Better Know A Startup: Trip4Real (@Trip4real)

Let’s face it; the online travel market is cluttered with oodles of white noise. We’ve all been there; the flights are booked for your impending voyage but now you’re expected to play the dual role of travel agent and tour guide connoisseur to figure out what the hell to do when you get there. Some of you take to the information highway, studying sites like Tripadvisor for things to do like you’re about to take the Bar exam, whereas the rest of you bombard your ‘friends’ on social media channels with requests of “tell me what’s cool to do in XYZ city” only to be thwarted by a thousand irrelevant options that aren’t catered to your tastes and preferences. You board your flight with nothing booked and a desire to make someone suffer.

Trip4real is fixing the clutter in the travel market, taking over the role as tour guide and travel agent while assuring you an unforgettable travel experience. Gloria Molins, founder and CEO of Trip4real defines it as a “global marketplace that connects travelers with unique experiences organized by local experts”.  Launched back in February, Trip4real helps take the stress and angst out of planning a trip while connecting you with local experts so your experience is remarkable but with a personalized touch you won’t find anywhere else. I’m with Gloria on this one: “The most important thing about a trip is the people you meet and I’m not talking about the ones that appear in all the typical tourist guides, but the ones you meet off the beaten track. These local and unique experiences are the ones that you will remember forever”.

The market for holiday activities has been flourishing over the last couple of years with sites like Peek.com and Get Your Guide that have been creating a stronghold in their respective markets. At Trip4real, Gloria and her talented 5 person team are upheaving this sector in Europe, helping travelers discover unique and unforgettable travel experiences in a quick and efficient manner. You can find anything from Ballooning over the volcanoes of Catalunya to slow walks and casual food with the locals, something to suit everyone’s tastes. “As everyone has different tastes and requirements we try and cater for them all, we want to have the best and most diverse selection of amazing content”.

The platform has over 400 activities on offer, the majority in Barcelona but with a budding list of options in Madrid, Sevilla, Granada and the Balearics with more cities opening soon. They are growing the amount of activities at an astonishing rate and hope to have over 2000 within 3 months. Each vendor has their own backend and profile where they upload the details of their activity, availability and price. Consumers then make the reservation on the front end, pay, and have it confirmed within 48 hours (Trip4real receives an 18% commission from every transaction that goes through). The product will be upgraded in the coming months, which will allow for real time booking– hence streamlining the process even further.

Gloria Molin, local Catalan founder and CEO is an energetic and enigmatic entrepreneur who has lived internationally for over 8 years working for companies such as Hilton, HP and a worldwide network dedicated to Google Apps, she is extremely passionate about the sector and also about turning Barcelona into a booming entrepreneurial hub. They are currently raising a seed round of 200k to allow them to strengthen the product, their position in Spain and also to look at European expansion.

If you are looking for something fun and original to do in Spain then go check out one of the hidden gems they have on offer!