Wheel the World

Wheel the World is a travel booking platform focused on providing accessible experiences for people with disabilities and seniors. The company operates as an online marketplace where users can find and book accessible hotels, multi-day trips, and activities. Its business model is based on charging a commission for each transaction made through the platform.

The company was founded in 2018 by lifelong friends Álvaro Silberstein and Camilo Navarro. The inspiration came from their personal experience. After a car accident at age 18 left Silberstein with quadriplegia, he and Navarro planned a trip to hike Torres del Paine in Patagonia. Realizing there was no information about accessibility for the route, they crowdfunded a special hiking wheelchair and became the first to complete the trek with a wheelchair user. The story went viral, inspiring them to launch Wheel the World to help others travel without limitations.

Álvaro Silberstein, the CEO, has a background in management consulting and holds an MBA from the University of California, Berkeley. Camilo Navarro, the COO, studied Business, Economics, and Project Evaluations in Chile before pursuing Entrepreneurship and Project Management at UC Berkeley. The platform's core feature is its verification process; the company's team assesses and photographs each location to ensure the accessibility information is accurate and detailed, covering over 150 data points per listing. This allows users to create an accessibility profile and receive recommendations tailored to their specific needs. In March 2023, the company raised $6 million in a pre-Series A funding round led by Kayak Ventures to expand its listings and partnerships with destination management organizations.

Keywords: accessible travel, disability tourism, inclusive travel, online travel agency, accessible hotels, adaptive tourism, travel accessibility, wheelchair travel, senior travel, accessible experiences, travel technology, Patagonia, Torres del Paine, Álvaro Silberstein, Camilo Navarro, accessible booking platform, mobility travel, special needs travel, accessible vacations, travel for disabled