WeRoad X Marketplace Doubles Small-Group Tour Bookings

21.11.2023 - 07:33 / skift.com / Selene Brophy

European small-group tour operator WeRoad, whose tours are typically run by travelers who have never visited the destination they’re leading a tour to, has doubled its traveler numbers by 50,000 in its fiscal year ending September 2023. 

Over the past year, WeRoad has hosted more than half of the 100,000 customers since its inception in 2017, according to WeRoad’s CEO Andrea D’Amico. D’Amico further claimed WeRoad had generated an estimated €60M ($65 million) in bookings for the year. This year, the company expanded beyond its primary market in Italy into the UK, Spain, France, and Germany, with the new markets accounting for 20% of its business.

WeRoad trips are typically made up of 10 to 15 travelers in language-specific groups such as Italian, English, or Spanish and split according to ages of 25-30 and 30-49 years. The trips also offer a mix of pre-planned and on-the-fly experiences led by travelers who put their hand up to be trip coordinators. WeRoad rewards these coordinators for taking responsibility for the group by covering their trip expenses, such as flight and accommodation. The company also pays them an undisclosed fixed fee.

D’Amico said WeRoad has grown its coordinator community across Europe from 1,000 in 2022 to 2,500 to date.

By comparison, small-group tour operator Intrepid Travel, which started operations in 1989, facilitated 61,619 travelers for multi-day, small-group tours in 2022. The company has a global network of over 900 tour leaders and guides, and works with 27 destination management companies in 92 countries.

But how well does a business model centered on trip leaders with no experience work?

Trips are designed to cater to the spontaneous nature of solo travelers seeking adventure over rigid itineraries, D’Amico said.

“Of course, you can be an Italian person and book a German trip, but everyone speaks German. It’s not like we do a language test. So it’s more, let’s say, an indication for the rest of you. We don’t care about your gender or orientation,” said D’Amico.

A snap look at reviews of WeRoad shows its trips have close to 90% 5-star ratings. However, lurking in the 1-star reviews are comments like, “The guides are just there for the free holiday, they have no idea about the place they are going to and the organization is just awful,” or “WeRoad are recruiting tour leaders that are young, not well traveled, very social/outgoing and not at all qualified to be a tour leader.”

D’Amico said, “We have a rebooking rate of 60%, and a third of bookings are via word of mouth.”

He further pegged the company’s growth beyond its new international markets down to the company developing its WeRoad X marketplace booking platform in 2022 to help formalize its trip