Despegar.com, Corp. (DESP): Business Model Canvas [Dec-2025 Updated]

You're looking past the stock ticker to understand the real engine of Despegar.com, Corp. (DESP), especially now that Prosus is steering the ship. Honestly, this isn't just about booking flights; it's a sophisticated Latin American travel ecosystem built on deep local payment options and a massive 23 million-member loyalty base. We've mapped out the nine building blocks, showing how they plan to hit roughly $943.41 million in revenue for FY2025, all while maintaining a solid 14.7% Take Rate from Q4 2024 bookings. Dive in below to see the exact partnerships and activities driving that growth.

Despegar.com, Corp. (DESP) - Canvas Business Model: Key Partnerships

You're looking at how Despegar.com, Corp. structures its external relationships to power its platform, which is critical now that Prosus N.V. has taken ownership.

The Key Partnerships block is where Despegar.com, Corp. outlines the crucial external entities that help it deliver its value proposition, especially regarding inventory sourcing and financial enablement.

• - Prosus N.V. (Owner/Strategic Partner) for AI and scale. Prosus completed the acquisition of Despegar.com, Corp. at $19.50 per share, valuing the company at $1.7 billion.
• - Expedia Group for a 10-year lodging outsourcing agreement. Most terms of this new agreement became effective on January 1, 2025.
• - HBX Group to broaden non-air accommodation inventory. This strategic partnership began in January 2025.
• - Global airlines and over 500,000 hotels for inventory. Despegar.com, Corp. was planning to have a global footprint of over 860,000 units in the vacation rental market by the end of 2023.
• - Financial institutions for customer installment financing plans. Financial services revenue increased by $0.6 million, or 28.4%, in Fiscal Year 2024 compared to Fiscal Year 2023.

The relationship with Expedia Group is financially significant. Under the original terms, a perpetual contingent liability of $125M existed on the balance sheet; under the new 10-year agreement, this amount is now being amortized over 10 years, materially improving the Net Asset position. Expedia Group maintains a guaranteed percentage of Despegar.com, Corp.'s global hotel bookings and holds exclusive rights to distribute certain lodging supply within Latin America.

The partnership with HBX Group is structured around performance metrics and upfront capital. HBX Group provided an advance payment to Despegar.com, Corp.. In return, Despegar.com, Corp. must meet specific booking targets for HBX Group originated products over an anticipated term of approximately eight and a half years. This integration allows Despegar.com, Corp. to leverage HBX Group's inventory, which includes access to over 250,000 properties and 100,000 directly contracted hotels.

Here's a quick look at the financial impact and scale related to key partners:

Partner/Metric	Financial/Statistical Figure	Context/Term
Prosus Acquisition Price	$19.50 per share	All-cash transaction price
Despegar Valuation (Acquisition)	$1.7 billion	Total transaction value
Expedia Contingent Liability Amortization	10 years	New amortization period for former perpetual liability
HBX Group Booking Target Term	Approximately eight and a half years	Anticipated term for booking commitments
HBX Group Inventory Access	Over 250,000 properties	Non-air accommodation inventory scale
Financial Services Revenue Growth (FY24 vs FY23)	28.4%	Year-over-year increase for Koin operations

The reliance on financial institutions for installment plans is managed by agreements where the banks assume the risk of any potential payment default by the consumer. This structure supports Despegar.com, Corp.'s ability to offer financing options without taking on the collection risk itself, which is a defintely key operational advantage in the region.

Despegar.com, Corp. (DESP) - Canvas Business Model: Key Activities

You're looking at the core engine driving Despegar.com, Corp.'s performance as we head into late 2025. The key activities are all about scale, efficiency, and integrating new tech across Latin America.

Online Travel Booking and Dynamic Price Optimization

This is the bread and butter, focusing on moving volume efficiently. The company is clearly pushing for higher-value transactions, as seen in the product mix. For the full year 2024, Total Revenue grew by 10% year-over-year to $774.1 million, with Adjusted EBITDA increasing 52% year-over-year to $175.2 million.

Looking at the most recent reported quarter, Fourth Quarter 2024 (4Q24), Gross Bookings on a Foreign Exchange (FX) neutral basis increased 38% year-over-year, reaching $1.5 billion. The Take Rate, which reflects pricing and mix optimization, was a robust 14.7% in 4Q24. Furthermore, Travel Package sales, which typically carry a higher margin, increased 457 basis points year-over-year to account for 36.1% of Gross Bookings in 4Q24.

The drive for better unit economics is clear:

• 4Q24 Revenue (as-reported): $221.4 million.
• 4Q24 Adjusted EBITDA: $51.5 million.
• 4Q24 Adjusted EBITDA margin: Expanded to 23.3%.

Technology Platform Development and Maintenance

Keeping the platform running and improving is a massive, continuous activity, especially given the focus on mobile and B2B channels. The technology prowess supports the entire ecosystem, from booking to payments.

Mobile adoption shows a strong shift to the platform's app:

• Transactions made via Despegar.com's app hit almost 49% of total transactions in the first quarter of 2024.
• Loyalty program members grew 83% year-over-year to almost 26 million members as of Q1 2024.

The B2B segment is a key growth driver, requiring specific platform integration and maintenance:

• B2B segment Gross Bookings grew 23% year-over-year to $230 million in the third quarter of 2024.

Financial Services Origination (e.g., consumer lending via Koin)

Despegar.com, Corp. actively originates loans and payment solutions through Koin, which is focused on buy-now-pay-later, particularly in Brazil. This activity involves managing credit risk and merchant relationships.

The financial services segment has been driven toward profitability:

• Financial services segment reported a Total Adjusted EBITDA of positive $1.8 million in 4Q24.
• This compares to a positive $3.0 million in 4Q23, as the company improved the spread between Take Rate and projected losses.

The company's strategy is to consolidate this profitable growth trajectory.

Marketing and Customer Acquisition Across Latin America

Acquisition efforts are broad, covering 19 countries in Latin America, and now expanding outside the region into Europe and the United States via B2B partnerships. The CEO projected growth of more than 20% in bookings and revenue for 2025, which includes the effect of growing outside the region.

Marketing spend is directed toward digital channels, including the growing retail media space in the region, where ad spend is estimated to increase by 28% per year between 2025 and 2028.

Integrating AI for Personalized Travel Planning (Sofia)

The integration of Generative AI via Sofia is a core activity aimed at enhancing customer experience and driving online conversion, simulating interactions with in-store agents. This is a direct response to the industry-wide adoption of AI, where 78% of organizations now use AI in at least one business function as of 2025.

Sofia's usage metrics show traction:

• Sofia surpassed 250,000 monthly conversations as of March 2025.

The AI assistant is multimodal, supporting oral, written, or image-based communication, and leverages Despegar.com's deep knowledge of over 30 million customers and their preferences.

Despegar.com, Corp. (DESP) - Canvas Business Model: Key Resources

You're looking at the core assets Despegar.com, Corp. relies on to run its business, especially now that Prosus has completed the acquisition in May 2025 for $19.50 per share.

• - Proprietary technology platform and mobile app.
• - Strong brand recognition in Latin America (Despegar/Decolar).
• - Customer data and AI capabilities from Prosus integration.
• - Pasaporte Despegar loyalty program with over 23 million members.
• - Extensive inventory of over 300 airlines and 500,000 hotels.

The technology backbone is critical; for instance, the AI-powered travel assistant, SOFIA, was launched to elevate the customer experience and strengthen the competitive moat. This platform supports operations across 19 countries in the region.

The scale of operations and inventory directly reflects the strength of these resources. Consider these figures from the end of the 2024 fiscal year and early 2025 partnership activity:

Metric	Value	Context/Date
FY24 Total Gross Bookings	$5.5 billion	Full Year 2024
FY24 Total Revenue	$774.1 million	Full Year 2024
4Q24 Revenue	$221.4 million	Three months ended December 31, 2024
4Q24 Adjusted EBITDA	$51.5 million	Three months ended December 31, 2024
Hotel Properties Inventory (Reference)	375,000	As of January 2025 reference
Airline Partnerships (Reference)	60+	As of January 2025 reference

The integration with Prosus, which reported $6.17 billion in revenue for 2025, definitely brings a strong balance sheet and a wider network to leverage. This backing is key for accelerating innovation and market penetration.

The platform's reach is also evident in its transaction capabilities and customer engagement:

• - Real-time booking capabilities in 54 countries.
• - Platform reliability at 99.8% uptime.
• - Monthly active users reached 2,250,000 as of Q4 2024.
• - Travel Package sales increased to 36.1% of Gross Bookings in 4Q24.

Also, the omnichannel approach, which includes B2B solutions for offline agencies and White Label services, is a significant intangible asset, allowing for seamless integration of acquired brands.

Despegar.com, Corp. (DESP) - Canvas Business Model: Value Propositions

You're looking at the core reasons why travelers and partners choose Despegar.com, Corp. over the competition in Latin America. It's not just about selling a flight; it's about packaging the whole trip and making the payment work for the local consumer. Here's the quick math on what they are delivering right now.

Comprehensive travel bundling (packages, air, hotel, car).

Despegar.com, Corp. is pushing hard on packages because they drive better margins. For the full year 2024, Travel Package sales were a significant component, increasing to account for 36.1% of Gross Bookings. That's a substantial jump of 457 basis points year-over-year compared to the previous year's mix. This focus on higher-margin bundles is a clear value driver for the company's profitability.

Localized payment options and installment financing for LatAm.

This is a major differentiator against global players. Despegar.com, Corp. partners with local banking institutions to offer financing plans and installment options that are crucial for the Latin American market. The success of this strategy is reflected in the overall Take Rate, which hit a record 14.7% in the fourth quarter of 2024. For the third quarter of 2024, the Take Rate was 14.6%, which management attributed partly to these innovative payment solutions.

The importance of this localized approach is clear when you look at the scale:

Metric	Value (Latest Reported)	Context
FY2024 Total Revenue	$774.1 million	As-reported basis
Q4 2024 Take Rate	14.7%	Fourth quarter of 2024
Q3 2024 Travel Package Mix	33.0% of Gross Bookings	Third quarter of 2024

AI-powered personalized travel planning via Sofia assistant.

The generative AI travel assistant, Sofia, launched in early 2024, is now a core part of the value offering. It supports users from inspiration through booking using text, voice, or images. Beyond direct customer use, Despegar.com, Corp. is monetizing this technology; in the third quarter of 2024, they announced a major SaaS partnership licensing Sofia to Karisma Hotels & Resorts. This move turns the AI assistant into a new revenue stream, not just a customer experience enhancement.

Broad inventory and competitive pricing for the regional traveler.

Despegar.com, Corp. serves a massive footprint, operating across 19 countries in Latin America. The sheer breadth of inventory is supported by its B2B ecosystem. As of the third quarter of 2024, this ecosystem included more than 17,000 individual online and offline travel agencies using their inventory. The company projects growth of more than 20% in bookings and revenue for 2025, signaling confidence in its inventory and pricing power for the regional traveler.

B2B and White Label solutions for other travel agencies.

The B2B segment is outpacing general market growth. In the third quarter of 2024, Consolidated B2B Gross Bookings grew 23% year-over-year, reaching $230 million. This segment represented 19% of total Gross Bookings in that quarter, a notable increase of 420 basis points year-over-year. This shows you they are successfully selling their platform capabilities as a service to other agencies.

• B2B Gross Bookings (3Q24): $230 million
• B2B Share of Total Gross Bookings (3Q24): 19%
• B2B Gross Bookings Growth (YoY 3Q24): 23%
• Number of travel agencies using inventory (3Q24): More than 17,000

If you're thinking about the near term, the successful transition of Sofia to a SaaS model and the continued double-digit growth in B2B are key indicators of where the value is being created beyond the core B2C bookings.

Despegar.com, Corp. (DESP) - Canvas Business Model: Customer Relationships

You're looking at how Despegar.com, Corp. keeps customers engaged and coming back, especially now that Prosus completed the acquisition in May 2025. The relationship strategy leans heavily on digital self-service backed by tiered rewards.

Automated self-service via website and mobile app

The primary interaction channel remains the digital platform. For context on the scale of transactions handled, Despegar.com, Corp. reported total Revenue of $774.06 million for the full fiscal year 2024. The mobile app is a critical touchpoint, as mobile commerce volume is expected to surpass 60% of shoppers favoring apps for purchases in 2025 generally. Customers log into their accounts on the platform to manage bookings and view personalized benefits.

Dedicated customer service and fulfillment centers

While the platform is the main avenue, for urgencies, customers have access to telephone lines, separate from the 24-hour online access via the "Mi Cuenta" or "Mi Pasaporte" links for claims or queries. The company operates fulfillment centers to support these services.

Loyalty program (Pasaporte Despegar) for retention and rewards

The Pasaporte Despegar program is central to retention. It is structured around tiers that customers achieve based on their spending. The top tier, Global, requires $5,000 in consumption within a year. A significant portion of the business relies on this structure; 75% of the total transactions reportedly pass through the loyalty program. Points are valid for 18 months but are renewed upon making a purchase using points or after a trip is completed. Members can see tangible savings, with some benefits offering up to 40% discount on flights and hotels. Specific promotional coupons, valid through late 2025, show potential savings up to $500,000 (local currency) on packages or activities.

Loyalty Program Metric	Value/Detail
Top Tier Consumption Requirement (Annual)	$5,000
Transactions Passing Through Program (Estimate)	75%
Points Validity Period	18 months
Maximum Stated Discount on Select Products	40%
Example Coupon Cap (Local Currency)	Up to $500,000
Club Despegar Points Annual Growth Rate	7%

Personalized engagement through AI-driven recommendations

Despegar.com, Corp. deploys an AI travel assistant named SOFIA, which was launched in 2024. Customers engage with SOFIA for tailored insights, including searching for hotels and other travel services. The company uses customer feedback from these interactions to refine SOFIA's capabilities. Customers who are logged in, for example, a Global tier member, will see a different price for a product on the app compared to a non-logged-in user for many, though not all, products.

• - SOFIA, the AI travel assistant, helps with searches for hotels and other travel services.
• - Tiered pricing is a benefit: a customer in a higher tier sees a distinct price.
• - The company reported a Net Income of $27.90 million for FY2024.
• - Cash From Operating Activities for FY2024 was $66.11 million.

Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Despegar.com, Corp. (DESP) - Canvas Business Model: Channels

You're looking at how Despegar.com, Corp. (DESP) gets its product in front of customers as of late 2025. It's a multi-pronged digital approach, but the core remains the direct online presence.

Despegar and Decolar websites (primary online storefronts)

The Despegar and Decolar websites are the foundational online storefronts. For the regional site despegar.cl, traffic analysis from October 2025 shows visitors primarily arrive via Direct traffic at 39.57%, followed by google.com at 20.54%. The overall web presence for despegar.com saw a month-over-month traffic increase of 20.15% in October 2025. Over the preceding three months, the global ranking for despegar.com moved from 41,766 to 37,847. Despegar.com, Corp.'s Total Revenue for the full year 2024 reached $774.1 million. For the fourth quarter of 2024, the reported Revenue was $221.4 million.

Mobile applications (high-growth booking channel)

The mobile channel is critical, reflecting the mobile-first behavior of Latin American consumers. As of 2019, more than 35 percent of Despegar.com, Corp.'s bookings were already coming through mobile web or its mobile app. The mobile application, which is listed as updated on Dec 2, 2025, continues to be a focus for exclusive promotions to drive installs and bookings. For the regional site despegar.cl, mobile devices accounted for 59.37% of visits in October 2025.

B2B segment and White Label partnerships

The Business-to-Business (B2B) segment is a growing distribution path, often involving White Label solutions. In the third quarter of 2024, the B2B segment's gross bookings grew 23% year-over-year, reaching $230 million. This segment represented 19% of total gross bookings in Q3 2024, an increase of 420 bps year-over-year. Despegar.com, Corp. signed its first Software as a Service (SaaS) partnership in the third quarter of 2024 with Karisma Hotels & Resorts, licensing its AI travel assistant, SOFIA. The company also entered into a new partnership with HBX Group at the beginning of 2025.

Here's a snapshot of the B2B segment's contribution based on the latest reported figures:

Metric	Value	Period	Citation Index
B2B Gross Bookings	$230 million	Q3 2024	7
B2B Share of Total Gross Bookings	19%	Q3 2024	3
B2B Gross Bookings YoY Growth	23%	Q3 2024	7
B2B Share Increase YoY	420 bps	Q3 2024	3

Direct marketing and organic search traffic

Direct marketing efforts feed traffic to the primary channels, while organic search remains a vital component of digital acquisition. For the regional site despegar.cl in October 2025, Direct traffic accounted for 39.57% of visits. Organic Search Traffic for that site was measured at 832.97K visits, representing a -4% month-over-month change. Paid Search Traffic was 106.38K visits, showing a larger drop of -29% month-over-month. Nationally for ecommerce in 2025, organic search is projected to drive over 50% of website visits. When users do click from search results, the top result on Google in 2025 captures a 39.8% click-through rate.

The company's overall financial health, which supports marketing spend, saw Adjusted EBITDA for the full year 2024 at $175.2 million, with the Q4 2024 Adjusted EBITDA margin at 23.3%.

You should track the Q1 2026 earnings release to see the full impact of the Prosus acquisition, which closed in Q2 2025, on these channel metrics.

Despegar.com, Corp. (DESP) - Canvas Business Model: Customer Segments

The customer base for Despegar.com, Corp. is segmented across the broad Latin American travel market, focusing on both direct consumers and business partners.

The core mass market travelers are served across a wide geographic footprint. Despegar.com, Corp. operates its booking platform in over 20 Latin American countries, though some reports specify activity in 19 markets in the region. This extensive reach targets the general population seeking online travel solutions.

A distinct segment involves B2B partners, which includes travel agencies, banks, and retailers utilizing white label solutions. In the first quarter of 2024 (1Q24), B2B and White Label Gross Bookings grew, representing a combined 17% of total Gross Bookings for that quarter.

Value-conscious travelers form another key group, often utilizing financing options. Despegar.com, Corp. has integrated financial services, including the acquisition of the Brazilian fintech Koin, which specializes in buy now, pay later (BNPL) payment options, directly addressing the need for flexible payment plans for travel purchases.

The company also targets high-margin package buyers. For the fourth quarter of 2024 (4Q24), Travel Package sales increased significantly, reaching 36.1% of Gross Bookings. This focus on higher-margin products like packages is a strategic driver for profitability.

Here is a snapshot of the scale and focus across these segments based on recent figures:

Segment Metric	Value/Percentage	Period/Context
Countries of Operation	Over 20	Latin America footprint
B2B/White Label Share of Gross Bookings	17%	1Q24
Travel Package Share of Gross Bookings	36.1%	4Q24
Total Gross Bookings	$5.5 billion	Full Year 2024 (FY24)
4Q24 Gross Bookings (As-Reported)	$1.5 billion	4Q24
Loyalty Program Members	25.7 million	As of March 31, 2024 (1Q24)

The company's focus on high-margin products is clear. For instance, in 1Q24, Adjusted EBITDA increased 126% year-over-year, partly driven by the growth in these higher-margin Travel Package sales.

The platform also serves individual consumers directly, evidenced by the Loyalty Program membership reaching 25.7 million members by the end of 1Q24. Also, app transactions hit a record 48.9% of total transactions in 1Q24.

The B2C segment is further detailed by key market performance. In 1Q24, bookings in Brazil surged by 27% year-over-year, and in Mexico, they were up 26%.

• Mass market travelers in over 20 Latin American countries.
• B2B partners (e.g., travel agencies, corporate clients).
• Value-conscious travelers seeking financing and packages.
• High-margin package buyers (36.1% of Gross Bookings in 4Q24).

Despegar.com, Corp. (DESP) - Canvas Business Model: Cost Structure

You're looking at the major outflows for Despegar.com, Corp. as of the close of the 2024 fiscal year, right before the Prosus acquisition closed in May 2025. Honestly, for an online travel agency, the cost of getting and keeping customers, plus keeping the tech running, dominates the picture.

Here's a look at the key expense buckets for the full year 2024, all amounts in millions of U.S. dollars:

Cost Category	FY 2024 Amount (USD Millions)
Selling and Marketing Expense	250.7
Technology and Product Development Expenses	108.0
General and Administrative Expenses	80.3
Total Operating Expenses	441.95
Total Revenue	774.1

The Selling and Marketing expense, which is your primary customer acquisition cost, saw a notable increase in 2024.

• Selling and marketing expense increased 13.8% to $250.7 million in 2024, compared to $220.4 million in 2023.
• This increase was driven by brand and performance marketing expenses due to overall demand growth across the region, plus costs related to offline sales channel growth and B2B expansion.

Technology costs reflect the investment needed to run a modern travel platform, including the AI assistant launched in late 2024.

• Technology and Product Development expenses were $108.0 million in 2024.
• This was a slight decrease of (1.1)% compared to $109.1 million in 2023, mainly due to operating efficiencies and headcount reductions implemented toward the end of 2023.

General and Administrative expenses cover the corporate structure costs you asked about. You can see they managed to keep this growth relatively flat year-over-year.

• General and administrative expenses were $80.3 million in 2024, up 3.3% from $77.8 million in 2023.
• This increase was partially offset by cost savings from a restructuring plan implemented in late 2023, particularly in payroll and outsourced services.

For credit card processing and financing fees, these costs fall under the Cost of Revenue line item. While I don't have the exact 2024 dollar amount for processing fees alone, the trend is clear:

• Cost of Revenue decreased by ($20.8) million during 2024.
• This decrease was mainly due to lower cost of installment derived from a decline in average installments and a decrease in credit card processing fees.
• For context, in the second quarter of 2023, credit card processing fees rose by $3.1 million year-over-year due to demand recovery.

Personnel and operational costs for customer service are generally captured within the Operating Expenses, specifically G&A and Technology, as the company focused on streamlining operations. The overall focus on efficiency helped drive the 4Q24 Adjusted EBITDA margin to 23.3%.

Despegar.com, Corp. (DESP) - Canvas Business Model: Revenue Streams

You're looking at how Despegar.com, Corp. (DESP) converts its platform activity into dollars, which is the core of its Revenue Streams block. This is where the value proposition meets the customer's wallet, primarily through transaction fees and financial product income.

The bulk of Despegar.com, Corp. (DESP) revenue comes from commissions and mark-ups across its core travel offerings. This is the classic agency model, taking a slice of the total transaction value. You see a clear shift in focus here, moving away from just air tickets toward higher-margin products like packages and hotels.

The company's overall revenue performance for the last full fiscal year, FY2024, reached $774.1 million. Looking ahead, the projection for the full fiscal year 2025 is set to be approximately $943.41 million. This expected growth is supported by the increasing efficiency across the platform.

The Take Rate (calculated as revenue divided by the sum of Gross Bookings and Total Payment Volume) is a key metric showing how effectively Despegar.com, Corp. (DESP) monetizes its bookings. For the fourth quarter of 2024 (4Q24), this rate stood at a robust 14.7%.

Here's a look at how the total revenue was split across the main business segments in the last two reported full fiscal years:

Revenue Segment	FY2024 Revenue Share	FY2023 Revenue Share
Packages, Hotels and Other Travel Products	63.8%	61.9%
Air	33.9%	36.5%
Financial Services	2.3%	1.6%

The shift in the revenue mix is important; the segment covering Packages, Hotels and Other Travel Products is the largest contributor, showing the success of pushing bundled and non-air products. For context, in FY2024, the Financial Services segment generated $17.6 million in revenue.

Beyond travel commissions, Despegar.com, Corp. (DESP) is actively growing its non-transactional revenue lines, which often carry better margins and diversify risk. You should pay close attention to these areas:

• Financial services revenue, including interest and fees generated through its Koin online payment and consumer lending services platform.
• Revenue from B2B and White Label services, which is definitely a defintely growing segment as the company expands its technology platform offerings to third parties.
• Other revenues, which in 2024 included breakage in customer travel coupons and growth in loyalty revenues.

The Financial Services segment, which includes Koin, is a clear area of strategic focus for generating interest and fee income. This segment's revenue grew from $11.4 million in FY2023 to $17.6 million in FY2024, showing acceleration in its lending and payment processing activities.