GetYourGuide, the world’s largest online portal for tours and activities at destinations across the globe, has announced that Gidsy, a peer-to-peer platform for discovering local experiences and things to do, is now part of the company (Update – March 2023: The startup seems to be no longer in business under this website, and we therefore deactivated the original link).
GetYourGuide will integrate Gidsy’s marketplace of authentic experiences and make them bookable on GetYourGuide. In addition, Gidsy’s full team will join GetYourGuide in its mission to create the best user experience out there for booking tours and activities across the web, mobile and social channels. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Gidsy, which connects like-minded people in real life through unique experiences, has tried to build a huge online and offline community of passionate individuals organising and booking activities in more than 140 cities and 40 countries. The hyped Berlin-based startup was founded in 2011 and has been backed by Sunstone Capital, Index Ventures and by names such as Werner Vogels, Christophe Maire and Ashton Kutcher (with a total funding of around $1.2 million).
Johannes Reck, the CEO of GetYourGuide, stated: “By combining Gidsy’s proven excellence in design and expertise in building engaging mobile and social experiences with GetYourGuide’s fast-growing web platform and strong distribution network, we are positioned to completely transform the way travel activities are discovered, bought and sold.”
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In December 2012, Expedia , the world’s largest online travel agency, hinted that it has embarked on a multi-year push to make thousands of tours and activities available for booking online, in addition to the small selection that it already sells.
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