Withlocals
Travel companies of the Netherlands
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Withlocals is an experiential travel company that connects travellers to local hosts who offer private, personalised tours.[1][2][3] Describing itself as trying to achieve "mass personalisation"[4][5] rather than offering group or package tours,[6] Withlocals is cited as an example of the role and impact of the sharing economy on tourism[7] – particularly culinary tourism[8][9] – and the consumer trends for "authenticity" and "experiences".[10][11][12][13]
| Company type | Dutch limited liability company (B.V.) |
|---|---|
| Industry | sharing economy, tour guide |
| Founded | 2013 |
| Headquarters | Eindhoven, Netherlands |
Key people | Matthijs Keij (CEO) Marijn & Willem Maas (Co-founders) |
| Products | Private tours, local travel experiences |
| Website | withlocals |
History
Founded in 2013 by brothers Marijn and Willem Maas in Eindhoven, the Netherlands,[14][15] the company was supported by startup accelerator Greenhouse group. it obtained $500,000 seed funding from Digital Equity group[16] and a grant from the Horizon 2020 program.[17] It began operations by specifically targeting a market for sharing home cooked dinners across seven countries in Southeast Asia.[18][19] It later received Series A funding of €3.5 million ($4.3M) in 2017, at which time it reported to offer 1,200 tour options with 900 local hosts in 24 cities – having changed focus to personalised tour guides.[20] In 2019 it secured Series B funding of a further €8 million at which time it was active in 30 cities.[21][22] Both rounds were supported by Dutch investment company INKEF Capital[23] and the latter by Keen Venture Partners.[24] A priority of the latest round of investment is to improve the Software localisation and range of tours offered in languages other than English.[25] As of mid-2019, Withlocals has more than 50 employees.[26]
Cities
- Images from various Withlocals tours
- Lisbon
- Kyoto
- Bali
- Athens
- Denpasar
As of mid-2019 the Withlocals platform has hosts offering tours in the following cities:[27]
Asia
- Cambodia: Phnom Penh; Siem Reap
- Hong Kong
- India: Kochi; Mumbai
- Indonesia: Bali; Jakarta; Yogyakarta
- Japan: Kyoto
- Malaysia: Kota Kinabalu; Kuala Lumpur; Penang
- Nepal: Bhaktapur; Kathmandu
- Philippines: Cebu; Manila; Palawan
- Singapore
- South Korea: Seoul
- Sri Lanka: Colombo; Galle; Kandy
- Taiwan: Taipei
- Thailand: Bangkok; Chiang Mai; Chiang Rai; Nakhon Sawan
- United Arab Emirates: Abu Dhabi; Dubai
- Vietnam: Hanoi; Ho Chi Minh City; Hội An; Huế; Nha Trang
Australia
Europe
- Belgium: Antwerp; Bruges; Brussels
- Croatia: Dubrovnik
- Czech Republic: Prague
- Denmark: Copenhagen
- England: London
- France: Paris
- Germany: Berlin; Munich
- Greece: Athens
- Hungary: Budapest
- Ireland: Dublin
- Italy: Bologna; Florence; Milan; Naples; Palermo; Rome; Venice; Verona
- Poland: Kraków; Warsaw
- Portugal: Lisbon; Porto
- Scotland: Edinburgh
- Spain: Barcelona; Madrid; Palma De Mallorca; Seville; Valencia
- Netherlands: Amsterdam; Eindhoven
- Turkey: Istanbul
North America
- United States: New Orleans; San Francisco
- Mexico: Mexico City
South America
- Argentina: Buenos Aires
- Colombia: Medellín
- Peru: Cusco; Lima