highperformr logo

Travelstart's Overview

Total employees330
HeadquartersCape Town
Founded1999

Travelstart is a pioneering online travel agency (OTA) providing comprehensive travel booking services across Africa and the Middle East. Founded in Sweden in 1999 and now with its primary operational headquarters in Cape Town, South Africa, Travelstart empowers travelers to search, compare, and book flights, hotels, car rentals, and vacation packages from a wide array of suppliers. With a strong focus on emerging markets, the company aims to simplify travel through user-friendly technology and localized customer support. Following its merger with the Club Travel Group in 2019, backed by HarbourVest Partners, Travelstart has solidified its position as a leading travel provider in the region, committed to making travel more accessible and affordable.

Where is Travelstart's Headquarters?

Travelstart officeTravelstart officeTravelstart officeTravelstart office
*Images sourced via web search. Rights belong to original owners

HQ Function

Serves as the primary operational hub, overseeing technology development, product innovation, marketing strategies, customer service excellence, and regional management for African and Middle Eastern markets.

Notable Features:

Modern office facilities located in the vibrant Longkloof Studios, known for its redeveloped, campus-like environment fostering creative and tech companies. The space is designed for collaboration with open-plan layouts and tech-enabled meeting areas.

Work Culture:

Characterized by a dynamic, fast-paced, and multicultural work environment. Travelstart emphasizes innovation in travel technology, a customer-first approach, and an entrepreneurial mindset. It's often seen as a place for professional growth and learning within the e-commerce and travel sectors in Africa.

HQ Significance:

The Cape Town headquarters is pivotal to Travelstart's operations and strategic direction in Africa, its largest market. It symbolizes the company's commitment to the continent, serving as a nerve center for its technological advancements and expansion in online travel.

Values Reflected in HQ: The choice of a contemporary, collaborative workspace in a redeveloped urban hub reflects Travelstart's values of innovation, adaptability, community engagement, and a forward-looking approach to revolutionizing travel.

Location:

While Travelstart's core operational focus is on Africa and the Middle East, its services are accessible globally through its online platform. Key global functions include maintaining a sophisticated, multi-currency online booking engine for flights, hotels, and other travel products; providing multi-lingual customer support; continuous technology development and platform maintenance; and fostering international partnerships with airlines, GDS providers, hotels, and other travel suppliers to ensure a wide inventory and competitive pricing for its worldwide customer base.

Street Address:

Longkloof Studios, Darters Road, Gardens

City:

Cape Town

State/Province:

Western Cape

Country:

South Africa

Travelstart's Global Presence

Lagos, Nigeria

Address: Plot 14, Block 117, TKO Kasonu Street, Off TF Kuboye Road, Lekki Phase 1, Lagos, Nigeria

To cater specifically to the large and dynamic Nigerian travel market, offering tailored travel products, local payment solutions, and dedicated customer service to address the significant outbound and domestic travel demand.

Cairo, Egypt

Address: 11 Hassan Sadek, Heliopolis, Cairo, Egypt

To serve the Egyptian travel market effectively and act as a strategic hub for North African operations, offering localized content, payment methods, and support to a digitally savvy population.

Dubai, UAE

Address: Jumeirah Business Centre 1, Cluster G, JLT, Dubai, UAE

To expand Travelstart's footprint in the affluent Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region, offering premium and diverse travel services, and utilizing Dubai's strategic location for connecting travelers globally.

Buying Intent Signals for Travelstart

Highperformr Signals uncover buying intent and give you clear insights to target the right accounts at the right time — helping your sales, marketing, and GTM teams close more deals, faster.

Notable news
Hiring actively
Corporate Finance
Corporate Finance
Corporate Finance
Corporate Finance
Corporate Finance
*Example signal, not calculated in real time

Executive Team of Travelstart

As of April 2025, Travelstart' leadership includes:

Philip Akesson - Chief Executive Officer
Stephan Ekbergh - Founder & Chairman
Dean Cherkashin - Chief Commercial Officer
Alistair Burns - Chief Financial Officer
Jerome Touze - Co-CEO, Travelstart Group

Investors of Travelstart

Travelstart has been backed by several prominent investors over the years, including:

HarbourVest Partners
MTN Group
Amadeus Capital Partners

Executive New Hires/Exits in the Last 12 Months

Hire0
Exits0

The leadership team at Travelstart has been focused on driving growth and integration following earlier structural changes. Philip Akesson's appointment as CEO of Travelstart in early 2023 marked a key leadership reinforcement. Over the past 12 months, the executive team has been relatively stable with no major publicly announced hires or departures, indicating a period of focused execution on strategic goals.

Technology (Tech Stack) used by Travelstart

Discover the tools Travelstart uses. Highperformr reveals the technologies powering your target accounts — helping your sales, marketing, and GTM teams prioritize smarter and close faster.

Travelstart Email Formats and Examples

Travelstart most likely utilizes standard corporate email address formats for its employees. Common patterns include using the first name and last name, or the first initial followed by the last name.

[first].[last]@travelstart.com or [first_initial][last]@travelstart.com

Format

jane.doe@travelstart.com or jdoe@travelstart.com

Example

85%

Success rate

News and media

TravMagazine NLNovember 2, 2023

Travelstart and Royal Air Maroc Strengthen Partnership

Travelstart announced a strengthened partnership with Royal Air Maroc. This collaboration aims to provide customers with improved access to the airline's extensive network, particularly for routes connecting Africa with Europe and North America, offering more competitive fares and enhanced travel options....more

BizcommunityNovember 22, 2023

Travelstart Black Friday deals take off

Travelstart launched its highly anticipated Black Friday campaign, offering substantial discounts on flights, hotels, and holiday packages across its key African markets. The initiative aimed to boost travel bookings and make leisure and business travel more affordable during the peak holiday planning season....more

Highperformr’s free tools for company research

Explore Employees by Region or Country

See where a company’s workforce is located, by country or region.

View Funding Details

View past and recent funding rounds with amounts and investors.

Understand Revenue Insights

Understand company revenue estimates and financial scale.

Track Active Job Openings

Track active roles and hiring trends to spot growth signals.

Review Product and Offerings

Discover what a company offers—products, platforms, and solutions.

Get SIC or NAICS Codes

Get the company’s official SIC and NAICS classifications.

Analyze Website Traffic Trends

Analyze visitor volume, engagement, and top traffic sources.

Discover Social Profiles and Engagement

Explore LinkedIn, Twitter, and other active social profiles.

Identify Top Competitors

Identify top competitors based on similar business traits.

Research and Discover Companies with Highperformr — Smarter, Faster

Explore companies in depth — from the tech they use to recent funding, hiring trends, and buyer signals — all in one powerful view.

Highperformr AI helps you surface the right accounts and enrich your CRM with verified company and contact insights, so your teams can prioritize and engage faster.

  • Track intent signals to find buyers who are actively in-market
  • Enrich contacts and companies instantly, no need to switch tools
  • Automate workflows to stay ahead of every change
  • Connect your CRM & tools for seamless data sync and activation

Thousands of companies, including Travelstart, are just a search away.