After months of preparation, Expedia is finally waving goodbye to TripAdvisor. The companies announced today that they’ve successfully split operations, with TripAdvisor becoming an independent publicly-traded company on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol TRIP.

“This is a truly exciting time for TripAdvisor, and we are eager to continue to innovate on behalf of our users and grow the business as we enter this next chapter,” said Stephen Kaufer, co-founder and CEO of TripAdvisor.

Founded in 2000, TripAdvisor has grown into a powerhouse of travel-oriented reviews, attracting more than 65 million monthly visitors who check out some of the 50 million hotel, restaurant and travel reviews on the site.

The Newton, Mass.-based company — operating in 30 countries — says it is now publishing 25 new contributions every minute.

The TripAdvisor business is growing faster than Expedia’s core travel booking service. During the third quarter, sales rose 30 percent at TripAdvisor to $180 million. Expedia, meanwhile, saw its sales increase 15 percent to $1.14 billion.

TripAdvisor is being valued at about $4 billion, while Expedia (whose shareholders will receive shares of the company in the spin-off) is now valued at about $7.4 billion.

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