VaycayHero YC Application

Winter 2013Acquired

VaycayHero went through Y Combinator in the Winter 2013 batch as a Consumer company. Below: what the company does, who founded it, and its application to YC, reconstructed question by question in the real YC form.

YC batch: Winter 2013
Industry: ConsumerTravel, Leisure and Tourism
Team size: 55
Status: Acquired
Launched: 2012

Founders

Amitav ChakravarttyFounder/CTO

What VaycayHero does

VaycayHero takes the hassle out of booking vacation rentals. All rentals are verified, and 100% accurate, and calendars and pricing are automatically updated. This means, no surprises, ever. Search and book online hassle-free, or chat with a booking concierge if you need help. VaycayHero has vacation rentals in major vacation destinations in the US and Mexico. It built a travel hub platform to distribute the rentals to multiple channels including Vaycayhero.com and powered many marketplaces to provide a hassle-free booking experience.

VaycayHero's YC application, reconstructed

Y Combinator application

VaycayHero, Winter 2013 batch. The real form questions, answered from public data.

Founders2
Company7
Progress7
Idea4
Equity3
Curious2
Batch Preference1

Company

Company name

VaycayHero

Describe what your company does in 50 characters or less.

Marketplace for verified vacation rentals

What is your company going to make? Please describe your product and what it does or will do.

We build an online marketplace where travelers can search and book vacation rentals that are professionally managed and verified for accuracy. Our platform updates calendars and pricing automatically to prevent surprises. Users can book entirely online or chat with a booking concierge for help.

Where do you live now, and where would the company be based after YC?

We are based in San Francisco, CA, and plan to remain here after YC.

Explain your decision regarding location.

San Francisco is the hub for travel technology startups and access to talent. It's where we built early traction and where the network and ecosystem are strongest for our business.

21 more answers in the full application

Founders, Progress, Idea, Equity, Curious, Batch Preference are in the full version. Create a free account to open it in YC Insights, next to every other YC batch.

See full application

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this the real VaycayHero YC application?

No. Y Combinator keeps submitted applications private. This is a reconstruction: the real YC form questions, answered from VaycayHero's public data (launch notes, founder backgrounds, product description). It shows how a company like VaycayHero would present itself to YC, not the text they submitted.