When you get to the ripe young age of 20, you’re bound to collect lots of stories – not only about the past but lessons for the future.
As WiT marks its 20th year in 2025, we turn the spotlight on our community, our tribe pioneers and leaders, to tell their stories and share their views on the evolution of online travel and technology.
We ask them to look back on the past and their early days, reflect on the present and why this moment is pivotal for online travel and get them to imagine the future, the next 20.
This special WiT Studio series, ‘‘Conversations On Turning 20’‘, is the collective story of WiT.
As a Chinese saying goes, 以古为鉴，可以知兴替
‘‘By using history as a mirror, one can understand the rise and fall of things.”
Episode 11: Rod Cuthbert, Founder, Viator
In 1995, long before “experiences” became the holy grail of travel, Rod Cuthbert had a simple idea: travellers should be able to book tours and activities online, just like they could (eventually) book flights and hotels.
That simple idea became Viator and Rod, a Tasmanian-born entrepreneur, became the unwitting “godfather” of a sector now valued in the billions.
Reflecting nearly 30 years after founding Viator, Cuthbert shares with WiT the serendipity, seismic shifts, and enduring beauty of the travel industry.
Want to hear more about the untold challenges of building Viator, the true impact of 9/11 on travel, and why Rod believes experiences will only grow in importance? Watch the full interview for a journey through travel’s past and a thoughtful glimpse into its future.
Key talking points:
• How Viator Was Born: Solving a Simple but Painful Problem
- Cuthbert shares how Viator created a global marketplace for tours and experiences — and why it took off so quickly.
- Quote: “Operators loved that we actually paid them, on time, every month. That news spread like wildfire.”
• 9/11: A Tragic Catalyst for Online Travel
- How the chaos of 9/11 exposed the limitations of call centers — and accelerated the public’s shift toward booking travel online.
- Quote: “It was incredibly sad — but for online travel, it was like a rocket booster.”
• The Mindset Shift: From “Stuff” to “Experiences”
- Cuthbert discusses the early 2000s cultural shift where people realized memories meant more than material possessions — fueling explosive growth for experiences.
- Quote: “Society moved from collecting snow globes to collecting memories — and our industry took off.”
• The Pandemic: Travel as a Human Need, Not Just a Want
- Why COVID-19 revealed just how essential travel is to human well-being — and how revenge travel was a symptom of something deeper.
- Quote: “People realized they had a hole in their heart. Travel wasn’t just a want — it was a need.”
• Breaking Free from Google’s Grip
- Cuthbert criticizes the dominance of Google in travel advertising and hopes for a more diverse, healthier digital ecosystem.
- Quote: “No monopoly is good for an industry. It’s time for broader choices.”
• The Next 20 Years: Smarter, Faster, But Not Predictable
- Cuthbert expects AI, speech technology, and smarter interfaces to reshape online travel — but warns against trying to predict specifics.
- Quote: “It’s going to look very different — and it’s foolish to think we know exactly how.”
• Travel 2045: The Rise of Virtual Tourism?
- A provocative take: more people might choose to explore the world virtually from their living rooms — especially as over-tourism grows.
- Quote: “It’s upsetting, but with crowds and polarization, some will prefer to ‘visit’ places virtually.”
• The Beauty of Travel: Lifelong Relationships
- Cuthbert reflects on what makes the travel industry unique: a spirit of camaraderie and enduring partnershipsacross decades.
- Quote: “In travel, you build relationships that last a lifetime. That’s rare — and beautiful.”
