Viator: What It Is and How to Book Your Next Experience

Viator is a booking engine for tours, excursions, and experiences all over the world, and is owned by Tripadvisor. Think of it as Expedia, but instead of travel bookings like flights and hotels, it's for things to do when you're at your destination.

And like Expedia, Viator doesn't actually provide anything you book; that's done by local tour companies. It's simply a one-stop shop for tours, activities, and things to do at your destination. If you're new to Viator, we'll explain the ins and outs of using the platform, plus recommend the best credit cards to use when booking travel.

How Viator Works

Viator is basically a search engine/marketplace for tours, activities, and experiences all over the world. This Tripadvisor-backed site produces a list of activities you can do in your chosen search location, which are provided by various businesses.

You'll complete your booking through Viator, but a local agency will complete the reservation. Viator provides all the details you need. In fact, you may not find out who is actually fulfilling the reservation until you go to finalize your booking.

It's a convenient way to check out what kinds of tours and activities are available at your destination, all in one search result. Viator doesn't just let anyone list bookings; they do have standards to meet. And if you run into issues, you'll have customer support backing you.

How bookings work on Viator

Let's go through making an actual booking. We'll look at a popular tourist destination right here in Canada – Niagara Falls.

On the homepage, you'll immediately see the search bar, where you can enter Niagara Falls. You also have the option to pick dates, but this step isn't necessary at this stage. You can check out your options even if you don't know your travel dates yet.

Tip: When you start typing your destination, Viator will automatically suggest options. Be sure to choose the right one! For example, typing "Niagara" will result in suggestions in both Canada and the United States.

On the search results page, you'll see several filters to better fine-tune your search. For example, you can filter by the size of your party, time of day, and your budget.

If there's something specific you had in mind, you can use additional filters to find it. For example, you can narrow your search to outdoor activities or food tours.

Let's take a closer look at how to book an activity using Viator. For fun, let's check out this helicopter tour:

If you haven't done so yet, now is the time to pick a date, as well as the number of people participating. This way, you'll see availability for your chosen adventure.

This page has full details on your experience. For this helicopter excursion, you'll see details like the length of the tour, the flight time, and the tour language. In this case, you can either meet the tour group at a set point or arrange a pick-up.

Depending on how popular your activity is, there can be quite a few user reviews as well.

Once you pick your date and time, if required, you can complete your booking. After you enter some basic information, you'll finally be able to see who is providing the tour.

Fill in participant information, and then you can pay for your booking. You can select your desired currency before paying.

Canadian dollars are, of course, an option, but you can select other currencies, even if you pick Canada as your country.

To demonstrate what Viator offers for exchange rates, let's also take a look at a tour in Niagara Falls, New York. First, here's the price in Canadian dollars: $265.74 CAD.

We'll switch our currency to U.S. dollars, and now we'll see the American price: $189.95 USD.

That's an exchange rate of 1 USD = 1.41 CAD. Here's what the real exchange rate was on the day this was written.

That's a 3.6% markup. This is on par with or even slightly better than the markup typically charged by banks. As of the time of writing, TD would exchange $268.86 CAD for $189.95 USD.

Tip: Planning to shop abroad? Check out the best credit cards to avoid foreign exchange fees.

Earning Rewards with Viator

Viator works on a commission basis. If you book a tour with them, Viator gets a small cut for providing the platform you used to make your booking with.

And Viator will share some of that with you through their rewards program. They'll let you know when you make your booking how much you'll earn. You'll then be able to use those dollars towards a future booking with them.

Reviewing and sharing your experiences on Viator

User reviews are a big part of any site that sells something. You get to read other people's experiences, both good and bad, about something you're looking at.

Viator is no different. At the bottom of each page are reviews from those who have taken the tour. This helicopter tour is rated quite well (with the obligatory handful of negative reviews).

Best credit cards to pay for your Viator experiences

When it comes to paying for your experiences, you can either pay by credit card (they accept Visa, Mastercard, and Amex), Mastercard or Visa debit cards, and PayPal. You also have the option to reserve now and pay later.

Credit cards will be the choice of many. First, Viator is generally coded as a travel provider. To earn bonus rewards, your credit card will have to reward travel as a category.

But more than that, this kind of service gets used a lot when travelling outside of the country. And as we've shown, you'll save money if you get a credit card that charges no foreign exchange fees.

Viator does offer the convenience of paying in Canadian dollars with an exchange rate that is similar to what any credit card would offer. But you'll save money with a credit card that doesn't charge any foreign exchange fees.

Here are some of the best options in this category.

Card name	Annual fee	Rewards	Welcome offer	Learn more
American Express Cobalt Card	$191.88	* 5 points per $1 spent on eligible groceries and restaurants (up to $2,500 spent per month) * 3 points per $1 spent on eligible streaming services * 2 points per $1 spent on eligible gas, transit, and ride share purchases * 1 point per $1 spent on foreign currency purchases * 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases	Up to 15,000 bonus points (terms)	Learn more
MBNA Rewards World Elite Mastercard	$120	* 5 points for every $1 spent on restaurants, groceries, and select recurring bills (up to $50,000 spent annually per category) * 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases	$40 GeniusCash + 30,000 bonus points (terms)	Learn more
RBC Avion Visa Infinite Privilege	$399	* 1.25 points per $1 spent on all purchases	Up to 100,000 bonus points (terms)	Learn more

FAQ

What is Viator?

Viator is a travel experience booking platform for tours and activities at travel destinations around the world. You can easily search for unique experiences on the site, but the events themselves are provided by partnering companies.

Is Viator a reputable company?

If you're concerned about using Viator, be aware that they're part of the Tripadvisor group. Plus, Viator has reputable customer service that will work directly with you if you should experience any problems with services booked through the site.

Is Viator owned by Tripadvisor?

Yes, Tripadvisor bought Viator back in 2014. As the world's largest travel website, Tripadvisor gives you the ability to book all aspects of a trip – from hotels to flights, car rentals, tours, and excursions at your destination.

Are Viator tours worth it?

Since there are hundreds of Viator tours offered by dozens of tour companies all over the world, it's hard to say if all Viator tours are worth it. Your best bet is to read reviews of the specific tours you're interested in before booking.

Do travel agents use Viator?

Yes, Viator even has a designated Viator Agent Resources Program. Agents can sign up to earn commissions, access exclusive events for clients, track their performance, and share agent-specific links with clients.