European Travel Booking App Omio Arrives In US, Canada

Berlin-based travel aggregator app Omio is rolling out in the U.S. and Canada as part of a global expansion effort, the company announced on Tuesday (Jan. 14).

People in the U.S. and Canada can use Omio for price comparisons and other travel details and then book their trips, all on one platform.

The initial launch will provide ticketing for more than 23,000 train, plane and bus routes. Omio partners include Amtrak, VIA Rail Canada, Delta Airlines, United Airlines, OurBus and Academy. Additional routes and partners will be added throughout 2020.

“The U.S. and Canada are great markets for a product like Omio, which enables millions of people to compare prices across different transportation options and plan their travel easily with a single product,” said Naren Shaam, CEO and founder of Omio. “We’re thrilled to have such a line-up of partners, routes and options bookable on Omio from day one, and look forward to rolling out more in the coming months, to offer users even more journey options.”

Omio is offered in 21 languages and has an average of 27 million monthly users from over 120 countries. Roughly 10 percent of its clients are Americans and Canadians traveling in Europe.

The company rebranded last year, dropping its original name GoEuro, as part of its global growth strategy. Omio acquired the travel planning platform Rome2Rio at the end of 2019, which expanded its global transport network with transport search and discovery options for more than 10 million locations worldwide.

“America is sometimes seen as a market dominated by air and private car, yet there is a huge opportunity for ground transportation (around $8 billion according to our data) in specific parts of the USA in particular,” Shaam told TechCrunch.

“South America and parts of Asia are still markets we’re actively interested in — we don’t see it particularly as a question of either/or but have chosen to focus resources on North America to start with,” he added.

The global travel industry is undergoing significant disruption thanks to eCommerce and digital payments. Digital technology is enabling the growth of the travel activities industry, the fastest-growing segment in the tourism market.