In Praise of Kayak, 21 Years Later: Still the Best Travel Search Tool

This opinion piece by Skift founder Rafat Ali argues that Kayak remains the best travel search tool, despite parent Booking Holdings writing it down by $457 million in October 2025 and co-founder and CEO Steve Hafner stepping down in February 2026. The article contends that Kayak's struggles stem from rising Google-driven customer-acquisition costs and stalled revenue (around $500 million, down from ~$600 million pre-Covid), not a failing product. Meanwhile, competitors like Trivago and Skyscanner are growing but require higher ad spend. Booking is investing in a new AI travel brand, Lola, built by Kayak's founders, rather than leveraging Kayak's 21 years of brand recognition and user base.