Meet Atlas Obscura, The Travel Platform That Combines The Wonder Of Ripley’s Believe It Or Not With The Breadth Of National Geographic’s Content
Jerusalem, Israel
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March 14, 2024 08:15 AM Eastern Daylight Time
By Meg Flippin, Benzinga
Combining the wonderment and obscurity of “Ripley’s Believe It or Not” with the high-quality production of National Geographic, Atlas Obscura is changing the way we travel and consume travel-related content.
The U.S.-based travel media company, which counts millions of consumers as customers, is making a name for itself in the travel industry, creating and curating unique travel experiences whether in person, online or in print. You may not find a run-of-the-mill cruise to Mexico when you peruse this startup’s offerings, but you will find a tasting trip to Oaxaca where you can sample the culinary delights and soak up the culture of this bustling city. Don’t feel like leaving your home for a unique experience? With a click of the mouse, you can be part of a virtual tour of the Bone Museum in Brooklyn or hear a three-part lecture on the history of space exploration.
Curating Content And Experiences For Travelers
The company holds appeal for travel enthusiasts looking for unique experiences online and in person and for once-in-a-lifetime trips. It leverages the Atlas, its community-driven platform to provide travelers with access to over 25,000 wondrous places around the world. Unlike other leading travel media companies, Atlas is a collaborative project that depends on its community of explorers to help discover amazing places and share them with the world.
In addition to offering over 137 unique international destinations and boasting a global community of 10 million explorers, Atlas Obscura reports that it operates the no. 1 travel podcast on Apple charts, published three consecutive New York Times bestsellers with more in the works and recently became one of six exclusive partners for Delta Airlines Inc.’s (NYSE: DAL) billion-dollar inflight entertainment hub Delta Sync Exclusives, sharing the deal with such heavy-hitters as T-Mobile US Inc. (NASDAQ: TMUS), Paramount+, American Express Co. (NYSE: AXP), Resy and the New York Times Games. Through the deal Atlas Obscura will reach millions of flyers annually, providing them insider tips and destination information. The company already counts BrandUSA, Puerto Rico, Florida, Texas and Los Angeles as partners and creates content for some of the world’s largest brands including Land Rover, Nissan Motor Co. (OTCMKTS: NSANY), Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) and JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM).
Out-Of-The-Box Travel In Demand
What started more than a decade ago as a two-person passion project of Joshua Foer and Dylan Thuras to map the hidden wonders of the world has morphed into a media powerhouse with 6.5 million monthly active users, 3 million social media followers, 1.6 million monthly podcast downloads and 1.5 million email subscribers.
To help Atlas Obscura grow even more in the travel industry click here.
Investors Taking Notice
That growth hasn’t been lost on investors either. John Backus, founder and managing director of PROOF.VC – an expansion-stage venture capital firm that invests in rapid-growth, breakout companies across the venture ecosystem – is an early backer of Atlas Obscura and is taking part in the company’s most recent Series A round on OurCrowd in which it's seeking to raise $10 million. “We love this company. It’s at scale. It’s about $20 million in revenue, and it’s been profitable for the last year,” Backus, who sits on the board, recently said. “This is a company that is profitable, that is growing, that is looking to invest in its media business and create content that can last in perpetuity.” Since the second quarter of 2023, the company has been profitable.
Atlas Obscura’s popularity is driven by the fact that it's solving a common problem in the travel industry: a lack of cool places to visit. The world is vast and interesting with more and more travelers across all ages and demographics looking for unique vacations, yet finding them on traditional travel websites and apps can be difficult and time-consuming. When planning a trip, individuals on average search 40 travel websites. Meanwhile, visitor bureaus tasked with promoting tourism for their city, state or country are looking for ways to build their brands and provide better experiences for visitors. All of that plays to Atlas Obscura’s strengths.
Nor is the company sitting back and enjoying its success. It plans to leverage its database of unique destinations by developing an AI tool that will create personalized travel itineraries in minutes. It’s betting that will not only accelerate growth but improve the user travel planning experience. Interested in investing in a company transforming the way we travel? Click here to learn how.
Featured photo by Ian Schneider on Unsplash.
OurCrowd was started in 2013, driven by the idea that the business of building startups grows bigger and better when the global ‘crowd’ gains access to VC-level investment opportunities.Today, OurCrowd is a global venture and alternative investing platform that empowers institutions and individuals to invest and engage in emerging companies. OurCrowd vets and selects companies, invests its capital, and provides its global network with unparalleled access to co-invest and contribute connections, talent and deal flow. OurCrowd builds value for its portfolio companies throughout their lifecycles, providing mentorship, recruiting industry advisors, navigating follow-on rounds and creating growth opportunities through its network of multinational partnerships.
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