CDS Groupe, a hotel booking platform for business travel, is expanding into the German market through an acquisition.
25.08.2023 - 14:04 / skift.com / Justin Dawes
Two travel tech startups raised $31.6 million this week.
>>Unyoked, a website for vacation rentals of modern off-grid cabins, has raised $19 million (€18 million) to expand its footprint in the U.K. and Europe. Lead investors were Surplus Equity Partners and Realside Financial Group.
Founded in 2016, the Sydney-based company currently operates about 100 cabins in Australia, New Zealand, and the U.K. The startup has hosted around 35,000 overnight stays.
The startup is prioritizing expansion in the U.K., Scandinavia, Germany, Benelux, Austria, and Switzerland.
Unyoked is focused on building eco-friendly cabins unconnected to modern systems. Cabins measure around 9.8 feet by 29.5 feet (3 meters by 9 meters) and include a compact kitchen and bathroom. The cabins use only solar power, are heated with a wood fire, and have their own rainwater tank and composting toilets.
The booking software is developed in house. Housekeeping processes and quality controls are also digitally tracked.
The company said each location is carefully chosen in a remote location within two hours from a major city.
“We believe in a world where people see and use nature like they do the gym. Spending time outdoors is an important balance to our lives in an increasingly noisy and hectic environment. Many of us still don’t understand just how powerful it can be,” said Chris Grant, co-founder of Unyoked, in a statement.
Sebastian Lüdke, CEO of Surplus Equity Partners, believes there is a big opportunity for partnerships with companies that want to offer the Unyoked services as an employee benefit.
“The company is very successfully addressing a trend that is becoming increasingly popular, especially among 25-45-year-olds with a heavy workload: spending time in nature has a positive effect on the psyche, the body, and creativity,” Lüdke said.
>>AeroCloud, an airport management software startup, has raised $12.6 million in Series A funding. It was led by Stage 2 Capital, with participation from I2BF Global Ventures, Triple Point Ventures, Praetura Ventures, Starburst Ventures, Playfair Capital, and Haatch. The Praetura investment included support from an angel program by British Business Investments.
The England-based company said its software can centralize siloed data from across the airport and handle multiple types of operations all on one platform, enabling faster passenger processing times, improved self-service check-in and bag drop, and better communications between multiple airport stakeholders.
Powered by artificial intelligence and machine learning, the startup said its platform can quickly highlight inefficiencies and improve operations such as flight management, passenger predictions, and gate management.
Better
CDS Groupe, a hotel booking platform for business travel, is expanding into the German market through an acquisition.
Three startups involved in the travel industry announced fundraises this week totalling more than $316 million.
Silkhaus, a United Arab Emirates-based platform for short-term rentals, announced on Tuesday that it has raised $7.75 million in a seed funding round.
>>Ukio, a Barcelona-based short-term rental platform focused on remote workers, has raised $28 million (€27 million) in a Series A round of funding.
Four travel tech startups raised $158.5 million over the last week and a half.
Three travel tech startups raised $87.2 million this week.
Tech startups involved in the travel industry raised nearly $118 million this week.
Five tech startups in the travel industry have raised $258.6 in venture capital this week.
Two tech startups involved in the travel industry raised $15.3 million this week.
Five travel tech startups announced $47.5 million in funding this week.
Three travel tech startups have raised $9.3 million in the past week.
Four travel tech startups raised $121.3 million this week.