hospitality industry

Kenya’s HotelOnline acquires hospitality software company HotelPlus

HotelOnline, a Kenya-based Yanolja-backed travel technology scale-up that fashions itself as an e-commerce and digital marketing enabler in the hospitality industry, has acquired HotelPlus, a software

AvantStay, a platform for kitting out — and then renting out — high-end vacation rental homes, raises $160M

Another travel startup that found itself scrambling to pivot as the COVID-19 pandemic took off is now announcing a huge round of funding after finding its feet and proving that it can grow, even under

EU considers single rules for regulating vacation rental platforms

European Union lawmakers are consulting on how to regulate the short-term rental market across the bloc — asking whether a single set of pan-EU rules or something more locally flavored is needed

Ahead of inauguration, Airbnb pledges bans for anyone involved in Capitol riot

Building on a policy that the company said has been in place since the Charlottesville protests back in 2017, Airbnb said it will take additional steps to beef up community protections for the DC metr

Japanese vacation rental management startup H2O raises $7 million Series B from investors including Samsung Ventures

Japan’s tourism industry is booming, but it faces a hotel room shortage, especially in Tokyo as the country prepares for the Summer Olympics. H2O (the name stands for Hospitality 2.0) addresses the

Mews grabs $33M Series B to modernize hotel administration

If you think about the traditional hotel business, there hasn’t been a ton of innovation. You mostly still stand in a line to check in, and sometimes even to check out. You let the staff know ab

Airbnb-backed OYO moves into Europe, buys Leisure Group from Axel Springer for $415M

OYO, the fast-growing budget hotel startup out of India that’s backed by Airbnb, SoftBank, Grab and Didi, has made an acquisition to expand its footprint into Europe, specifically around self-ca

India’s Treebo raises $34M for its budget hotel network

Treebo Hotels, one of the most prominent members of India’s emerging budget hotel networks, has closed a $34 million Series C round. The deal was led by new backers Ward Ferry Management and Ka

HotelFlex lets you check in and out of a hotel at whatever time you want

Most would agree that the worst part of traveling is timing the hotel check in. Either you get off a redeye and have to figure out what to do all day while waiting to check in, or you arrive late at n

Bizly lets you book on-demand meeting spaces in luxury hotels

Everyone talks about rooms being an underutilized asset in the hospitality industry. But what about meeting space? Almost all four- to five-star hotels, even boutique ones, have at least one meeting r

Hospitality hiring platform Industry raises $2.3M to expand nationwide

Industry, a job site for the hospitality sector, has raised $2.3 million in seed funding to fuel nationwide expansion, as well as product and team growth. We originally covered Industry last year whe