NEWTON, Mass., Dec. 15, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- TripAdvisor®, the world's largest travel site*, today announced the appointment of Dermot Halpin as president of vacation rentals, effective immediately.  In this newly-created role, Halpin will oversee and grow TripAdvisor's vacation rentals operation, reporting directly to Stephen Kaufer, co-founder and CEO of TripAdvisor.

(Logo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20080902/TRIPADVISORLOGO )

"Dermot is a significant addition to the senior TripAdvisor team and we're delighted to have him on board. This hire further demonstrates our commitment to vacation rentals as an important accommodation option for travellers," commented Stephen Kaufer. "He brings impressive experience to the table and has the credentials to lead our vacation rentals business and drive it to the next level."

Halpin's considerable experience spans both the online and travel sectors and includes seven years at Expedia where he served as president of the company's EMEA division, which enjoyed extensive growth under his leadership.  In this role Halpin was responsible for the Expedia, Hotels.com and Expedia Affiliate Networks businesses.

"I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to lead TripAdvisor's vacation rentals business," commented Halpin. "TripAdvisor is establishing itself as a leading and truly global player in this market, so it's a very exciting time to be joining the company. TripAdvisor has already formed some significant inventory partnerships and I look forward to expanding the vacation rental business even further."

As of November 2011, TripAdvisor exceeded 200,000 vacation rental property listings following the announcement of several partnership deals, including Interhome, Stayz Toprural and AKENA Technologies (which operates MediaVacances.com). TripAdvisor also lists properties from Holiday Lettings and FlipKey.

For more information on TripAdvisor's vacation rentals, see here: http://www.tripadvisor.com/VacationRentals

About TripAdvisor

TripAdvisor® is the world's largest travel site, enabling travellers to plan and have the perfect trip. TripAdvisor offers trusted advice from real travellers and a wide variety of travel choices and planning features (including Flights search, TripAdvisor Mobile and Instant Personalization) with seamless links to booking tools.

TripAdvisor® Media Group, operated by TripAdvisor LLC, attracts more than 65 million unique monthly visitors* across 19 popular travel brands**. TripAdvisor-branded sites make up the largest travel community in the world, with more than 50 million unique monthly visitors***, 20 million members, and over 50 million reviews and opinions. The sites operate in 30 countries worldwide****, including China under daodao.com. TripAdvisor also operates TripAdvisor for Business, a dedicated division that provides the tourism industry access to TripAdvisor's millions of monthly visitors. The division includes Business Listings, which allows hoteliers to connect directly to millions of researching travellers, and Holiday Rentals, which helps property managers and individual home owners list their properties and showcase hotel alternatives.

TripAdvisor Media Group websites have been recognized as top travel resources in 2010 by Conde Nast Traveller, Good Housekeeping, TIME magazine and Travel + Leisure.

TripAdvisor Media Group generated $486 million in revenue in 2010. TripAdvisor and the sites comprising the TripAdvisor Media Group are operating companies of Expedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE).

TripAdvisor and the TripAdvisor logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of TripAdvisor LLC in the U.S. and/or other countries.  All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

©2011 TripAdvisor LLC. All rights reserved.

*Source: comScore Media Metrix for TripAdvisor Media Group Sites, Worldwide, August 2011

** In addition to TripAdvisor, The TripAdvisor Media Group of websites includes: www.airfarewatchdog.com, www.bookingbuddy.com, www.cruisecritic.com, www.everytrail.com, www.familyvacationcritic.com, www.flipkey.com, www.holidaylettings.co.uk, www.holidaywatchdog.com, www.independenttraveler.com, www.onetime.com, www.seatguru.com, www.sniqueaway.com, www.smartertravel.com, www.travel-library.com, www.travelpod.com, www.virtualtourist.com, www.whereivebeen.com, and www.kuxun.cn.

***Source: comScore Media Metrix for TripAdvisor Sites, Worldwide, August 2011

**** TripAdvisor sites operate in 30 countries worldwide: www.tripadvisor.com, www.tripadvisor.co.uk, www.tripadvisor.ca, www.tripadvisor.it, www.tripadvisor.es, www.tripadvisor.de, www.tripadvisor.fr, www.tripadvisor.jp, www.daodao.com, www.tripadvisor.in, www.tripadvisor.se, www.tripadvisor.nl, www.tripadvisor.com.br, www.tripadvisor.com.tr, www.tripadvisor.dk, www.tripadvisor.com.mx, www.tripadvisor.ie, www.tripadvisor.com.au, www.tripadvisor.com.sg, www.tripadvisor.co.kr, no.tripadvisor.com, pl.tripadvisor.com, th.tripadvisor.com, www.tripadvisor.ru, www.tripadvisor.com.gr, www.tripadvisor.co.id, www.tripadvisor.com.ar, www.tripadvisor.tw, www.tripadvisor.com.my, and www.tripadvisor.com.eg.

SOURCE TripAdvisor