Articles tagged “hometogo”

In Skift's top stories this week, Hawaii's domestic U.S. tourism roared back, Accor's CEO said the biggest hotel investment bargains are yet to come, and HomeToGo could go public in a blank-check-company deal.

Google eventually will monetize its vacation rental listings, but paid advertisements in its Things To Do vertical will happen sooner. Conscientious objectors Airbnb, Expedia/Vrbo and Booking, which aren't participating with Google in vacation rentals for now, will likely have something to say about the shape of that money grab.

Who said investors no longer want to bet on consumer-facing travel startups that compete with Google? HomeToGo is in talks to go public via a blank-check company owned by Lakestar. It'll be an approximately $1.2 billion deal, sources tell Skift.

Hotels have clearly fallen out of favor with most business travelers, but they'll be back at some point. Monaker's focus on alternative accommodations may be a long shot.

HomeToGo goes against what is considered a viable business model for metasearch. The startup offers vacation rental property managers a somewhat different way to pay for reaching consumers. Yet Google remains a potentially dangerous rival, depending on how the search giant pursues the vacation rental sector.

The acquisition of once-high-flying Tripping.com as a distressed asset was a losing deal for investors. It's not clear what the payoff will be for HomeToGo acquiring a Silicon Valley rival at vacation rental price-comparison. HomeToGo faces daunting expectations now, having raised $150 million.