With aim to reshape the future of travel, three industry veterans joined forces to launch TaggedTrip, an app that makes it possible to book trips and experiences based on who else is going.
With patent-pending technology, TaggedTrip allows individuals to connect with fellow travelers who share similar interests without sacrificing privacy or safety. The app allows users to plan their travel or entertainment around whether others with similar backgrounds, interests or struggles will be there, too. The app is already available for download on the Apple App Store and Google Play, boasting over 250 categories of shared interests, from alumni affiliations to lifestyle choices, hobbies and even recovery journeys.
“We’ve created a way to bring people together who may otherwise never meet, all while ensuring privacy and safety,” says George VonAllmen, one of the founders. “It’s not just travel. It’s a meaningful connection encounter.”
Between co-founders VonAllmen, Don Farrell, and IT veteran Ananda Jami, the TaggedTrip team brings over a century of combined experience in hospitality and technology. Farrell’s journey began as a dishwasher at a hotel. Now, he leads one of North America’s premier hospitality training companies. VonAllmen’s career was rooted in convention bureau work and large-scale hotel sales. Jami rounds out the trio with decades of IT and software architecture experience.
“We want this to be a safe, healing, empowering platform,” VonAllmen said. “Particularly for individuals in recovery and veterans, two groups close to our hearts.”
For individuals in recovery from drugs, alcohol or gambling, travel can be a minefield of temptation and isolation. TaggedTrip offers a lifeline by connecting these users with others who understand the struggle. The same goes for military veterans, many of whom face loneliness and mental health challenges after service.
The app is intentionally built to avoid any exchange of personal data. Users don’t share photos, age, gender or email addresses. Instead, they connect based solely on “likes,” which function as shared interests, identifiers or life experiences. Communication is initiated within the app, and meetings can take place in designated public hotel spaces identified with small signboards.
“It’s social connection, cloaked in privacy and safety,” says Jami. “And it’s a huge plus for women travelers especially.”
The TaggedTrip platform is designed to scale across all types of travel and entertainment inventory, including cruise lines, vacation rentals, campgrounds, RV parks, flights and sporting events. “If there’s a space or a seat, TaggedTrip can bring people together around it,” confirms Jami.
This patent-pending technology connects users automatically based on their selected destination, dates and “likes.” If someone plans a trip to Denver, for example, the app immediately shows others traveling there with shared interests, from fishing enthusiasts to former Marines or fantasy football fans. Farrell said, “This is a disruptive technology in one of the best ways possible. You plan your trip and suddenly discover a conference, a gathering or just a chance to meet someone who really gets you.”
The Rev2 version will include exciting new AI technology, such as conversational voice activation, allowing one to simply describe their trip like: “I’m going to San Fran from the 12th to 15th of February, and I would like to meet other pickleball players.” The technology will also be able to expand potential “likes,” similar to how music apps identify preferences and make new recommendations.
The app is already building momentum through partnerships with alumni associations, some of the biggest social and community engagement platforms, and large nonprofit organizations. TaggedTrip is positioning itself not only by acquiring individual users one at a time but by targeting entire communities such as university alumni groups, veteran associations and lifestyle organizations.
“Alumni groups love this,” said VonAllmen. “They already know that group trips increase engagement and donations. With TaggedTrip, they don’t even have to organize anything. It will happen organically.”
Those ready to tag their next trip can now download TaggedTrip on the App Store or Google Play and start connecting with people who share your journey.
