'Scary' taxi ride inspired entrepreneur to start a company for solo female travellers
It was a rare low point on one of her many solo holidays which inspired Vanessa Karel to start her own company to help women travel alone safely.
She ended up in Morocco when the world was plunged into lockdowns as part of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Her flight to Marrakech was redirected, and she ended up in Casablanca.
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Vanessa Karel started Greether after a 'scary' taxi ride on her own. Supplied
Vanessa arrived at midnight and had not had chance to do her usual planning including arranging an airport pick-up.
She got a taxi, and had a "scary" experience.
"I was in a really scary cab," she tells 9Travel. "They started taking routes I wasn't comfortable with and then another man jumped in the car.
"Luckily nothing happened but it was a really weird situation."
Vanessa googled services which helped women travel safer, and only found social media groups related to female travellers.
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Vanessa Karel started Greether paired her entrepreneurial flair with love of travel to launch a female travel conpany. Supplied
But there was nothing around with people who had actually been verified. She even struggled to find female tour guides.
Entrepreneurial Vanessa, from San Francisco, was inspired to do something.
Initially, she thought she'd write a book.
"I started realising that I wasn't alone," she says.
But after years of work she has now started a website called Greether
It offers female holidaymakers travelling alone or part of a small all-girl group the chance to book a verified female 'greeter' in their destination.
It aims to offer safe and personalised connections, with options for meet-ups of up to six hours.
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Some women have wanted a companion to go on a river cruise in Paris. Getty
Link-ups are made before the trip, so users can ask local women questions before they even arrive.
Prices start at just over $45 (US$30) an hour.
She has now had bookings in 108 cities and 60 counties, won multiple awards and has just been on Shark Tank Mexico.
The service has also grown into something much more that just ensuring safety. Vanessa says.
Companionship is also a big pull for solo travellers who simply may not have anyone to holiday with.
One of the most common requests from women is help navigating public transport.
And older women travellers have been a surprising demographic of users in a sector which is booming.
Vanessa has heard some heartening stories from people.
"We have this traveller who only books a Greether every time she goes to a place to have someone walk her to museums and wait for her," she says.
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A trip to Morocco inspired a travel website. Getty Images/iStockphoto
"We have had travellers who have booked a Greether to go on a river cruise with them on the Seine in Paris.
"We have had people who have booked Greether to go with them to Disneyland."
One traveller told her they "almost cried" when they left their matched guide because they loved the experience so much.
While the website and a new app prioritises actual tour guides as 'Greethers', other people can apply, especially if they have customer service or tourism experience.
It's less about offering historical facts and more about being helpful and friendly and offering personal advice and company, Vanessa says.
Both users and guides are vetted.
Vanessa Karel with one of the women who has used ther service she started, Supplied
And while most users are American and Canada, Vanessa has her sights set on Australia.
A handful of Aussie 'greethers' have already signed up, and some Aussie travellers have also used the service overseas.
There are multiple similar greeting services around, but none focused on women. The International Greeter Association pairs tourists and locals for a free private walk for two or three hours through a city.
The original, Big Apple Greeters, was set up by Lynn Brooks in New York City in 1992, who wanted to show visitors 'her New York.'
We actually experienced a morning with a Big Apple Greeter while in the city a few years ago. You can read about it experienced a morning with a Big Apple Greeter
