“I want to travel the whole world one day. Through space, to the moon, different universes–everywhere!”
That’s IShowSpeed in Expedia‘s newest campaign: an ad called Travel Like Speed, which was made to tell young, internet-savvy travelers about the platform’s offerings outside of flights and hotels.
This isn’t the start of Speed’s relationship with Expedia–nor, of course, the first time he’s expressed interest in travel. When he started streaming on YouTube in 2017, he built his audience by playing games like NBA 2K and Fortnite. But in recent years, the 21-year-old has branched out of gaming, taking viewers with him for IRL streams around the world and emphasizing embedding himself in different cultures.
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In 2025, he ran Speed Does America and Speed Does Africa, two separate monthlong tours where he streamed 24/7 while crossing the country and continent, respectively. Along the way, he took viewers sightseeing at landmarks like the Great Pyramid of Giza, ate at many a mom-and-pop restaurant and street stall, and dove into local activities.
Now, Expedia is telling consumers they can do the same thing.
Its partnership with Speed kicked off this past April, with a similar livestream that followed Speed as he visited five Caribbean countries in a single day. Expedia was the 15-hour tour’s official sponsor, and says the stream and content surrounding it reached more than 400 million people across platforms.
Expedia also saw a “sharp surge” in search traffic for places Speed visited, it says: a 70% increase for Sint Maarten, a 50% increase for Guadeloupe, and a 35% increase for Dominica. These jumps “highlight[ed] Speed’s powerful influence in inspiring a new generation of travelers to explore,” it says.
With that in mind, it decided to go bigger. The Travel Like Speed YouTube ad (which follows Speed on adventures across the U.S., accompanied by an Expedia-branded mannequin who’s a stand-in for the viewer) links out to Exspeedia.com, a dedicated map that shows global destinations and activities Speed experienced. Tap on a locale, and you’ll see photos of Speed at the site along with recommendations for travelers who want to follow in his footsteps.
If you select Cartegena, for example, Exspeedia shows photos of Speed drumming with locals, meeting a man dressed as a pirate, playing volleyball on a beach, and finding a massive sand castle. Expedia’s bookable activity recommendations include beachy and walking tours, and a horse and carriage ride with dinner.
Lauri Metrose, Expedia Group’s Chief Communications Officer, tells Tubefilter that Expedia set out to “build a rich world showcasing Speed’s travels and how, with the help of Expedia, they can be accessible to his fans.”
“The film’s experiences, such as jet boating, stopping at a local food truck for an arepa, a private hotel massage, and doing donuts in a rented Corvette, were designed to reflect Speed’s spontaneous, high-energy travel style while simultaneously showcasing the breadth of what’s bookable on Expedia,” she adds.
She says Speed is an ideal partner for Expedia because “travel is already at the heart of what he does. He doesn’t just visit places. He fully immerses himself in the culture and brings millions of viewers along with him in real time through unscripted livestreams. That makes travel feel accessible, relatable, and genuinely inspiring.”
Expedia was also drawn to him because his audience (56M on YouTube, 50M on Instagram, 53M on TikTok) is “digitally native [and] highly engaged.”
“Our goal with this partnership is to build early brand affinity and relevance with younger audiences who are shaping the future of travel,” she says.
Experiences are a crucial part here, too. Expedia has spent years advertising its hotel and flight booking, but travelers are increasingly looking for ways to buy experiences. TikTok has become a major ‘what to do in X city’ search engine for Gen Z’ers who take inspiration from others’ videos, and Airbnb is actively partnering with creators to curate bookable experiences.
Expedia says its data “shows a clear shift toward experience-driven travel, particularly among younger travelers.” Its Unpack ’26 report showed that 57% of travelers say they’re likely to attend a local sporting or cultural experience while on a trip; that number jumps to 68% if you’re just looking at Gen Z and Millennials.
As for Travel Like Speed–a creative collab between Expedia and Speed in partnership with Mother Los Angeles and directed by duo Alaska of Iconoclast–Metrose says it was designed to appeal to multiple kinds of travelers.
Expedia wants to reach “someone who wants to find a Speed-style activity near them” as well as “a traveler looking to add experiences on top of a booked trip,” she says. “The Exspeedia.com microsite serves both use cases, letting fans explore Speed’s journey and book anything from a single activity to a full trip through Expedia’s broader catalog of stays, flights, and activities.”
This campaign is topped off with a sweepstakes: People who book trips through Exspeedia in the next 70 days will be entered for a chance to meet Speed.
Travel Like Speed has so far racked up around ~450,000 views on YouTube.
