Viad Corp.

What Viad Corp. does

Viad Corp. (NYSE: VVI) is a publicly traded, Phoenix-headquartered experiential and recreational attractions operator that, following the October 2024 divestiture of its Global Exhibition Services (GES) tradeshow unit to Truelink Capital for $535 million, has repositioned itself as a focused owner-operator of tourism attractions consolidated under the Pursuit Collection brand. The Pursuit portfolio centers on iconic, physically located destinations in western Canadian national parks, including the recently acquired Jasper SkyTram (closed July 2024 for ~$18 million), the historic FlyOver Canada immersive ride acquired in 2016 (~$68.8 million), and surrounding hospitality and experiential assets; Viad markets these primarily to tourists and leisure travelers via direct ticket sales at the attractions and bundled itineraries.

Revenue is generated through one-time ticket and experience purchases at the point of attraction, supplemented by group and packaged multi-attribution tourism channels; the Jasper SkyTram alone drew more than 130,000 visitors in 2023 and is projected to contribute approximately $4 million in 2024 revenue, with the remaining Pursuit assets scaling the total. The company operates 5,001-10,000 employees across North America (USA and Canada), and is led by President & CEO Steve Moster, CFO Ellen Ingersoll, and General Counsel & Secretary Deborah DePaoli. Founded in 1914 and listed on the NYSE, Viad is an S&P SmallCap 600 constituent whose forward strategy is explicitly anchored on the Pursuit attractions platform rather than the divested exhibition services business.

The business model is asset-heavy and concession-dependent: the Jasper SkyTram, for example, operates under a long-term lease with Parks Canada inside Jasper National Park, making federal concession rights and park visitation volumes the two primary determinants of revenue durability. Go-to-market is direct-to-consumer at physical sites, with no disclosed enterprise sales motion, no public pricing details, and no software/API surface; reported revenue series points to a post-divestiture run rate in the mid-hundreds of millions of dollars (reported 2024 revenue approximately $366.5M, 2025 approximately $452.4M). The strategic narrative is therefore a clean, smaller, capital-light(er) experiential tourism pure-play rather than the diversified GES-plus-attractions conglomerate of prior years.

Name

Viad Corp.

Legal name

Viad Corp

Website

https://viad.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

1914

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Viad Corp. (NYSE: VVI) is a publicly traded experiential attractions operator that, after divesting its GES tradeshow unit in October 2024, owns and operates the Pursuit Collection of tourism assets in western Canadian national parks, including the Jasper SkyTram, serving tourists and leisure travelers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Experiential Travel and Tourist Attractions

NAICS

Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation, Other (4879), Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation, Land (4871)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Tourist & Heritage Cable Car/Funicular Attractions (THAIAKAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Mountain Gondola & Chairlift Passenger Transport (Non-ski Commuter/Tourist) (THAIAKAD), Transportation & Access Services (Shuttles, Ferry Access, Scenic Drives Permits) (THAAAGAC)

Keywords

• Recreational attractions
• Scenic tourism
• Experiential travel
• National park tourism
• Aerial tramway services

Headquarters

HQ city

Phoenix

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Attraction Operations Revenue: Revenue generated from operating recreational attractions including the Jasper SkyTram and other Pursuit collection attractions. The SkyTram alone is expected to generate approximately $4 million USD in revenue in 2024.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Core offering

Viad Corp. operates recreational transportation and destination attractions through its Pursuit Collection, providing scenic tourism experiences in iconic natural settings such as Jasper National Park, Canada. Its flagship asset is the Jasper SkyTram, an aerial tramway carrying visitors to the upper reaches of Whistlers Mountain. Following the 2024 divestiture of GES to Truelink Capital, the company's core offering is now concentrated on operating branded visitor attractions, tours, and bundled hospitality experiences in premier North American destinations.

Product overview

Viad Corp operates as a recreational transportation and attractions company with a portfolio of experiential offerings. The company manages the Pursuit Collection of attractions in the Jasper National Park region, including the historic Jasper SkyTram scenic aerial tramway. Viad Corp previously operated Global Exhibition Services (GES), a tradeshow services business that was divested to Truelink Capital in October 2024, reflecting a strategic shift toward recreational transportation and attractions services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Pursuit Collection: Collection of attractions operated by Viad Corp in the western Canada region

Products and services

• Jasper SkyTram Aerial tramway attraction in Jasper National Park, Canada that transports visitors to the upper station near the summit of Whistlers Mountain for alpine sightseeing experiences; targeted at leisure travelers and national park visitors.
• Pursuit Collection Branded portfolio of recreational attractions, scenic tours, and hospitality assets marketed to leisure travelers seeking curated experiences in national park destinations across North America.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 130,000 visitors annually to Jasper SkyTram alone

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• SeaWorld Entertainment: Owns and operates theme parks and entertainment venues, comparable to Viad in operating a portfolio of consumer-facing experiential attractions.
• Alterra Mountain Company: Operates a network of year-round mountain destinations including scenic lifts and gondolas, closely paralleling Pursuit's mountain-based attraction and aerial tramway model.
• Six Flags Entertainment Corporation: Operates a portfolio of theme parks across North America; shares Viad's experience-based attractions model and reliance on consumer discretionary tourism spending.
• Compagnie des Alpes: French operator of ski resorts, mountain attractions, and theme parks across Europe, with a similar model of operating seasonal, location-bound leisure attractions for tourists.
• Merlin Entertainments: Global attractions operator with brands like Madame Tussauds and LEGOLAND, sharing Viad's strategy of building a multi-attraction portfolio around tourism destinations.
• City Experiences (Hornblower Group): Operates sightseeing cruises, ferries, and tours in major destinations globally, sharing Viad's model of monetizing iconic destination-based experiences for tourists.
• Cedar Fair: Owns and operates amusement parks and water parks, directly comparable in operating a portfolio of leisure attractions for tourism-driven consumer spend.
• Vail Resorts: Operates mountain resorts and scenic gondola/aerial experiences in iconic natural settings (e.g., Vail, Whistler Blackcomb), directly comparable to Viad's Pursuit Collection and Jasper SkyTram in business model and customer.

Others

• EPR Properties: Experiential real estate REIT that finances movie theaters, eat-and-play, and attraction properties; adjacent to Viad as a capital provider and tenant in the attractions space.

Emerging players

• Herschend Family Entertainment: Privately held operator of themed attractions including Silver Dollar City and Dollywood, comparable as a smaller, owner-operator of destination attractions.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/viad-corp

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A3 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Viad Corp.