The shift away from third-party cookies has been one of the most significant structural changes in digital advertising — and for travel brands that have relied heavily on cookie-based retargeting and audience targeting, the implications are real. While Google’s timeline has shifted, the direction of travel is clear: third-party cookies are going away, and the travel advertisers who adapt early will be in a better position than those who wait. Here’s what to know and what to do.
What is a third-party cookie?
A third-party cookie is a tracking file placed on a user’s browser by a domain other than the one they’re visiting — typically an ad network, a data platform, or an analytics provider. These cookies have been the backbone of cross-site audience tracking for decades: they’re what allows a travel advertiser to retarget someone who visited a tour page on their site with ads on unrelated websites. When third-party cookies are deprecated, that cross-site tracking capability disappears in its current form.
What is the impact on marketing capabilities?
The primary impact for travel advertisers is on audience targeting and measurement. Retargeting audiences built from cross-site browsing data will shrink. Attribution models that rely on cross-domain cookie matching will become less accurate. Frequency capping across multiple publisher sites will become harder. In our experience, the travel brands most exposed are those with large retargeting programmes and those relying heavily on third-party data segments for prospecting — particularly for upper-funnel awareness campaigns.
So, what can paid search marketers do?
The shift forces travel advertisers to rely more on first-party data — the data you own directly from your own website, CRM and booking systems. The good news is that travel brands who’ve been building direct relationships with customers have a real advantage here. Your booking enquiry data, your email lists, your customer database — these are all first-party assets that can be used for targeting without third-party cookies. Getting them properly connected to your advertising platforms is the most important preparatory step you can take.
In short, here are 7 things you could do from today:
First, audit your current reliance on third-party cookie data across your campaigns — understand exactly what will be affected. Second, invest in first-party data collection: ensure your website is capturing consented user data wherever possible, and that your CRM contains clean, usable customer records. Third, implement server-side tracking as a more durable alternative to client-side cookie tracking. Fourth, build Customer Match audiences in Google Ads and Custom Audiences in Meta from your first-party data. Fifth, explore contextual targeting as a complement to audience targeting — in travel, destination and interest-based contextual placements can be very effective. Sixth, review your attribution model and consider server-side or data-driven attribution solutions that don’t rely on third-party cookies. Seventh, test Google’s Privacy Sandbox alternatives and stay current with platform developments — the tools are evolving quickly and early adopters have an advantage.
How else can digital marketers prepare for privacy changes?
Beyond the technical adaptations, the most important mindset shift is toward owned audience building. For tour operators, that means investing in email list growth, loyalty programmes, and content that attracts repeat visitors to your site. What we’ve found is that travel businesses with strong first-party data assets — built through years of direct customer relationships — are genuinely better positioned for the cookieless future than those who’ve relied primarily on third-party data for targeting. The privacy changes accelerate a trend that was already heading in the right direction for operators who invest in direct relationships.
Get in touch with our PPC team
If you’d like to discuss how to future-proof your travel PPC strategy for a cookieless environment, get in touch with the Summon team. We work exclusively with tour operators, ferry companies, airlines and activity providers.