Swipe left. Swipe right. Not to find the mate of your dreams, but the perfect out-of-this-world luxury tropical vacation of your dreams; and then bring your mate!
Regatta Travel Co., a new luxury travel company, is changing how we plan and go on vacation in a really fun way. Its Waypoint app overcomes the Paradox of Choice typically associated with travel planning and engages the Dopamine Circle the way a dating app does. That means that unlike typical travel sites, clients don’t have to scroll through pages and pages of options until their eyes glaze over and they’re indecisive and unhappy with every choice. And, unlike a dating app, every option in Waypoint is the crème de la crème and sure to delight. With Regatta, it’s simply a matter of deciding what you feel like doing and what you want out of this particular frolic on the sea.
In fact, focusing on the activities their customers want to enjoy—the experience—is what sets Regatta apart from other travel companies. Instead of exhaustive lists of villas or boats that all look like, Waypoint focuses on what vacationers want to do, and then aligns them with the top locations and accommodations on those islands. Regatta’s fleet is one of the largest and most diverse in the travel industry, includes 1,000 boats, 1,000 villas, 4,000 planes, and 30 private islands across 50 countries, but users will only see options directly aligned with the vacation vibe they’re going for, and the activities they’re most interested in enjoying on their trip.
Regatta is more than its app, though – that’s just the hook. The turn-key provider takes the hassle out of searching for your ideal trip, as well as the hassle out of planning it. The itineraries constructed by the Waypoint algorithm become the starting point, then Regatta’s white-glove 24/7 concierge service does the rest for those ready to experience the vacation of their dreams.
Regatta is the piece-de-resistance of sailor, author, and serial entrepreneur, William West, who has founded four startup companies, written two business books, was featured on CBS 60 Minutes, won twenty entrepreneurial awards, and made the Inc. 5000 list five times. After a twenty-year career building tech companies using VR, AR, and AI, this is West’s passion project, merging his love for the sea with that of building companies. His most recent venture, Regatta VR, trained companies to tackle difficult HR issues, and used cutting edge VR technology to do it. Regatta Travel uses technology to tackle vacation planning for its clients in ways that West hopes will change his customers’ lives.
“Ten years ago, I took my son sailing in the Caribbean and it changed my life,” West says, who came up with the business idea while planning his own dream vacations. “Over the years, I continued to sail to more islands, but also relax in island villas with my spouse. These trips are filled with life-long memories.” However, each year he went back, the trips held one consistent challenge: planning—making selections from dozens of islands, hundreds of villas and/or boats, arranging transportation, activities, dining, and then making sure that the trip met his original vision. It is time-consuming and requires rigorous attention. After ten years, twelve islands, ten sailing ventures, and six island villas, planning never got any easier. “I’d like our customers to make the same kind of life-long memories with the people they care about, without the roadblocks of all the decisions and hassles getting in the way. They’re too busy for that.”
While Regatta is starting out close to home in the Caribbean, it is also currently taking reservations for destinations in the Mediterranean, where the yachting culture is different than the Caribbean, as well as Asia--Southeast Pacific, New Zealand, Australia, and Indian Ocean.
To explore the Waypoint app and see what tropical destination is your perfect luxury vacation, visit regatta.travel.com.
