• Direct Booker is one of Croatia's leading vacation rental and management companies, overseeing more than 3,200 vacation homes, servicing more than 2 million customers.

LONDON — Global travel technology brand OYO today announces the acquisition of Croatia’s leading vacation rental management company (VRMC), Direct Booker. The acquisition has been completed by OYO’s European business subsidiary, OYO Vacation Homes (OVH).

Started in 2010 by Nikola Grubelic and Nino Dubretic, Direct Booker is a market leader in the VRMC segment in Dubrovnik, a leading tourist destination in Croatia. The platform currently manages more than 3,200 vacation homes in Croatia and has served more than 2 million holidaymakers to date.

OYO’s subsidiary OVH already owns established vacation rental platforms such as Belvilla, DanCenter, and Traum Ferienwohnungen, among others. This acquisition will strengthen OVH’s presence in the strategically important Croatian tourism market, where it already has nearly 1,800 vacation homes on its Belvilla platform and more than 7,000 homes on the Traum Ferienwohnungen platform. 

OVH will promote all vacation homes listed on Direct Booker via its Belvilla platform, providing customers with a wider choice of short-term stays in the highly popular tourist destination of Dubrovnik, as well as throughout the rest of Croatia. 

OYO has recently declared its intention of actively scouting for ‘tuck-in’ acquisitions, especially in the European market as a strategic growth lever. OVH already has a strong footprint in the Netherlands, France, Denmark, Belgium, Germany, Austria, Spain and Italy. 

Explaining the benefits of having Direct Booker as a part of the OVH portfolio, Dr Mandar Vaidya, CEO of OYO Europe, said: “Without doubt, Croatia is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the Mediterranean for European travellers. The country's tourism sector has taken a big stride towards recovery in 2021 and the potential for the current year is even higher. We see a huge benefit in offering more holiday homes in the Dalmatian region. We are particularly excited about Dubrovnik, Croatia's most visited tourist destination, where we will significantly improve our footprint with this acquisition. Direct Booker is a great addition to our portfolio of hotels and homes in Croatia and across Europe.”

Expressing his enthusiasm for being a part of a global travel tech company, Nino Dubretic, CEO & Co-Founder of Direct Booker commented: “We are happy to join forces with a global travel tech company like OYO. We strongly believe that by merging our technologies and expertise, this partnership will positively impact the Croatian tourism economy, further driving demand through OYO’s existing platforms across Europe. Being a part of OYO’s vast network will also increase visibility for the homes listed on our platform, especially across Scandinavia, Benelux, and surrounding countries. The next couple of months will be truly exciting as we work towards building our business together.”

OYO is a global travel technology platform spread across 35 countries and the third largest travel app in the world after Booking.com and Airbnb. With OYO’s acquisition of Direct Booker, the Dubrovnik-headquartered company will now become a part of a global entity with a vast presence across Europe. OYO is backed by a diverse group of globally renowned investors such as Softbank, Airbnb, and Microsoft, among many others.

With a coastline of 6278 km, Croatia is known for its islands, islets, stacks and reefs making it one of the most popular upcoming tourist destinations in Europe. It is one of the most visited destinations in the Mediterranean, with most tourists coming from Germany. This can be attributed to the high number of days of sunshine per year. In 2019, prior to the pandemic, Croatia welcomed close to 19 million tourists. While COVID-19 took a hit on tourism in the country, in 2021, Croatia witnessed a strong bounce back in tourism. As per data released by the Croatian National Tourist Board, nearly 14 million tourists visited in 2021, creating 84.1 million overnight stays. Overall, tourism contributes close to 12% to the GDP of the country. 

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About OYO

OYO is a global platform that empowers entrepreneurs and small businesses with hotels and homes by providing full-stack technology that increases revenue and eases operations; bringing easy-to-book, affordable, and trusted accommodation to customers around the world. OYO offers 40+ integrated products and solutions to patrons who operate over 157,000 hotel and home storefronts across India, Europe, Southeast Asia and 35 countries. For more information, visit www.oyorooms.com.