Travala.com to Launch Blockchain-Based Rival to Airbnb

The Dtravel platform will be powered by the TRVL token and facilitate cryptocurrency payments.

Travel booking platform Travala announced yesterday it was launching a decentralised platform for home-sharing which will provide an alternative to Airbnb. The platform will be called Dtravel and enable users to pay with cryptocurrency, as well as traditional methods, for short and long-term stays.

The team behind Dtravel comprises former executives from global technology companies including Airbnb and Expedia. The project raised $5 million in a seed round backed by NGC Ventures, Kenetic Capital, AU21 Capital, Future Perfect Ventures and others.

The current model of the home-sharing economy is marred by centralised control, high fees, limited payment options and lower levels of trust. These are all issues which Dtravel aims to solve.

Travala’s CEO and Co-founder, Juan Otero, explained, “Traditional home sharing platforms are aligned with their users in the early stages, but over time this changes. With the need to return profits to shareholders, home-sharing platforms are forced to extract as much as possible from transactions on their platforms. Dtravel meets the needs of the home-sharing community first and forever. It’s easy-to-use, highly secure, and optimized for the next generation of hosts and guests looking to take back control of their travel experience.”

The Dtravel Decentralised Autonomous Organisation (DAO) gives control back to the community by enabling them to govern the platform. The introduction of decentralised finance (DeFi) blockchain technology and smart contracts also creates better trust between guests and hosts.

The platform will have its own token, TRVL, which can be used to book stays, govern the platform and qualify for rewards through staking. TRVL will soon be available on both Ethereum and Binance Smart Chain, and more than $35 million in TRVL is up for grabs for the first 100,000 hosts to register.

TRVL aims to align the interests of Dtravel users, who can also earn extra revenue from referrals and participating in troubleshooting, community forums and user support. Guests can pay for their stays with various cryptocurrencies and fees are 7.5%, compared with up to 20% charged by similar centralised platforms. Hosts can also enjoy up to $1 million in damage protection and public liability insurance.

Future Perfect Ventures Founding Partner, Jalak Jobanputra, added, “With travel starting to rebound and a record level of interest in blockchain technologies like cryptocurrencies, Dtravel gives eager people what has been missing to date: control and ownership over their own travel experiences.”