In what can be termed one of the biggest travel startup funding news in Europe, German travel startup GetYourGuide has raised $500 million from Softbank. The latest funding values the startup which caters to over 35,000+ experiences at $1.78 billion. Earlier this month Skift had predicted in a news-story about GetYourGuide potentially raising $300 million funding from SoftBank and Singapore’s Temasek.
The startup has more than doubled the sales of tickets from 10 million in 2017 to 25 million in 2019. Founded by classmates Johannes, Tao, Martin, and Tobias in 2009, the platform gathers the best activities across the globe, all in one place.
April has been a hot month for tours & activities startups with Hong Kong-based Klook receiving a $225 million investment from SoftBank valuing it at over $1 billion.
According to Johannes Reck, “GetYourGuide has been the first digital company to start bringing a fragmented, decentralized, analogue global market online”.