Israeli ski tourism-technology startup WeSki has raised $1 million with investors including Uk low-cost carrier easyJet and Waze founder Uri Levin.
WeSki has set out to revolutionize the ski vacation market in Israel and abroad, similar to the change that Booking.com generated in the hotel field. WeSki was launched in London at the beginning of October, and allows ski enthusiasts to customize their own vacations, at a cost that is on average 20% cheaper than similar packages offered by travel agents.
WeSki is striving to solve one of the biggest challenges in the field of international tourism: on the one hand, the ski vacation packages offered by travel agencies are rigid in terms of dates (Saturday to Saturday), destinations, and accommodations offered at the resort. On the other hand, tailoring ski packages independently on the internet takes considerable time and energy. In addition to the time involved in collecting all the components, considerable professional knowledge is required in order to assemble a package to suit the level and needs of all the members of the group, and at the same time is reasonably priced. No less important, when reserving a package holiday on websites, members of the group cannot pay in instalments according to their personal preference, and this prevents many groups from making reservations on the Internet.
WeSki provides ski enthusiasts with a quick and easy way to reserve a ski vacation at an affordable price: whether reserving a holiday with friends, a holiday for two, or a family vacation. The website offers flexible packages, allowing surfers to pick the dates of their choice, including short weekend breaks, long holidays, or a full week departing on the day of their choice. After deciding on the dates, the number of people, and the preferred ski resort, users of the site can assemble their vacation independently according to their preferences.
WeSki also allows payment to be divided up among the group members, so that people pay for themselves in accordance with the additional services they have ordered, such as equipment hire, ski lessons, and so on… This function solves the problem of collecting money from all the group members, and makes it a lot easier to close the deal.
The WeSki website is based on unique technology and has a special algorithm linked to over 100 tourism suppliers, making comparisons among the infinite combinations of components in order to build and personally adapt the best possible offer for each user. Unlike the packages offered today by the different travel agents, the system gives users complete flexibility to choose the components of their vacation - flexibility of dates, choice of hotel, apartment, or guest house, and even choice of hire car or private transport. The site is one of the first in the world to allow members of the group to adapt the extras individually according to their own taste, choose equipment or ski lessons, and finally pay their own share, so that payment can be easily divided among the members of the group.
WeSki is part of the WeTrip group, a tourism venture appealing to the global market of young people looking for unforgettable experiences with their friends, and offering customized packages for every group based on different types of experience: skiing, cycling, diving, windsurfing, festivals, and so on. It enables social holidays to be planned and reserved by a group of friends - easily, quickly, and flexibly, and at a particularly attractive price.
WeTrip was established in 2016 by 4 partners - CEO Yotam Idan, David Ben-Zimra, Ben Lang, and Roy Tzin, and employs 12 people in Israel and in London. The venture started out in the Zell entrepreneurship program at the Herzliya Interdisciplinary Center, where Uri Levin was introduced to Idan and Ben-Zimra. The venture was later joined by Ben Lang, who brought with him considerable experience in the world of tourism, and Roy Zynn, a former pilot with many years of experience in the Israeli high-tech industry, who came to lead the product development. The venture participated in the third session of the SigmaLabs accelerator, and has recently been accepted by the Founders Factory accelerator program in London, through which it obtained an investment from easyJet.
Idan said, “As someone who encountered problems over the years trying to book ski vacations that suited me and my friends, I am very excited to launch WeSki in Israel, especially after the successful launch last month in England. Our dream is to help groups around the world to put together ski vacations with maximum ease and flexibility. I believe that the venture will change the way in which skiers book their holidays, and save them from the need to call a travel agent."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on October 29, 2017
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2017