BookingPal Raises $5 Million in Series B Funding to Expand its Vacation Rental Global Distribution Platform
Financing will be used on BookingPal’s customer success, expansion and continued growth.
Irvine, CA February 18, 2015
BookingPal, a cloud based travel technology service that increases professionally managed vacation rental units exposure and revenue by connecting them to OTA’s, property listing and vacation rental portals, announced today that it has completed a $5 Million Series B financing. The investment will be used to support the demand for the company’s services, accelerate platform development, and expand the team.
The financing was led by Thayer Ventures and includes participation from new investors PAR Capital Ventures, and Amadeus Ventures. Early investors Camp One Ventures and Plug and Play Ventures also participated. BookingPal has received $7.5 million in total funding.
“This new capital will enable us to continue to innovate on the platform, expand our strategic partnerships, and fulfill our mission to help travelers find the perfect vacation rental for their next trip on their favorite website,” says BookingPal CEO Alex Aydin. “We are thrilled to have such world-class investors with deep domain expertise joining forces with us.”
“BookingPal’s technology solution is well-timed with the rapidly increasing demand for vacation rental properties from multiple audiences, including consumers, travel agencies, corporate travel managers, and more,” said Jeff Jackson Managing Director at Thayer Ventures. “BookingPal is an enabling solution for the industry and we are excited to collaborate with and support them as they work to scale the company in this exciting category.”
Along with the funding, BookingPal also announced the appointment of Mark Farrell, Managing Partner at Thayer Ventures, and Jeff Jackson, former CFO of Sabre Holdings, to the company’s Board of Directors.
“We are very pleased and fortunate to have both Mark and Jeff join our Board of Directors,” said Alex Aydin, CEO of BookingPal. “Their extensive professional experience and passionate commitment will bring insightful perspectives and contributions to our Board.”
About BookingPal
BookingPal is a cloud based travel technology company, providing a global distribution system and a centralized booking platform for over 250,000 real time bookable vacation rental properties. Vacation rental and corporate housing property managers can increase their online presence and number of bookings by distributing their inventory via BookingPal’s global distribution channels. BookingPal was founded in 2013 and headquartered in Irvine, California. To learn more about BookingPal, please visit www.mybookingpal.com or email info@mybookingpal.com.
About Thayer Ventures
Thayer Ventures is a Venture Capital firm that invests exclusively in technology companies that focus on the travel and hospitality industry. Representing more than $10 trillion in annual global economic activity, the space is thriving with entrepreneurial activity, and disruptive change is altering the dynamics of the travel business forever. To learn more about Amadeus, please visitwww.thayerventures.com.
About PAR Capital Ventures
PAR Capital Ventures LLC makes early-stage private investments in travel and technology companies. PAR Capital Ventures is managed by Paul A. Reeder, III. Separately, Mr. Reeder is also the president of PAR Capital Management, which manages a private investment fund with more than $4 billion of assets under management. Through PAR Capital Management, Mr. Reeder was an early investor in ITA Software (acquired by Google) and Zillow.
About Amadeus Ventures
Amadeus Ventures is the investment arm of Amadeus IT Group is a leading provider of advanced technology solutions for the travel and tourism industry. Amadeus customers are travel providers (airlines, hotels, rail, ferries, etc.), travel sellers (travel agencies and websites), and travel buyers (corporations and travelers). The Amadeus group employs worldwide about 10 000 employees in its main sites in Madrid (corporate headquarters), Nice (development) and Erding (Operations) and in its 73 local business organizations. To learn more about Amadeus, please visit www.amadeus.com.
About Camp One Ventures
Camp One Ventures (C1V) partners with leading emerging growth businesses in the mobility, software-as-a-service and financial technology segments. C1V provide companies with the venture capital and support they need to build world class businesses. To learn more about Camp One Ventures, please visit www.camponeventures.com.
About Plug & Play Ventures
Plug & Play Ventures is the investment arm of Plug and Play Tech Center which has been seed investor of LendingClub, DropBox, PayPal and CreditSesame among others. Please visitwww.plugandplaytechcenter.com.