Stories
Stories
01 Dec 2016
Starting Lineup: Upturning Travel
Re: Louis-Philippe Maurice (MBA 2008); Jean Tripier (MBA 1992); Ruzwana Bashir (MBA 2011);
Jon Staff (MBA 2016); Mei Zhang (MBA 1996); By: April White
Topics: Lifestyle-TravelBusiness Ventures-Business StartupsMarkets-Industry GrowthTechnology-Online Technology

(ThinkStock)
As Airbnb has proven, the travel industry is ripe for innovation. What’s next for several alumni- run startups that are reinventing the vacation?
The Founder | The News | ||
NewUGo | CEO Mei Zhang (MBA 1996) Founded in 2015 |
An online platform to help people “discover, buy, and sell authentic tour experiences.” | Zhang, the founder of travel firm WildChina which serves foreign visitors, launched NewUGo to connect the rapidly growing domestic Chinese travel market to off-the-beaten-path tourism resources. |
Busbud | CEO Louis-Philippe Maurice (MBA 2008) Founded in 2011 |
“The best way to book bus tickets,” aggregating information on a half-million bus routes in 63 countries. | Winner of the 2014 Alumni New Venture Competition’s Best Investment category, Busbud has debuted a product that allows third parties to integrate bus search and ticketing into their websites. |
FLYR | CEO Jean Tripier (MBA 1992) Founded in 2013 |
“The data science company that ends the guessing game of booking airfares.” | When JetBlue created a venture capital arm earlier this year, its first investment was in FLYR’s technology. |
Peek | CEO Ruzwana Bashir (MBA 2011) Founded in 2012 |
A curated travel activities booking site, “dedicated to making travel planning enjoyable.” | Earlier this year, Peek raised an additional $10 million and announced an instant-booking partnership with Yelp. |
Getaway | CEO Jon Staff (MBA 2016) Founded in 2015 |
Tiny vacation houses for an escape from the digital daily grind: “Forget the city, forget work, and remember who and what is most important.” | Born at the Harvard i-lab, Getaway recently used an online real estate investment marketplace to raise $110,000 in just 45 minutes. The money will help fund a new 18-cabin tiny house campground in Upstate New York. |
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