Byway secures £5m Series A funding led by Heartcore Capital to scale its flight-free travel technology.
The oversubscribed round was led by Heartcore Capital with backing from Eka Ventures and angel investors.
Byway is a travel technology startup and certified B Corporation that champions flight-free holidays through personalised multi-stop itineraries. The company uses its proprietary dynamic packaging engine to curate overland travel experiences across Europe.
Byway has secured £5m in a Series A funding round led by Heartcore Capital, with participation from Eka Ventures and returning angels. The fresh capital will be deployed to accelerate the development of the company's journey-planning technology, JourneyAI, and to support expansion into new international markets.
Launched in March 2020, the travel startup focuses on sustainable tourism by offering flight-free holidays that emphasise overland transport and local accommodations. The platform has seen strong growth, recording a threefold increase year-on-year while helping customers achieve significant carbon savings compared to flying.
From the founder
"It was a delight to experience such overwhelming interest from investors enthusiastic about the future of flight-free travel when raising our Series A. I’m thrilled that in Heartcore and Eka we’ve found partners who believe in the joy of journey-based holidays and the potential of JourneyAI to change travel for the better,"
Cat Jones
CEO and Founder at Byway
Investor perspective
"Heartcore has been investing in world-class founders building the future of travel for over a decade. We felt called to support Byway’s mission to make tourism both more fulfilling and sustainable, and believe that its technology will become a key pillar for the next generation of online travel. We are thrilled to be supporting another world-class European team in travel and particularly love Byway’s collaborative, supportive, and holistic mission-driven culture."
Max Niederhofer
General Partner, Heartcore Capital
Use of funds
- 01Continue product development
- 02Expand into international markets
- 03Grow the team