Wild Discovery
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1997
- HeadquartersBeirut, Lebanon
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What Wild Discovery does
Wild Discovery is a privately held, family-owned travel agency and tour operator headquartered in Beirut, Lebanon, founded in 1997 by the Saade family. The company sells customized travel experiences and intermediated bookings across more than 30,000 hotels, 14+ cruise lines (spanning mass-market through ultra-luxury and expedition tiers), airlines, car rentals, villa/yacht rentals, and travel insurance, serving both individual leisure travelers (including a dedicated honeymoon segment with a wedding-list financial product) and corporate clients. Its operations span company-owned branches in Lebanon (Beirut/Gemmayzeh, Verdun, Kaslik, Jbeil, Tripoli) and Syria (Damascus, Latakia), an online booking portal, iOS/Android mobile applications, and an international franchise program under which it licenses its brand, operations, and IT platform to third-party operators.
The business is organized around specialized service desks — Corporate, Group, Travel Agent, Incoming (Lebanon inbound tourism), and Private — each with dedicated phone lines and 24/7 emergency hotlines. Wild Discovery earns revenue primarily through transaction commissions and markups on booked travel, supplemented by franchise fees (split between an initial lump sum and a 2% royalty on franchisee gross sales) and professional-services fees for MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Congresses, Events) engagements. The underlying technology stack is conventional: a Joomla-based website (wilddiscovery.com.lb), a booking subdomain, and a customer-facing mobile app; there is no proprietary AI, no disclosed API or platform, and no documented data moat. Distribution combines direct-to-consumer retail (physical branches plus digital), B2B (corporate travel management and travel-agent accreditation), and a franchise/licensed-operator channel for international expansion.
The company's competitive positioning rests on its 26-year brand heritage in the Levant, its broad supplier portfolio (notably cruise and hotel breadth), and its multi-channel physical-plus-digital service model in markets where international OTAs have limited local presence. Geographic risk is material: operations concentrate in Lebanon (in acute macroeconomic distress since 2019) and Syria, while supplier relationships and franchise expansion point to ambitions for broader regional and international reach. No revenue, headcount-trend, or funding data is publicly disclosed.
Wild Discovery firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Wild Discovery
- Legal name
- Wild Discovery
- Website
- https://wilddiscovery.com.lb
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1997
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Wild Discovery industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Travel Agency Services
- NAICS
- Travel Agencies (561510), Tour Operators (561520)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Adventure & Expedition Travel Agencies (THAKAFAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Fee-Based/Independent Trip Planners (No Booking) (THAKAOAA), Private Adventure & Expedition Experiences (Custom Hikes, Safaris, Backcountry) (THAJALAG)
Keywords
Where Wild Discovery is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Beirut
- HQ country
- Lebanon
- HQ region
- Middle East
Offices3 records
Markets served
Wild Discovery business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Travel Package Sales: Wild Discovery earns revenue through commissions and markups on travel packages including flights, hotels, cruises, tours, and vacation experiences sold to individual and corporate customers.
- Franchise Fees: The company generates revenue from franchisees through initial franchise fees (10% upon MOU signature, 90% upon Franchise Agreement), ongoing royalty fees (2% of gross sales), and fit-out/decorating services. Franchise fees are calculated based on territory and market.
- Corporate Travel Services: Dedicated corporate travel services including hotel reservations, airline ticketing, event management, visa handling, and incentive travel programs for business clients.
- MICE Services: Meetings, Incentives, Congresses and Events management services for corporate clients, including site inspections, program design, and on-site coordination.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Franchise Initial Investment |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Monthly | Franchise Royalty Fees |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels6 records
Wild Discovery product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Wild Discovery is a Beirut-based travel agency that designs, packages, and sells leisure and corporate travel services including tailor-made holidays, holiday packages, airline ticketing, hotel booking, sea and river cruises, honeymoons, weddings, villa and yacht rentals, car rental, and travel insurance. It also provides corporate travel management, MICE, and group travel services through dedicated desks, complemented by a Travel Agent Desk reselling inventory to other agencies and an incoming tourism desk for visitors to Lebanon.
Product overview
Wild Discovery is a travel agency and tour operator based in Beirut, Lebanon, founded in 1997 by the Saade family. The company operates as a unified service offering rather than a modular software platform. Its portfolio encompasses core travel services including tailor-made holidays, holiday packages, airline ticketing, hotel booking (30,000+ properties), villa and yacht rental, car rental, and travel insurance. Specialized divisions handle corporate travel, group bookings, travel agent partnerships, and inbound tourism for Lebanon. The company also offers cruise bookings across multiple sea and river cruise lines (MSC, Royal Caribbean, Ponant, Cunard, Holland America, Disney, Silversea, Seabourn, Uniworld, CroisiEurope), honeymoon packages, wedding list services, and MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Congresses, Conventions) destination management. A mobile application is available for customer bookings. The business model centers on customization and personalization of travel experiences rather than a technology platform.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Tailor-Made Holidays Custom-designed leisure travel itineraries created for individual travelers and families based on their preferences, budget, and destinations.
- Holiday Packages & Experiences Pre-packaged holiday products and curated experiences sold to leisure travelers seeking turnkey trips.
- Airline Ticketing Sale of airline tickets across carriers on behalf of individual and corporate travelers.
- Hotel Booking Hotel reservation services drawing on a global contracting program of more than 30,000 hotels.
- Sea Cruises Booking of ocean and sea cruises for leisure travelers and groups.
- River Cruises Booking of river cruises for leisure travelers seeking inland waterway experiences.
- Honeymoon Packages Specialized travel packages tailored for newlyweds and couples celebrating honeymoons.
- Villa and Yacht Rental Rental of private villas and yachts for leisure travelers and special occasions.
- Car Rental Ground transport rental services arranged for travelers during their trips.
- Travel Insurance Travel insurance products offered alongside trip bookings to cover travelers against common travel risks.
- Corporate Travel Services Managed business travel services delivered to corporate clients through a dedicated Corporate Services desk.
- MICE Services Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions planning and execution for corporate and association clients.
- Group Travel Group Desk service handling bookings and logistics for leisure and corporate groups traveling together.
- Incoming Tourism Incoming Desk service providing ground handling and travel arrangements for foreign visitors traveling to Lebanon.
- Travel Agent Desk B2B service reselling Wild Discovery's contracted hotel and travel inventory to other travel agencies.
- Wedding List & Wedding Services Wedding-related travel and event services, including honeymoon and wedding list offerings for newlyweds.
- Franchise Program Franchise opportunities offered to partner agencies to operate Wild Discovery-branded travel services under license.
Quantifiable outcome
- Wedding list program offers 103% cash back on deposits when funds not withdrawn within 3 months, plus 15% extra value on honeymoons paid through wedding list funds
Companies that use Wild Discovery
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Wild Discovery technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Wild Discovery partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
15 partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- MSC CruisescoreWild Discovery offers MSC Cruises packages as part of their sea cruise portfolio, providing customers access to MSC's fleet of cruise ships sailing various global itineraries.
- Royal CaribbeancorePartnership for Royal Caribbean cruise bookings, offering customers access to one of the world's largest cruise line fleets.
- Disney Cruise LinecoreProvides Disney Cruise Line vacation packages including Disney Magic, Disney Fantasy, and Disney Dream ships.
- Ponant CruisescoreLuxury French yacht cruising with itineraries including Mediterranean, Antarctica, Alaska, and Caribbean. Ships include Le Lyrial, Le Champlain, Le Jacques Cartier, Le Bellot, and others.
- Cunard CruisescorePartnership for Cunard's luxury ocean liners including Queen Mary 2, Queen Victoria, and Queen Elizabeth sailing worldwide routes.
- Holland America CruisescorePremium segment cruise offerings including MS Koningsdam and MS Zuiderdam with itineraries to Panama Canal, Caribbean, and Pacific Coast.
- Silversea CruisescoreUltra-luxury cruise experiences to all 7 continents and 800+ destinations. Ships include Silver Spirit, Silver Wind, and others.
- Seabourn CruisescoreIntimate luxury ships offering all-suite accommodations. Features include Seabourn Odyssey with 450 guests in 225 luxury suites.
- Uniworld River CruisescoreUltra-luxury river cruise experiences including S.S. Catherine, S.S. Antoinette, S.S. Joie de Vivre, River Beatrice, and Queen Isabel sailing European rivers.
- CroisiEuropecoreEuropean river and coastal cruising with ships including MS France, MS Victor Hugo, MS L'Europe, MS La Belle de L'Adriatique, and MS Camargue.
- Celebrity CruisescoreModern luxury cruise experiences with modern ships sailing to various global destinations.
- Celestyal CruisescoreGreek island and Mediterranean cruise experiences focusing on authentic cultural encounters.
- Quark ExpeditionscoreExpedition cruising to polar regions including Antarctica and Arctic, offering adventure travel experiences.
- Paul Gauguin CruisescoreLuxury cruising in the South Pacific, French Polynesia, and the Pacific Northwest aboard m/s Paul Gauguin.
- Lebanese Franchise AssociationcoreWild Discovery is a member of the Lebanese Franchise Association, providing franchisees with association support and networking.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Wild Discovery competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- TUI Group: Global tour operator and travel conglomerate — broad incumbent with overlapping cruise, holiday package, and MICE product; benchmark for vertical integration in the industry.
- Expedia Group: Global OTA conglomerate — broad incumbent competing on price-transparent leisure bookings, particularly outside Wild Discovery's high-touch corporate and MICE segments.
- Booking Holdings (Booking.com): Largest global online travel platform — broad incumbent whose hotel, flight, and experience inventory competes with Wild Discovery's core leisure and hotel-booking revenue.
- dnata Travel: Dubai-based travel division of dnata (Emirates Group) — large incumbent across leisure, corporate, and MICE across the Middle East, with overlapping corporate and inbound product.
Direct peers
- Holiday Tours & Travel: Long-established Lebanese travel agency offering flights, hotels, cruises, and MICE across the same Beirut-rooted customer base that Wild Discovery serves — direct competitor in leisure and corporate travel.
- Travco Group: Egypt-headquartered travel and tourism conglomerate operating retail agency, inbound tourism, hotel representation, and MICE across the Middle East — closest peer in business model and geography.
- Kurban Travel: Regional Middle East tour operator and travel agency with similar multi-vertical service (leisure, corporate, group, cruises) targeting outbound travelers across the Gulf and Levant markets.
- Nakhal Group: Lebanon-based travel and tourism group operating retail agency desks, MICE, and inbound tourism — competes head-to-head for Beirut-based corporate and leisure customers.
Regional players
- Almosafer: Saudi Arabia's flagship online travel agency (part of Seera Group) — competes for Middle East outbound bookings with stronger digital scale and Saudi market reach.
Emerging players
- Wego: Middle East–focused online travel meta-search and OTA — competitors for online leisure bookings out of Lebanon/GCC, though less focused on full-service and corporate.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Wild Discovery social profiles
Digital presenceWild Discovery financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Wild Discovery leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Wild Discovery funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Wild Discovery M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Wild Discovery
What does Wild Discovery do?
Wild Discovery is a Beirut-based travel agency that designs, packages, and sells leisure and corporate travel services including tailor-made holidays, holiday packages, airline ticketing, hotel booking, sea and river cruises, honeymoons, weddings, villa and yacht rentals, car rental, and travel insurance. It also provides corporate travel management, MICE, and group travel services through dedicated desks, complemented by a Travel Agent Desk reselling inventory to other agencies and an incoming tourism desk for visitors to Lebanon.
Is Wild Discovery a public or private company?
Wild Discovery is a private company. It is classified as family owned and is currently operating.
When was Wild Discovery founded?
Wild Discovery was founded in 1997. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Wild Discovery based?
Wild Discovery is headquartered in Beirut, Lebanon, in the Middle East region.
How does Wild Discovery make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Travel Package Sales are the primary driver. The others are franchise Fees, corporate Travel Services and MICE Services.
Who are Wild Discovery's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are TUI Group, Expedia Group, Booking Holdings (Booking.com) and dnata Travel. Direct peers are Holiday Tours & Travel, Travco Group, Kurban Travel and Nakhal Group. Almosafer is listed as a regional player. Wego is listed as an emerging player.
Does Wild Discovery have an API?
No public API is recorded for Wild Discovery.
What industry is Wild Discovery in?
Wild Discovery's product category is Travel Agency Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAKAFAB, Adventure & Expedition Travel Agencies, with a secondary code of THAKAOAA, Fee-Based/Independent Trip Planners (No Booking). Its NAICS code is 561510.