Travel Startups Raised $358 Million Last Week

15.04.2024 - 18:31 / skift.com / Justin Dawes

Last week was the biggest for fundraising in travel tech in almost three months.

It also had been a few weeks since a travel startup has raised over $100 million. But last week, it happened twice: Once by a startup that rents hydrogen-powered cars to taxi companies, and once by a startup that helps short-term rentals companies manage their business.

There were four travel startups that announced fundraises last week totaling nearly $358 million. The total for the biggest week this year was $500 million.

HysetCo, which owns a fleet of hydrogen-powered vehicles that it rents to taxi companies, has raised $212.8 million (€200 million).

Hy24 led the round and became the majority shareholder of HysetCo with the deal, joining shareholders AirLiquide, TotalEnergies, Toyota France, and Kouros. Other investors for the round included Raise Impact and Eiffel Investment Group.

Paris-based HysetCo said it owns a fleet of more than 500 hydrogen-powered vehicles and a network of refueling stations in France. Clients also have access to services including fleet management, maintenance, repair, insurance, and training. 

The company said it has more than 500 drivers, mostly from taxi companies, and it distributes 30 tons of hydrogen each month. It said the vehicles can be refueled in three to five minutes, and they can travel up to 600 kilometers between refuelings. 

Besides taxi companies, the HysetCo services are available to other companies for various needs. 

HysetCo said it has doubled in size over the last three years. 

The funding will go toward expanding across France and the rest of Europe. The company has four refueling stations, according to its website, and plans to establish a dozen more by 2025.

Guesty, a business management platform for short-term rental companies, has raised $130 million in series F funding. 

Investment firm KKR led the latest round, with support from Inovia Capital and previous investors Apax, BDT & MSD Partners, and Sixth Street.

New York City-based Guesty provides a platform meant to help property managers streamline every part of their short-term rental business, including marketing, accounting, payments, bookings, listings on third-party booking sites like Airbnb and Booking.com, and more. 

(See Skift’s story.)

Waymap, a navigation app that works without GPS or cellular service, has raised $8.7 million (£7 million). 

The investment was led by TELUS Pollinator Fund for Good, with support from Venrex and Comprador Holdings.

London-based Waymap said its technology allows navigation that works outdoors, indoors, and underground. The app uses the smartphone’s built-in sensors to navigate users with accuracy of up to 1 meter, the company said. It includes audio directions for