When Joshua Foer and Dylan Thuras founded Atlas Obscura in 2009, they had identified a global appetite for original content about the weird and wonderful places and experiences of the world.
Ten years later, the digital magazine and travel company is set to build on its USP – a global community of explorers who share their discoveries in a comprehensive database and a source of quality journalism, local experiences and trips to non-traditional destinations – with US$20 million of investment from Airbnb.
The home-sharing juggernaut has turned its focus to experiences and excursions in recent years. This latest move – the largest investment ever raised by Atlas Obscura – means Airbnb users can now book Atlas Obscura trips and events via Airbnb’s website and mobile app.
These range from photographing scorpions at night in the Californian desert and the chance to see Mexico's great butterfly migration, to visiting the Gates of Hell in Turkmenistan and exploring abandoned, underground spaces in the bowels of Berlin.
It’s a huge opportunity for Atlas Obscura to tap into a global audience. The company says its trips and experiences comprise more than half of its business, and the investment will be funnelled into expanding its offerings in these areas.
For Airbnb, it’s another profit stream as the company continues to diversify its revenue sources. The pressure to do so has intensified in the face of global regulatory pressures on home rentals.
Last year, Airbnb’s “Experiences” side of the business exceeded one million bookings. Back in 2016, it offered 500 experiences in 12 cities. Today, that’s grown to 40,000 in more than 1,000 cities.
“As we grow, it’s important that we maintain unique, high-quality supply,” Airbnb told The Wall Street Journal (WSJ). “With Atlas Obscura specialising in unusual and obscure travel destinations, this relationship continues to build on our intention to offer something more authentic and less mass-produced.”
The demand is certainly there. Between 2014 and 2018, the amount spent by travellers on tours, attractions, events and activities rose 21 per cent to US$159 billion, reports WSJ.
As the peak travel season drew to a close in 2018, TripAdvisor crunched its data from around the world. Compared with 2017, 67 per cent more travellers in 2018 chose to book an outdoor activity such as scuba diving, bungee jumping or glacier hiking. Cooking and painting classes jumped 61 per cent, while food, wine and nightlife experiences were up 45 per cent.
Given the figures, Airbnb’s investment comes as little surprise. Atlas Obscura has built a niche focus around unusual experiences and curious places. From small-group trips to Chernobyl’s Forbidden Zone and local experiences like "Cooking with critters in LA", the website attracted 4.3 million unique visitors in July – up 17 per cent on last year.
With the investment, Atlas Obscura plans to expand these offerings. Outgoing CEO David Plotz told WSJ: “What we have is a very powerful brand that is not dependent on the traditional lines of revenue that digital media has depended on.”
And its offbeat approach extends to recruitment. In October, Plotz announced in a note to readers that he is stepping down and, in lieu of traditional recruitment, the company has put out a call for site users to help select a new CEO.
Plotz told The Daily Beast that the move was in keeping with Atlas Obscura’s decade-long focus on drawing from its community of users.
“We hope that there will be someone in our community, someone who already understands us, who knows us, who will put themselves forward, or maybe they know somebody who seems like they have the perfect sensibility,” he said.
The company’s founders acknowledge the enormous evolution Atlas Obscura has gone through. With a new CEO at the helm and a huge cash injection, everyone will be watching to see where it goes next.
Two Point Four is a new small group experiential travel company focusing on families with young children, as young as two years old. We believe that "fly and flop" is a thing of the past and as cliché as it sounds, travel does not have to stop when you have young kids, nor does it have to become beach, resort or kids' club focused.
We offer a unique approach to small group travel allowing families to share experiences, as well as giving parents the freedom to enjoy activities and adventures that they may have had to skip in the past.
Whilst they are doing this, their children will be taking part in their own activities under the professional and experienced eye of our childcare supervisors. With an average of three to four families per group, parents and children will be able to build meaningful connections with their shared sense of adventure, whilst confident in the knowledge that they can spend quality time alone and with just their family whenever they wish.
My motivation to launch Two Point Four was inspired by my own travels with my wife and my two-year-old son. We packed our bags and set about on an adventure that would change our lives forever encompassing 37 flights, 18 countries and five continents.
After experiencing the profound impact the trip had on my family and I, I felt compelled to launch Two Point Four so that other families could experience the same journey. I have also set up and run an adventure company in the past so travel and adventure has been a part of my DNA for many years.
Yes that is correct, currently no other experiential travel operators cater to children under five years old, as well as older siblings. We strongly believe that classrooms go beyond four walls and that travel adds tangibility to a child's learning and development, as well as creating memories for the whole family.
The reason why no one is targeting this market, is probably because it is not an easy one to get right. We have managed to successfully build the industry’s trust in our approach and thanks to the focus we have put on safety and security, industry partners have got behind us and now see this as a huge opportunity to develop a new market.
As I mentioned I was lucky enough to be able to travel the world with my own family and so many people expressed their desire to do something similar. I started researching the market because I was sure someone else out there must be doing it.
I found companies specialising in travel for solo people, people on gap years, those over 60, families with older children, as well as many special interests, but none for families with younger children. In my opinion no one deserves a holiday more than the parents of a toddler and so I combined my experience in the travel industry with my recent family adventures and set about creating Two Point Four.
We expose families to new destinations and thrilling experiences that in the past would not have been accessible to them. Our local guides will show the families the best that each destination has to offer and take part in a range of activities that really immerses them in the communities.
Where the activities are not suitable for young children, our childcare staff will step in and ensure the children are entertained and kept busy allowing their parents the freedom to participate where they want.
Our childcare staff are mainly all European and have been working in this industry for a long time, giving parents the peace of mind they need to be able to relax and enjoy themselves. From a safety and operational standpoint, we’ve thought of everything.
We strongly believe in small group travel with young children as this will allow families to forge new friendships with like-minded people. In addition to this we will also be running trips designed specifically for single parents.
However, if people prefer to travel with a group of friends or extended family or indeed just with their close family, we can take care of that and offer private bespoke tours.
We focus on wellness, nature, culinary, adventure and cultural activities as well as enjoying the space inbetween as a family. Initially we will offer a selection of destinations including Bali, Vietnam, Costa Rica, South Africa, Oman and Croatia with plans to keep expanding our portfolio.
Traditional family travel is shifting, for example more parents and grandparents are wanting to share travel experiences with their families leading to an increase in multi-generational trips.
Furthermore, an increasing number of families are voyaging far and wide in search of active or adventurous trips rather than beach resort stays, Two Point Four opens adventure up to families with children under five who may have felt challenged in the past to travel in this way as they did not feel it was possible, safe or secure to do so.
In addition to this, our itineraries have been designed to satisfy the desire to remain active and focus on your personal health and wellbeing as well as that of your children.
The families that we are targeting, first and foremost, have to have a desire for adventure and exploration. People who value shared experiences over material possessions. If the parents have travelled and immersed themselves in different cultures and environments, we know they will value the importance of passing this sense of adventure onto the next generation of travellers.
All of our trips are all inclusive with regards to the families we welcome. We understand that in today’s modern and open society, families come in all variations and we value that as much as they do.
We believe our itineraries will enhance children's learning and development from being exposed to new experiences, cultures and environments. Imagine, your toddler being able to greet in more than one language, create stories set in jungles or on mountaintops, hop to the drums of the Masai Mara and make the traditional bread of a forgotten tribe, because that’s the context we’re offering.
Age is no longer a barrier. Whilst most travel companies only offer family trips to older children, we welcome families with children of all ages. Where the activities on offer are not suitable for the youngest members of the family, our qualified and experienced childcare staff are on hand to entertain the children with
fun activities and games, ensuring parents don't miss out on the "must dos",
We are showing families the freedom to explore, experience and excite.
Not only are adults becoming more intrepid and desirous of authentic, untouristy encounters, but children too, thanks to parents who want them to learn more about the countries they are visiting and the socio-economic differences they are confronted with.
In recognition of this, Yonder, which specialises in experience-led trips around Sri Lanka, India, Thailand, Malaysia and Burma, has designed a series of immersive activities that show children the "real" India, and give them a chance to interact with locals and learn about their jobs and way of life.
Yonder has particular inside knowledge of the little-known Andaman and Nicobar Islands, although its itineraries also encompass India’s Golden Triangle and Goa, renowned for its beaches that stretch along the Arabian Sea.
The company's so-called team of "escapologists" curate hand-picked boutique hotels that they have personally sampled, and only recommend destinations that they have personally explored.
Those visiting India as a family now have the option of four new experiences specifically designed to engage and appeal to children, demonstrating how the "experience economy" is taking off in new directions.
Truck art is popular in the northwest city of Jodhpur, where visitors will spot many vehicles decorated with bright floral patterns, calligraphy, religious symbols and messages to other drivers.
Travellers with Yonder can opt to spend time with Raja, a professional truck-painter who, alongside his team, transforms classic trucks into works of art on wheels. The experience will see families help Raja with his work, while learning about the history of truck art and the tricks of the trade.
Balaknama newspaper is the voice of Delhi’s street children. It is run by young people who live and work on the streets. It aims to change people’s perceptions and offers a place for homeless children to write about their thoughts, issues and successes.
This Yonder experience is an opportunity to join the team, learn about the modern problems affecting Delhi’s street children and discover how they are working to forge a new identity for themselves.
The first edition of Balaknama was published in 2003 in Hindi. Today, it is published bi-monthly in both Hindi and English with a distribution of 4,000 copies of each issue.
Gain an insight into village life and learn how the students, villagers and farmers of Ghimjha are moving towards organic farming practices.
Guests will meet the young agriculture students at the local school before taking a walk to the village, where they will meet many of the villagers.
Lunch will be hosted at the organic farm – which is pioneering sustainable farming in the area – where participants will get an understanding of the positive impact it has had on the local community.
A stay in Ranthambore National Park is combined with an experience with Tiger Watch, an NGO established to bridge the gap between government-employed rangers and the local communities that have been using the national park for generations.
Tiger Watch aims to educate communities on the benefits of local tiger populations. The experience is an opportunity to join monitoring patrols to chart tiger movements and go on safari to little-visited sections of the park.
The four experiences are available as part of a new 15-night itinerary that includes four nights in Delhi, three nights in Jodhpur, two nights in Nagaur, three nights in Jaipur and three nights at Ranthambore National Park.
Prices start from £3,400 per person including international and domestic flights and a private driver, based on a family of four sharing a room.
I launched Destinate Travel at the end of 2018. In many ways, it is a natural progression after ten years as the CEO of Cape Town Tourism.
Destinate Travel is a collection of our favourite places, experiences and the people who are the heart and soul of the places we visit, put together after more than 20 years working in travel and tourism.
We’ve spent five years working closely with a range of tourism boards, tour operators, wine farms, brands and destinations to help shape their businesses and introduce them to a wider market.
Destinate Travel offers visitors the opportunity to gain some insight into the lives of ordinary people through backyard concerts, shared meals and learning crafts from experts.
Connecting travellers to the kinds of places, experiences and people that will guarantee holidays of a lifetime is important to us and is what differentiates Destinate Travel. Other experiences include mushroom foraging at Boschendal and fly fishing in Dullstroom.
We want to share beautiful stories and experiences with visitors who are committed to a more ethical and meaningful way of travelling and, in so doing, contribute to the greater good in one way or another.
To me travel has always been multi-dimensional and deeply personal. It is a powerful platform to connect people with places, with self and with others.
As people are becoming increasingly aware of their consumer footprint, they’re adjusting their choices to be more ethical, kind and eco-friendly. This commitment to "first do no harm" extends to travel as well.
In keeping with the rising demand for more ethical, conscious travel, Destinate Travel caters to people who yearn for genuine connections with people and places. Curated travel experiences and packages are all about tapping into the very heart of South Africa by prioritising local knowledge, culture, cuisine and atmosphere and unearthing unusual finds.
We’re well aware of a growing desire for independence, connection and a more conscious approach when it comes to travel. It is why we launched Destinate Travel and design the kind of packages and experiences that allow travellers of all ages the opportunity to connect with places and their people more deeply.
Through the creation of conveniently packaged, unique travel experiences, we aim to cater to the conscious traveller who yearns for genuine connections with people and places.
Our travel offerings reflect our values and focus primarily on women, families, design, food and wine, and the unearthing of unusual experiences for travellers who want to go beyond the ordinary.
To incorporate our passion for local design, we also launched Destinate Style – a showcase of proudly African, ethical fashion, style and beauty brands that appeal specifically to travellers.
We love to introduce travellers to local makers and some of our personal favourite apparel, skincare and accessory brands, while actively scouting for new brands and makers to add to our portfolio.
Within the next few months an online shop will be added to the portfolio giving independent designers and creatives the opportunity to reach an international audience and make it easier for travellers to buy ethical locally produced products.
Ethical travel to me means travel that is not detrimental to the environment. It is about making responsible choices when travelling, supporting smaller, independent operators and caring about the impact our holidays have on the environment and the local people of the places we visit.
It is also understanding that the value chain of tourism can have a positive impact on many lives if we choose operators and experiences that we know are local and will contribute directly to the growth of tourism where it is needed the most.
We are working on a range of truly special women retreats or getaways. Locations include the Cederberg, the Cape Winelands and a Safari retreat at a beautiful villa in the Sabi Sands Game Reserve. It will bring women together in beautifully settings to reconnect with self and each other with a number of special experiences designed around each group.
Some of the unusual experiences we can arrange include a fynbos coastal foraging tour; a jazz safari; cooking and dining experiences with local cooks, wine makers and chefs; a wine tour with black female winemakers with a traditional African meal; and a Creative Cape Town tour to meet local makers, designers and artists.
Absolutely. Travellers don’t want to be mere spectators any more when travelling. For many travelling is a way to enrich their lives and gain a new memorable experience or skill. We are seeing a growing demand for volunteering holidays and for experiences that allow for deeper immersion and learning.
I have worked as a tourism strategist for more than 15 years and have seen trends and markets change dramatically over the last few years. Experiential travel is a global phenomenon and South Africa is well placed to benefit from this new trend.
We offer a truly unique combination of natural, cultural and urban experiences that allow visitors the opportunity to immerse deeper and contribute in a positive way to the development of people and places.
Over the past five to ten years there has been a shift in our traditional markets (Europe, America mainly) from mindless to more mindful consumption.
A number of things have contributed to the acceleration of this trend including a shift of power from the West to the East, political changes, terrorism, increased cost of living, climate change and more awareness and access to information through the web and social media.
The millennial market has driven much of the demand for a more ethical and sustainable way of living, demanding a more hands-on and transparent travel industry.
We already work beyond the borders of South Africa with destination and travel partnerships in countries such as Portugal, India, Reunion Island and the US.
Travel is a dynamic, ever-changing industry and that is what we love most about working in this sector. South Africa and Southern Africa are well-placed to leverage the need travellers have for a different way of travelling.
We do experiential travel well and must continue investing in experiences that bring the visitor closer to the real destination and its people, whilst working on our service levels and maintaining good value for money.
Utopian Hotel Collection is a consortium of luxury, unique and independent hotels with a youthful mind set, handpicked for travellers in pursuit of extraordinary experiences in unforgettable surroundings. It launched in September 2018.
Today, there are 31 hotels signed to the collection, including Le Burgundy (Paris), Le Grand Bellevue (Gastaad), Park Hotel Vitznau (Lucerne), the Chetzeron (Switzerland) and the collection’s newest member, Brach Paris.
From a hot air balloon ride over the majestic Swiss Alps at the HUUS Gstaad to a specialist sushi-making class at Nobu Marbella or a Leica photoshoot through the winding streets of Florence at the Portrait Florence hotel.
At the Park Hotel Viznau, guests can take sommelier tours of the property's six cellars, which store over 32,000 bottles and 4,000 different types of wine. Among them is the oldest wine stored in a golden casket, dating back to 1811, from the cellars of the Château d’Yquem. Other experiences across the collection include foraging for figs, mountain-top yoga and hiking.
Utopian Hotel Collection (UHC) is offering something totally new to consumers within the luxury hotel market. Through unique partnerships with like-minded brands such as meditation app Headspace and Mayfair bookshop Heywood Hill plus a devotion to curating the world’s most exceptional hotels, we offer a truly special guest experience for those with a millennial-thinking mindset. Our hotels recognise that guests want to discover the local area, be adventurous, authentic and have memorable fun.
We are determined to pioneer a shift in the luxury travel industry away from old school luxury norms to one that focuses on one-off authenticity and openness. By curating and redefining the guest experience, through our selection of hotels and partnerships, every Utopian guest will experience a modern, youthful, playful and personalised luxury holiday experience.
At first, luxury simply equaled opulence. Today, it is just as much about attitude. 78 per cent percent of millennials would rather spend money on experiences than things; with travellers now seeking more than just exceptional service, fittings and furnishings. There’s an appetite for the intangible and a desire for truly authentic adventures that enrich and surprise. This same zest flows through every Utopian hotel, which bears a luxury no longer defined by the old school; but by exceptional service, a richness of experience, one-off authenticity and a youthful character.
According to a white paper by marketing expert Pam Danziger, the millennial market is set to become the biggest consumer group over the coming years. She says that millennials will reach their peak earning and spending years, at 35-54 years of age, between now and 2034. The group is made up of young, tech savvy individuals whose desires and demands will be incredibly influential across all markets.
Our hotels benefit from a range of expert services and years of experience in the hospitality industry – our team has spent their lives travelling the world and staying in over 1,000 hotels between them. We offer hotels the chance to change the face of travel with us, and an opportunity to adapt and grow with the demands of the new age of travellers. Hotels will also be future-proofing themselves in being relevant to the next biggest market in luxury – the youthfully minded and millennial traveller.
Utopian Hotel Collection offers a booking platform and membership services, which include marketing, public relations, sales, distribution, reputation management, revenue management and other consulting services.
To become part of our collection, a hotel must pass a strict curation process underpinned by five key Utopian principles: people-to-people service, unexpected adventure, a story, seamless technology integration and playful character. Once a property has the Utopian seal of approval, guests are guaranteed an authentic and world-class experience with a completely different energy than ever before.
We have ambitious goals for the coming years and aim to have signed 125 hotels by the end of this year. This number will grow to 225 by 2021 and 340 by 2022. We have also announced our third round of investment, which is a testament to the resilience of the high-end luxury sector in the wake of the current economic climate.
Here at Globetrender we have certain expectations when it comes to Christmas presents. When you are lucky enough to travel the world for a living and visit concept stores such as 10 Corso Como in Milan, the Broken Arm in Paris (via the more mainstream Merci to satiate our stationery obsession), Tokyo’s 1 LDK (what do you mean we’ve got enough wooden pen pots?) and Alter in Shanghai, it takes a lot to impress us in the unwrapping stakes.
So to anyone daring to buy the globe-trotter in their life a gift – step away from the travel journal and passport holder, and let us school you in the kind of cool cadeaux that won’t go straight into the re-gifting drawer this Christmas.
Anything sold exclusively at Liberty of London instantly piques our interest. So the Virgin Atlantic "Where I Want For Christmas" gift card, which you can only buy in the chic London store, has our name written all over it (it literally does, as it’s packaged in a bespoke luggage tag themed wallet that can be hung on the Christmas tree. Cute.)
Okay, so the price range on offer won’t exactly cover the entirety of our Upper Class trip to Barbados (they are sold in denominations of £50 to £150), but it’ll make a nice dent in the cost and shows that you, lovely loved one are fully supportive of Globetrender’s nomadic lifestyle.
However, our favourite gift option this Christmas, also comes courtesy of Virgin Atlantic (thanks Rich, we always thought you had something of the Santa about you). The Where I Want for Christmas account combines the two most important things in our life – travel and trends and is, drum roll please, a unique crowdfunding platform designed specifically to raise money for your next flight across the ocean.
Select your dream destination and generate a personal URL to share with your family and friends to ask them to put the money they would have spent on that bread-maker/paper shredder/pair of novelty slippers towards something far more meaningful – a new adventure.
If you need inspiration, destinations on Virgin Atlantic's network include Antigua, Cancun, Denver, Delhi, Detroit, Havana, Hawaii, Grenada, Hong Kong, LA, Miami and Puerto Rico.
