Is Travel Booking via Crypto Feasible?

Sarah Dandashy on Jun 24, 2021

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Driven by consumer desires for new experiences, innovative technologies and environmental impacts – travel is changing. Host Sarah Dandashy explores the technologies and logistics that power travel and the brands that build unforgettable experiences.

On this episode of Say Yes To Travel, Host Sarah Dandashy talked with Juan Otero, Co-Founder, and CEO of Travala, a leading blockchain-based travel booking platform offering +2,000,000 properties in 230 countries with prices up to 40 percent cheaper than mainstream booking sites. Dandashy and Otero dug into Otero’s career, Travala and blockchain, and what changes are brewing in the travel industry post-COVID.

“We were the first movers in applying blockchain to a traditional online travel agency.” -Juan Otero

Otero’s career combines a solid combination of tech and travel. He even spent some time working at Booking.com. He served as the CEO and Founder of Restaurantes.com, Europe’s leading online restaurant reservation service, named by Wired Magazine one of Europe’s fastest-growing digital companies in 2012. In 2015, he got his start in blockchain and really became interested in how it could impact the travel industry.

“That’s how we came up with the idea for funding Travala in 2017,” Otero said. “We were the first movers in applying blockchain to a traditional online travel agency.”

While Otero didn’t necessarily see a pain point when he started Travala, he understood the power of blockchain. Blockchain allows the travel industry to decentralize a lot of the processes that are in place. These processes include better pricing, more flexibility, and more payment options. Otero said this goes for other industries, as well.

“Obviously, my experience in the travel industry allowed me to see pretty clearly there was an opportunity there, not just to decentralize a lot of the processes or relationships between travel suppliers and travelers, but to bring a more fair and transparent relationship to the different participants,” Otero said. “… and to enhance the whole booking experience with blockchain technology.”