Cabana launches new offerings and expands to Los Angeles
US: Seattle-based camper van and caravan rental startup, Cabana, which wants to reinvent how people travel through its fleet of luxe mobile hotels, is rolling out enhanced offerings to its customers in Seattle and soon to its newest market, Los Angeles.
The new features include concierge services to provide trip planning assistance for customers; van delivery to make starting a trip even more convenient; early check-in and late check-out to provide more flexibility in travel plans; and one-way rental options for travellers with itineraries that do not accommodate a two-way trip.
Cabana’s new features and operational offerings come on the heels of the company’s official launch last May.
Since then, the company has booked thousands of nights and gathered feedback from many of its customers to develop these new features which offer more flexibility and a better, more luxurious travel experience. Additionally, by opening a Southern California-based location, Cabana has expanded its fleet of upscale mobile hotels by 250 per cent, allowing LA-based adventurers to enjoy a Covid-friendly staycation.
Cabana founder and CEO, Scott Kubly, said: “The classic RV rental and minimalistic #vanlife trend has gained immense popularity over the past year but we believe we offer a new experience for travellers.
“Every element of the Cabana van is customised for a tailored and premium experience to make travel as seamless as possible, ultimately creating more opportunities for serendipity, wonder and adventure. We’re excited to expand our features to include things our customers have been asking for, like trip concierge and more flexible rental options,” he added.
Since its founding in 2018, Cabana has received $7.1 million in funding from investors, including Jason Calacanis, founder of LAUNCH and TheSyndicate.com, who invested in Cabana’s seed funding round.
Calacanis said: “Transportation and travel are going through a seismic change due not only to the pandemic, but also to the delight that families and friends discover when they drive across our beautiful country. Cabana reminds me of the energy and excitement of Uber and Airbnb – in the same startup!”
The Covid-19 pandemic has increased uncertainty around travelling, due to varying restrictions and social distancing protocols, but Cabana claims to give customers peace of mind through its socially distant travel option. Each van is totally tech-enabled, meaning that everything from reservations to van pick-up and drop-off is completely contactless.
In our 2021 predictions piece published last month, we forecasted how RV rentals would continue their resurgence in popularity over the coming 12 months. This week, VacationRenter announced that it had exceeded $1 billion in gross booking value for 2020, while peer-to-peer RV rental marketplace RVshare secured more than $100 million in a fundraising round led by global investment firm KKR in October.
