Trivago Logo PNG
The Trivago logo proves that travel can be fun and exciting. Only proper trip preparation, which the tourist metasearch engine was created for, is necessary. The emblem symbolizes the lightness and festive atmosphere that accompany service users, who are not burdened by organizational issues.
Trivago was founded in 2005 in Düsseldorf, Germany, by Rolf Schrömgens, Malte Siewert, and Peter Vinnemeier. The platform was built to compare hotel prices from different sources, including online travel agencies and regional providers. It first focused on Germany, then expanded its hotel database and partner network.
In 2007, the Samwer brothers made the company’s first investment, helping Trivago expand more quickly into other European markets. In 2008 and 2009, the service launched localized websites across Europe and improved its price comparison algorithms. Global expansion followed in 2010, with entry into the United States, supported by stronger marketing.
From 2011 to 2012, Trivago moved into Asia and Latin America and began developing mobile apps as travel planning shifted toward smartphones. In 2013, Expedia acquired a controlling stake for $632 million, while Trivago kept operational independence. In 2014 and 2015, the company improved search filters, hotel details, ratings, reviews, and the overall user experience.
Trivago went public on NASDAQ on December 16, 2016. In 2017 and 2018, it faced changes to search algorithms and stronger competition, and it adjusted its marketing spending and technology accordingly. In 2019, it added machine learning and AI for recommendations and personalization. During 2020 and 2021, the platform expanded tools for villas and apartments, then focused on travel partnerships in 2022. By 2023, Trivago remained a major hotel metasearch service used in almost 200 countries and more than 30 languages.
Meaning and History
As one of the fastest-growing German companies, Trivago attracts millions of customers each month. It earns money from hotels willing to pay to advertise on the site. Nevertheless, even after becoming popular, the online platform still doesn’t clearly explain what its name means. Rumors suggest it was formed from the phrase “TRIp VAcation GO,” but this version has not been confirmed.
Many users believe the neologism “Trivago” combines several words from different languages. “Tri” translates from French as “sorting,” “va” means “to go,” and the English “go” expresses forward motion. This amalgamation alludes to the metasearch system’s primary function. Despite its unusual sound, the neologism has been the basis for all past and present brand logos.
What is Trivago?
Trivago is a travel metasearch engine that lets you compare hotel room prices across different booking platforms. The Düsseldorf-based company owns Trivago, and Expedia Group, Inc. of America operates it.
2005 – 2007
Trivago launched in 2005 as Germany’s first hotel price comparison site. At the time, it used a colorful wordmark visually divided into three color blocks, a concept that has not changed. In the first version, the letter “t” was lowercase and jagged as if drawn by hand. The designers made it bright orange with a white outline and placed it inside a dark blue circle to separate it from the rest of the text.
The middle of the word, “riva,” was dark gray. The developers chose a sans-serif font similar to Adobe’s Myriad Pro Regular, Myriad Arabic Regular, or Myriad Hebrew Regular. The last piece with the letters “g” and “o” resembled Adobe’s Myriad Arabic Bold. It was as orange as the first “t.”
2007 – 2013
In 2008, Trivago experimented with television advertising to strengthen its brand. And the year before, it revamped its identity by changing the logo’s color palette and font. The designers regrouped the color blocks, making the “t” no longer a separate element. The first fragment (“tri”) was sky blue, the second (“va”) was orange, and the third (“go”) was dark red, almost burgundy. At the same time, each letter had thin white outlines and cast a light gray shadow shifted to the right.
The lettering seemed airy because the “r,” “a,” “g,” and “o” rose slightly above the line, as if hanging in space. This asymmetrical arrangement created a sense of lightness, flight, optimism, and dynamism. At the same time, the letters crept into each other, especially near the end of the word. Based on its shape, the logo’s designers used a modified font from the Avenir family, making the dot over the “i” square rather than round.
2013 – 2015
In 2013, Expedia Group, Inc. bought a majority stake in Trivago. Meanwhile, the online travel platform updated its wordmark, keeping its constituent elements and the traditional three-color division. Now the blue is darker, the orange brighter, and the red lighter and paler. In addition, the designers abandoned three-dimensionality: they removed white outlines and gray shadows, making the letters flat.
The word is horizontally aligned and no longer feels airy. The font remains similar to the modified Avenir, though the developers have altered the glyph shapes. The most important change (compared to the previous version) is that the square dot over the “i” has been replaced by a round one.
2015 – 2023
The logo is a simplified, less vibrant version of the previous design. This change reflects the company’s desire for a more restrained yet professional image. While previous logo versions featured bolder colors, the current palette has become more muted.
The colors remain the same: blue, orange, and red, but they have lost their brightness and adopted softer tones. Blue symbolizes stability and reliability, orange conveys warmth and friendliness toward customers, and red adds dynamism and energy. Together, these colors represent the company’s multifaceted, comprehensive services while keeping an easy, approachable look.
The updated logo was designed to strengthen the brand, making it more accessible and friendly to a wide audience while conveying professionalism and reliability.
2023 – today
The new Trivago logo features significant updates to the design and color palette. One major change is the use of bright colors: red, orange, and blue. At first glance, the color scheme may look similar to the previous version, but the colors have been reversed. This change helps the brand stay modern and easily recognizable, especially in the competitive online hotel-booking market.
Each color in the emblem holds significance. The red in the letter “t” symbolizes the company’s dynamism and energy. The orange in the center represents warmth, comfort, and friendliness, reflecting the brand’s aim to create a user-friendly platform. The final element, blue in the letter “o,” adds reliability and confidence, highlighting the company’s professionalism and serious approach to its services.
The logo’s font has also been redesigned to be more modern and streamlined. The letters are slightly rounded and have a more consistent line thickness throughout, creating a sense of lightness and accessibility while maintaining professionalism. A key detail of the new font is the stylized “t,” which adds distinctiveness to the visual identity. This typographic approach helps the brand stand out and become memorable.
The new logo reflects the brand’s closeness to the user: a light, bright, and simple design that catches the eye and conveys the brand’s core values.
Corporate logo
In 2018, Trivago received another logo, designed by the company’s designers. It does not replace the iconic tricolor sign but is used separately, exclusively for corporate purposes. The brand name is set in dark gray and shifted to the right. On the left is a new graphic element: an open ring. According to the brand conception, it is “Wabi,” the symbol of global circumnavigation, constant development, and movement.
The ring is an open oval and traditionally contains three colorful fragments: orange, blue, and red. They are arranged so that the image seems three-dimensional. The colors flow from one to the other without gradients or shadows.
The iconic wordmark of the online platform Trivago features its unique, recognizable name. Because it is associated with only one site, the designers made it the star of the main logo and painted it in three optimistic colors. Nevertheless, the company also uses its own “Wabi” symbol: a ring. It demonstrates the metasearch system’s authenticity, flexibility, and attention to detail. It also visually embodies a round-the-world trip.
Font and Colors
The brand name is set in a simple sans-serif font. Designers based it on the Avenir family, a classic typeface. They reworked the glyph structure, so the resulting typeface is roughly similar to Bw Modelica Extra Bold by Branding With Type, Stem Text Bold by ParaType, and Usual Bold by Rui Abreu. All the letters are in lowercase. Notably, the curved parts of the “t,” “r,” “a,” and “g” are the same shape.
The Trivago wordmark’s color palette is well-developed: it features slightly darkened shades of blue, orange, and red, a recognizable combination associated with the online travel platform. The corporate logo’s palette additionally contains dark gray.