Booking Holdings vs Expedia: Founders, CEOs and History
Booking Holdings was founded in 1997 by Jay S. Walker and is led by Glenn Fogel. Expedia was founded in 1996 by Rich Barton, Lloyd Frink and is led by Ariane Gorin.
Company facts
Booking Holdings
- Founded
- 1997
- Headquarters
- Norwalk, Connecticut, United States
- Current CEO
- Glenn Fogel
- Employees
- 24,300
Expedia
- Founded
- 1996
- Headquarters
- Seattle, Washington, United States
- Current CEO
- Ariane Gorin
- Employees
- 16,000
Founders
Booking Holdings
Jay S. Walker
Jay S. Walker founded Priceline.com and launched it in April 1998 with the patented 'Name Your Own Price' system for airline tickets, later adding hotels, rental cars and mortgages.
Expedia
Rich Barton
Rich Barton is a legendary American technology entrepreneur and the highly influential visionary founder of Expedia. Working as a product manager at Microsoft in 1994, Barton was initially tasked with creating a travel-guide CD-ROM.
Lloyd Frink
Lloyd Frink is a highly prominent American technology executive and the critical co-founder of the massive online travel pioneer Expedia. A Stanford University graduate, Frink joined Microsoft in 1988, quickly rising through the ranks.
CEOs and their tenures
Booking Holdings
- Jeffery H. Boyd2002–2013
Chief Executive Officer (2002 to 2013; interim CEO in 2016)
Boyd led Priceline from near-failure to one of the largest internet companies. The KAYAK and OpenTable deals were agreed during his tenure as CEO and chairman.
Source - Darren Huston2014–2016
Chief Executive Officer
Huston resigned in April 2016 after the board found he had broken company policy through a personal relationship with an employee; Jeffery Boyd became interim CEO until Glenn Fogel took over in January 2017.
Source - Glenn Fogel2017–present
President and Chief Executive Officer
Under Fogel revenue rose from $12.7 billion in 2017 to $26.9 billion in 2025, and room nights passed 1.2 billion a year. He also led Booking through the EU's 2023 veto of the Etraveli deal, which the General Court upheld in September 2026.
Source
Expedia
- Peter Kern2020–2024
Former Chief Executive Officer
Kern's tenure was defined by survival and complex, necessary structural simplification. Prior to his arrival, Expedia Group operated as a fragmented federation of competing brands, resulting in technical debt and redundant marketing spend.
Source - Ariane Gorin2024–present
Chief Executive Officer
Under Gorin, revenue grew 8% in 2025 and accelerated to 14% in Q2 2026, with adjusted EBITDA margin expanding by 196 basis points in that quarter.
Source
Timeline: Booking Holdings and Expedia side by side
1996Expedia
Expedia Founded Inside Microsoft
Rich Barton launches Expedia as an ambitious division of Microsoft, pioneering the modern online travel agency.
1997Booking Holdings
Priceline.com founded
Jay S. Walker set up Priceline.com in Norwalk, Connecticut, out of his Walker Digital lab; the 'Name Your Own Price' airline ticket service launched in April 1998.
1999Booking Holdings
Nasdaq IPO
Priceline listed on Nasdaq in March 1999 at the height of the dot-com boom; its first-day market value was close to $10 billion.
1999Expedia
Spun Out and Listed on Nasdaq
Microsoft spins off the travel division in a successful IPO, establishing Expedia as an independent tech giant.
2000Booking Holdings
Dot-com crash and restructuring
Priceline's shares lost more than 95% of their value, the WebHouse Club grocery and petrol bidding venture shut down, and the company cut staff and narrowed its focus to travel.
2001Expedia
Acquisition of Hotels.com
Expedia acquires Hotels.com, executing a strategic pivot to dominate the lucrative merchant hotel booking sector.
2004Booking Holdings
Active Hotels acquired
Priceline bought UK-based Active Hotels for about $161 million, its first major move into European hotel bookings.
2005Booking Holdings
Bookings BV acquired
Priceline bought Amsterdam-based Bookings BV for about $133 million and merged it with Active Hotels under the Booking.com name.
2007Booking Holdings
Agoda acquired
Priceline added Asian hotel booking site Agoda for about $16 million plus earn-outs.
2011Expedia
Spun off TripAdvisor
Expedia Group spun off TripAdvisor in December 2011.
2013Booking Holdings
KAYAK acquired
The company bought metasearch site KAYAK for about $1.8 billion in cash and stock.
2014Booking Holdings
OpenTable deal and Darren Huston as CEO
Darren Huston became CEO in January 2014, and the company, by then called The Priceline Group, bought OpenTable for $2.6 billion.
2015Expedia
Vrbo & Orbitz Acquisitions
Executing aggressive, market consolidation, Expedia acquires HomeAway (Vrbo) to directly combat Airbnb, alongside legacy rival Orbitz.
2017Booking Holdings
Glenn Fogel becomes CEO
Glenn Fogel, who joined in 2000 and led the group's acquisitions, became CEO on 1 January 2017 after Jeffery Boyd's interim spell.
2018Booking Holdings
Renamed Booking Holdings
The Priceline Group became Booking Holdings in February 2018 and changed its ticker to BKNG, reflecting that Booking.com earned most of the group's revenue.
2020Booking Holdings
Pandemic collapse
Revenue fell 55% to $6.8 billion as COVID-19 halted travel, and net income dropped to $59 million.
2023Booking Holdings
1 billion room nights and the Etraveli veto
Room nights passed 1 billion for the first time (1.049 billion), and in September the European Commission blocked Booking's ~$1.84 billion (€1.63 billion) purchase of flight seller Etraveli.
2023Expedia
One Key Loyalty Program Launch
Expedia executes the complex unification of its fragmented rewards programs into the single 'One Key' ecosystem.
2024Booking Holdings
First dividend and DMA gatekeeper status
Booking paid its first quarterly dividend, $8.75 a share, and in May the European Commission designated Booking.com a gatekeeper under the Digital Markets Act.
2025Booking Holdings
Record $26.9 billion revenue
Revenue rose 13% to $26.9 billion, gross bookings reached $186.1 billion and room nights 1.235 billion.
2026Booking Holdings
Stock split, Etraveli ruling and Lola launch
A 25-for-1 stock split took effect in April, the EU General Court upheld the Etraveli veto on 9 September, and KAYAK's co-founders launched the Booking-owned AI travel assistant Lola on 29 September.
Acquisitions
Booking Holdings
- Getaroom2021$1.2B
- Momondo Group2017$550M
- OpenTable2014$2.6B
- KAYAK Software2013$1.8B
- Agoda2007$16M
- Booking.com (Bookings BV)2005$133M
Expedia
- HomeAway (Vrbo)2015$3.9B
- Orbitz Worldwide & Travelocity2015$1.9B
- Hotels.com (Hotel Reservations Network)2003Undisclosed
Questions about Booking Holdings vs Expedia
Who is the CEO of Booking Holdings Inc. and Expedia Group, Inc.?
Booking Holdings Inc. is led by Glenn Fogel and Expedia Group, Inc. is led by Ariane Gorin. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was Booking Holdings Inc. founded vs Expedia Group, Inc.?
Expedia Group, Inc. was founded in 1996 — 1 year before Booking Holdings Inc., which was founded in 1997. Expedia Group, Inc.'s longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger Booking Holdings Inc..
How many employees does Booking Holdings Inc. have compared to Expedia Group, Inc.?
Booking Holdings Inc. employs approximately 24,300 people, while Expedia Group, Inc. employs approximately 16,000. Booking Holdings Inc. has the larger workforce at 24,300 employees, compared to Expedia Group, Inc.'s 16,000. A higher headcount does not necessarily imply greater efficiency — it often reflects differences in business model (e.g., manufacturing vs. software).
Where are Booking Holdings Inc. and Expedia Group, Inc. headquartered?
Both Booking Holdings Inc. and Expedia Group, Inc. are headquartered in United States, meaning they operate under the same primary regulatory and tax environment.
Who founded Booking Holdings Inc. and Expedia Group, Inc.?
Booking Holdings Inc. was founded by Jay S. Walker. Expedia Group, Inc. was founded by Rich Barton, Lloyd Frink.
Which company has a longer operating history — Booking Holdings Inc. or Expedia Group, Inc.?
Expedia Group, Inc. has been operating for approximately 30 years, making it the more established of the two companies. Booking Holdings Inc. has been in operation for around 29 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Booking Holdings vs Expedia overview