checkyeti Acquires Manawa to Expand Outdoor Activities in Europe

Outdoor experiences online travel agency (OTA) checkyeti has acquired Manawa, the company announced today, combining two marketplaces for outdoor and nature activities in Europe under a single group. 

Founded in Vienna in 2014, checkyeti has built its business around skiing, hiking and other winter and summer outdoor activities across Europe; Manawa, operated by Paris-based Alentour SAS, has built a similar footprint with a particularly strong presence in France. Combined, the two platforms now offer more than 27,000 bookable outdoor and nature experiences through a network of over 8,000 activity providers across Europe.

Arival sat down with checkyeti CEO Jakob Keller to talk about why the deal came together now, and what it signals for the broader outdoor experiences sector. Watch the full interview below for more on how checkyeti is thinking about AI-driven discovery, specialized distribution, experiences-sector consolidation, and what’s next for the combined group.

The deal is backed by Banque des Territoires, part of the French Caisse des Dépôts group, which has been an investor in Manawa since its early stages and remains a shareholder in the combined company.

Why Now? Specialization, Scale and a Consolidating Market

The two companies had been in each other’s orbit for years before the acquisition came together, Keller shared, operating in the same niche. The acquisition enables the companies to combine complementary verticals and geographics — checkyeti with deeper roots in winter sports, for example, and Manawa with a stronger foothold in France and other European markets.

“ What we really focus on is having a very entrenched supply,” says Keller, explaining that many of the suppliers on the platforms are unique to checkyeti and/or Manawa, and aren’t listed on platforms like Viator or GetYourGuide. 

Winter activities such as ski tours tend to involve a higher level of booking complexity than their sightseeing counterparts, Keller explains — from requiring specific details such as height and weight, to adding rental equipment to a booking. As the online distribution landscape consolidates further, Keller believes it’s that type of specialization that will remain one of its core differentiators.

“I think consolidation is inevitable in a fragmented market where scale increasingly matters,” Keller said, pointing to broader consolidation pressure across the tours, activities and attractions sector, driven in part by the scale needed to compete as AI reshapes how travelers discover and book experiences. “That’s also where it just makes sense to join forces.”

What Does This Mean for Operators?

For activity suppliers currently listed on either platform, Keller said little will change in the short term. “Both companies continue to operate as they did before,” he said, noting that checkyeti and Manawa will keep working with their existing provider networks under their own brands for the time being.

They are also hoping to bring on more curated supply: high-quality, outdoor, nature-based activities and experiences. Operators considering niche, activity-specific marketplaces as an alternative or complement to larger OTAs may want to watch this space.

Learn More About Distribution and OTAs with Arival

Keep up with the latest on distribution, OTAs and the ever-evolving experiences industry landscape with Arival. Join us at the next Arival event to stay up to date on the latest developments in the experiences sector directly from tours, activities and attractions industry leaders and experts. 

Header photo: Courtesy of checkyeti