Steve Case and Greg O'Hara Are Betting Big on Scarce Travel Assets

Two of the most prominent names in travel investing — Revolution's Steve Case and Certares' Greg O'Hara — are placing their capital behind scarce travel assets, according to a report from Skift.

The pairing is notable. Case, the co-founder and former chief executive of AOL, now runs Revolution, the Washington-based investment firm he built after leaving the internet pioneer. O'Hara founded Certares, an investment firm that has become one of the most active players in travel and hospitality deals. Both men are now steering money toward a specific category: travel assets that are difficult to replicate.

That focus on scarcity is the core of the investment thesis Skift describes. In a travel sector that has lurched from pandemic collapse to demand surges and back again, assets that cannot easily be rebuilt or copied — irreplaceable properties and one-of-a-kind travel businesses — offer a structural moat. Competitors can discount rates and copy experiences. They cannot manufacture location, history, or physical uniqueness.

The logic carries weight in the current market. Global travel demand has recovered strongly since the pandemic-era shutdowns, and investors have spent the recovery years sorting winners from losers. In that sorting, scarcity has emerged as a differentiator. An operator with exclusive or hard-to-replace assets faces less price competition and commands stronger pricing power than one selling a commoditized product.

Case brings a particular perspective to the trade. Through Revolution, he has championed investment in companies and regions outside the traditional coastal venture capital hubs — an approach he has long framed as backing entrepreneurs across a broader geography of the country. Applying that lens to travel aligns with the scarcity argument: distinctive travel assets frequently sit outside the largest, most saturated markets.

O'Hara's Certares, meanwhile, has built its franchise on travel specifically. The firm has structured deals across hospitality, travel platforms, and related sectors, often using a model that blends private equity capital with strategic operators. Its specialization gives it underwriting depth in a sector many generalist investors still treat cautiously.

Skift's framing of the two investors' positions — that they are "betting on scarce travel assets" — signals where seasoned travel capital is moving. Rather than chasing volume plays or growth-at-all-costs travel startups, the emphasis falls on durability. Scarce assets tend to hold value through cycles because their supply cannot expand to meet demand. That constraint protects returns in downturns and amplifies them in booms.

For the broader industry, the signal matters. When investors of Case's and O'Hara's stature concentrate on irreplaceable assets, it sets a marker for how the next phase of travel investing may unfold. Valuations for replicable travel businesses — commodity hotels, undifferentiated booking tools — may face pressure, while owners of unique properties and experiences command premiums.

The move also lands at a moment of consolidation in travel and hospitality. Firms with capital and conviction are positioning ahead of the next cycle, and scarcity-based theses tend to favor patient ownership over rapid flipping. Properties that took decades to establish their standing do not trade on quarterly momentum.

Skift identifies both men as betting on this theme, and their combined track record lends the position credibility. Case built and scaled one of the defining companies of the early consumer internet. O'Hara has executed some of the sector's most consequential travel investments. Their convergence on scarcity as the defining trait of a durable travel asset suggests the theme will shape dealmaking well beyond their own portfolios.

The so-what for operators and competitors: assets that cannot be copied are becoming the sector's most contested currency, and the capital chasing them is only getting more concentrated.