Hipcamp Raises $9.5 Million for Campsite Booking: Travel Startup Funding This Week
Photo Credit: A posed photo of a happy camper. You, too, can be a happy camper, according to new startup Hipcamp offers places to pitch a tent or book a glamping trip. Hipcamp
Skift Take
Public campgrounds were already an alternative form of travel. But now there's "alternative alternative travel." Meet the startup Hipcamp, which is like an Airbnb for privately-owned campsites and hosted experiences.
Travel Startup Funding This Week
Each week we round up travel startups that have recently received or announced funding. Please email Travel Tech Reporter Justin Dawes at jd@skift.com if you have funding news.
The total publicized this week was more than $17 million.
>>Hipcamp, a booking site for camping experiences, raised $9.5 million in Series A funding, though it is unclear how much is equity and how much is convertible debt or other types of financing.
Benchmark led the round in the 28-person company. Other investors included Affirm co-founder Max Levchin and former Twitter CEO Dick Costolo.
First debuting online in 2013, Hipcamp is a kind of Airbnb for sourcing alternative options for pitching a tent from hosts who have potential campsites to rent out by the day, such as ranches, nature preserves, farms, and vineyards.
Like Airbnb, the San Francisco-based startup also offers posher experiences, such as tiny houses and yurts. One lucrative part of the market is to reach customers who don't own their own tents or gear. This segment is called luxury glamping, or glamorous camping.
Co-Founder and CEO Alyssa Ravasio said, "Our model empowers landowners to create new rev
