Special Report: Why the tours and activities market is more hype than the next big thing
Photo Credit: Are Major League Baseball games, such as this one at Wrigley Field, part of the tours and activity sector? Online and mobile tours and activities companies are finding it difficult to break into such areas that are tightly controlled by suppliers. Flickr.com / Kurt Ockelmann
Skift Take
Kayak's dropping of tours in its mobile apps shows that the sector may not be as addressable as envisioned and isn't ready for prime time.
This is part one of our three part series on the online tours and activities market, focusing on the buzz around venture-backed startups in the space. Part two here.
The online and mobile tours and activities market may be the most-buzzed-about topic in the world of travel tech, but it has not been buzzy enough to catch on with consumers or with at least one travel meta-search company: Kayak recently ceased offering in-destination activities and sightseeing excursions through its mobile apps.
In so doing, Kayak terminated a year-and-a-half-old experiment and partnership with Berlin-based GetYourGuide, one of the hottest of the many new tours and activities companies.
Kayak's decision symbolically places a pin into what some view as inflated prognostications about the tours and activities market. That's especially true when you consider that mobile platforms are the most-suited -- or should be -- for travelers who are already at their destinations and are looking for somethi
