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komoot
Simply Practical
At the beginning of 2025, we entered into a partnership with the outdoor community komoot, which has 45 million members. The benefits: direct networking with our target audiences and insights into guest behavior.
Local businesses and interested parties have vouchers for the complete regional package worth € 8.99 each. More information is available at the information offices Seefeld and Leutasch.
One in four Germans has the komoot outdoor app installed on their smartphone. Most of them are aged between 30 and 65, with 58% using it for hiking and 50% for leisure cycling. Worldwide, 45 million people use the digital route planner, and in the particularly interesting DACH region for Tyrol's high plateau, there are more than 19 million. "Considering these numbers, it becomes clear that we can probably directly address the majority of our guest target groups through komoot," says TVB Managing Director Elias Walser. The charm of it is that the app is not a one-way advertising or information channel; it functions like a large community, to which everyone can contribute something. This means that even paid advertising campaigns are often perceived as unobtrusive editorial contributions.
As part of our cooperation, we will run a total of six such "Sponsored Collections" in 2025, each featuring five to eight tours over several weeks, reaching around two million users in their inspiration phase for the next vacation. Additionally, new routes and collections are constantly being professionaly created in our regional profile. Their themes range from enjoyable hiking and cycling to family and altitude tours, as well as cross-country skiing and winter hiking. Countless route tips from active app users are added to this.
However, not only the tour suggestions and the resulting optimal navigation of guests on site are the great advantage of the platform. "Since many users record their tours with komoot, we gain exciting insights into the behavior of our guests," explains Walser. "These allow us to tailor our products and marketing measures accordingly." The first evaluation of the data confirmed our new strategic direction. 75% of guests come from Germany; of those, 59% focus on hiking. The majority prefer tours that are less than twelve kilometers (72%) and 300 meters of altitude (51%). For cycling and mountain biking tours, 70% prefer easy routes under 40 kilometers. The focus on a pleasurable hiking and cycling offering is in tune with the times and attracts the majority of our guests. Our intuition has told us this for a long time, and even better that the data confirm it. Furthermore, with komoot, we have a tool popular among our vacationers to track developments and to quickly and directly connect with our guests.
Current situation
Since the end of March, the waves have been high around komoot. The app, which was developed and built by its founders and around 150 dedicated employees over 15 years, was surprisingly sold to the controversial Italian tech company Bending Spoons. Initially, the sale was justified as a necessary next step in the development towards a global brand. However, the founders have since exited the company. Staff and the user community are now concerned about potential layoffs as well as increases in pricing and deterioration of the app. The worries are based on experiences with previous Bending Spoons acquisitions of, for example, Evernote or Wetransfer.
What does this unpredictable sale mean for us as cooperation partners? First and foremost, there is no reason to be alarmed. Our contacts at komoot remain the same, and cooperation is currently running smoothly. The app still has many loyal users. Being present here and engaging with well-planned routes and tips is and remains a significant advantage for hiking and cycling enthusiasts among guests.
Additionally, the dashboard and statistics from komoot, which we have access to thanks to the cooperation, provide valuable information about the behavior and preferences of our guests, as well as their development and changes. We can actively use these to continuously sharpen our strategy and improve and adjust our offerings.
Of course, the TVB is keeping an eye on how komoot users behave and change, or if, in the future, another outdoor app will be the better choice. Thanks to a very flexible cooperation agreement, a quick adjustment would also be possible here.