Tripadvisor Plus subscription service shuts down

Tripadvisor has shut down its subscription service, which was billed as 'Netflix for travel', after three years.

The membership programme, Tripadvisor Plus, officially launched in 2021 and saw customers pay a £78 annual fee to access a range of benefits.

These included special rates on hotel rooms, airfares, and experiences through exclusive deals.

Tripadvisor Plus originally offered immediate discounts on booking but switched to a cash-back model, where customers claimed a partial refund after check-in, after just a few months.

The change came after hotel chains baulked at the scheme publicly offering room prices far below their published rates.

Last week Tripadvisor emailed members of the programme to announce it had officially shut down.

A Tripadvisor spokesperson said: "We've taken the decision to end our Tripadvisor Plus program. Tripadvisor Plus was born out of our culture of innovation, and we now have a deeper understanding of our community's preferences around benefits and rewards.

"Armed with this knowledge, we are better equipped than ever to innovate and refine our approach to membership.

"We're grateful to all the Plus subscribers who have been on this journey with us and have helped us move towards an even more impactful and engaging experience for our community."

Tripadvisor is the world's largest travel guidance platform and hosts 1b reviews of nearly 8m businesses.