and DOM-TOM | Worldwide, strong presence in Asia |
| Types of activities | Guided tours, excursions, museums, local activities | Guided tours, excursions, circuits, cruises | Cultural activities, shows, parks, visits | Leisure, workshops, corporate gifts, group activities | Tourist activities, transport, accommodations |
| Target audience | Individual travelers, couples, families | International tourists, agencies, groups | Young travelers, city-trippers | Families, businesses, schools | International travelers, Asian clientele |
| Interface & mobile app | Very smooth, intuitive, multilingual | Clear interface, integrated with TripAdvisor | Modern design, pleasant UX | Simple interface, focused on France | Comprehensive app with all travel services |
| Commissions / Partners | 20-30% depending on the activity | 20-25 % | 15-25 % | 15-20 % | Variable depending on the service |
| Main advantages | Great visibility, multilingual support, powerful marketing | Reliability, TripAdvisor integration, high sales volume | Modern user experience, good margins | Targeting France, good B2B support | Complete travel + activities offer |
| Disadvantages | Strong competition, high fees | High commission, dependence on TripAdvisor | Less known than major OTAs | Limited reach to France | Less focused on local experiences |
| Ideal for… | Providers looking to reach a global clientele | Those who want to maximize their sales via TripAdvisor | Urban players or local start-ups | French providers | Agencies targeting the Asian market |
Which OTA to choose based on your type of tourism activity?
Choosing an OTA should never be a matter of chance. Each platform has its own audience, operating mode, and requirements. By aligning your activity profile with the right OTA, you can maximize your bookings while controlling your margins.
Local or niche activities
If you offer unique experiences (e.g., craft workshops, tastings, nature outings), prioritize nearby OTAs like Funbooker or specialized players in experiential tourism. Their audience seeks the real, the authentic, and not quantity.
- Less direct competition
- More flexible commission
- Easier customer contact
Guided tours and excursions
Thematic tours, guided tours, and cultural experiences sell very well on Viator and GetYourGuide. These platforms excel in highlighting expert guides and experiences rated 4.7+.
Urban or outdoor activities
Headout remains an excellent choice for city activities, city passes, or attractions. For outdoor or sports experiences, Trip.com opens access to an international clientele, particularly Asian.
Target market: local vs international
Your main audience directly influences your choice:
- Local audience: Funbooker and regional players.
- International audience: GetYourGuide, Viator, Trip.com.
Acceptable commission level
Always assess your margins before deciding. A 25% commission may seem high, but if the volume compensates significantly, profitability remains intact. On the other hand, for low unit value offers, it’s better to choose a low-cost OTA.
👉 Before making a decision, read the detailed comparison of platforms in our best tourist platforms to be visible online.
How to optimize your presence on multiple OTAs at once?
Managing multiple OTAs is a balancing act: rates, availability, content… everything must remain consistent. The goal? Multiply channels without getting scattered.
1. Management of availability and rates
The key is synchronization. Use a channel manager you can trust to avoid stock errors or overbookings. A tool like Tourbiz automates the updating of slots and prices in real-time.
- Avoid double-booking
- Keep your rates consistent
- Save management time
➡️ Read our guide on preventing double booking to secure your reservations.
2. Content strategy and customer reviews
Each OTA references differently. Optimize your titles, photos, and descriptions according to their criteria. Positive reviews boost your positions in the results, so invest in the post-activity experience to generate organic feedback.
3. Performance tracking by channel
Tracking your OTA sales channel by channel allows you to identify your best channels and adjust your marketing efforts. Measure:
- the conversion rate,
- profitability per OTA,
- and the cancellation rate.
4. Automation through management tools
Planning, billing, customer messaging: everything can be centralized. This allows you to stay focused on what you know how to do, which is managing your tourism activity — not on administrative tasks.
Good multi-OTA management is a strategy that does more with less.
How to connect your offers to GetYourGuide (and other OTAs) via Tourbiz?
Once your product sheets are ready, the next step is to effectively distribute them across your sales channels. With Tourbiz, no need to juggle between the dashboards of OTAs. You connect your offers once, and everything synchronizes automatically.
Native integration with major OTAs
Tourbiz is already connected to the major platforms in the market: GetYourGuide, Viator, Headout, Funbooker. You can therefore update your activities from a single back office, without content duplication.
- Stock synchronization: your availability is updated in real-time.
- Price alignment: rates remain the same across all channels.
- Centralization of bookings: no need to monitor multiple platforms at once.
👉 Discover best practices for multi-OTA publishing in our OTA guide.
Concrete benefits for your business
Adopting an OTA integration via Tourbiz is primarily a measurable productivity gain. In 2025, the speed and consistency of updates will make the difference between an agile operator and one that is outdated.
- Time savings: a single change applies to all your connected platforms.
- Reduction of error risk: no more discrepancies in prices or availability.
- Centralized reporting: analysis of OTA sales by OTA in a single dashboard.
Steps to connect your offers from Tourbiz
The setup takes just a few minutes:
1. Add your activity or tour in Tourbiz.
2. Go to the “Connections” module and select the desired OTA.
3. Authorize the secure API link with your GetYourGuide, Viator, Headout, etc. account.
4. Check the automatic synchronization and your aligned rates.
Once connected, each OTA reservation comes directly into your Tourbiz interface, with customer data and payments synchronized.
Why centralize your distribution?
Centralization is not just a comfort, it’s a growth strategy. You reduce mental load, gain responsiveness, and provide a smoother customer experience.
In an increasingly instant market, keeping control over your channels becomes a competitive advantage. Tourbiz allows you to manage your OTA sales, your calendar, and your pricing from a single space.
