NusaTrip, a Jakarta-based online travel agency (OTA) and the travel division of Society Pass Inc (SoPa), announced the acquisition of VLeisure, a B2B hotel platform with operations in Vietnam.
The VLeisure acquisition, according to a statement from NusaTrip, expands NusaTrip’s operational base and geographic scope for the first time outside of Indonesia.
It declared that as it develops a regional travel platform to serve the booming SEA travel market, NusaTrip will keep buying online and offline travel agencies in Southeast Asia (SEA).
The statement claims that with the dramatic recovery in the SEA travel market from the depths of the Covid pandemic, the VLeisure acquisition comes at a good time for NusaTrip.
Strong government initiatives to promote tourism, the rise of SEA’s burgeoning middle class, and strong internet penetration, which enables more Southeast Asians to easily book flights and hotels through OTAs, are the main drivers of the marked increase in demand.
According to NusaTrip, which was cited by Web in Travel, gross bookings will surpass the record-breaking 2019 levels by 94% in 2025.
Additionally, it cited the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, which stated that 110 million tourists, worth $27 billion, are anticipated to visit Vietnam in 2023. This represents 5.7 percent of Vietnam’s anticipated $469 billion gross domestic product (GDP).
VLeisure will first target small-to-medium-size hotels in Vietnam before expanding to the rest of SEA by utilizing SoPa’s funding and NusaTrip’s technology to market its hotel management SaaS products.
Additionally, NusaTrip now has a solid operational foundation to substantially grow its B2C and B2B businesses in Vietnam.
“With SoPa’s rapid growth in 2021 and 2022 and NusaTrip’s position as a leading IATA-licensed travel platform in Indonesia, VLeisure now is able to access our parent companies’ infrastructure of capital, technology, marketing, and customer support, allowing VLeisure to better serve our Vietnam-based customers and accelerate growth in our hotel business,” said Phan Le, VLeisure Founder and Managing Director.
In order to provide a more individualized user experience, he added, VLeisure’s trip planning, booking, and hotel technology expertise complement Nusatrip’s current travel services.
VLeisure, a Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam-based online marketplace for hotels, airlines, and travel agencies, was established in 2011. By disseminating its travel products, it empowers Vietnamese, regional, and international OTAs.
