Voyagin
Voyagin was a Japan-based online marketplace for booking tours, tickets, and travel activities, later absorbed and rebranded by Rakuten.
Last updated August 31, 2026
AI crawler reads
No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.
Overview
Voyagin was a Japanese travel-technology brand and online booking platform focused on tours, attraction tickets, and other activities. The business began in January 2011 as FindJPN, a startup founded by Masashi Takahashi and Hiroyuki Hayashi. It was initially developed through Open Network Lab, a Japanese startup incubator, and was intended to make travel and leisure experiences easier to discover and reserve, particularly for visitors to Japan. In 2012, the company relaunched under the name Voyagin. Tushar Khandelwal joined the business during this period, and the new identity reflected a broader international ambition rather than a Japan-only focus. Voyagin positioned itself as a marketplace connecting travelers and local customers with bookable experiences, including tours, admission tickets, and activities. Its service concentrated on Asian destinations, while also making selected offerings available in parts of Europe and the United States. The company obtained seed funding from Digital Garage and other investors in 2012. In 2014, it raised a further funding round of $500,000 led by Singapore's National Research Foundation and Jungle Ventures. These investments supported the expansion of its marketplace, technology, and regional travel operations. The company operated in a highly competitive travel-distribution environment alongside online travel agencies, destination-ticketing businesses, and local experience platforms. Rakuten announced in July 2015 that it had acquired a majority stake in Voyagin after several months of negotiations. The financial terms were not disclosed. The transaction formed part of Rakuten's effort to strengthen its position in the Asian travel market and broaden its travel services beyond conventional accommodation and transportation bookings. Voyagin continued to operate with its own name and website after the investment, while benefiting from its relationship with the broader Rakuten ecosystem. Rakuten later decided to integrate the company into its own corporate structure. An absorption-type merger was announced in April 2020 and completed on 1 July 2020. Rakuten retained the Voyagin name and website for a period following the merger, but the standalone company ceased to exist as an independent corporate entity. In December 2021, the service was renamed Rakuten Travel Experiences and relaunched through a new website. The successor service expanded its geographic coverage beyond Voyagin's earlier focus to include destinations in North and South America and Oceania. Accordingly, Voyagin is best understood as a predecessor brand within Rakuten's travel-experiences business rather than an active standalone company.
History
Voyagin originated in January 2011 as FindJPN, a startup founded by Masashi Takahashi and Hiroyuki Hayashi. The business was created within Open Network Lab, a Japanese incubator, and focused on helping travelers find and reserve activities in Japan. Its model belonged to the emerging online travel-experiences sector, in which digital platforms aggregate tours, admission tickets, and other local activities and make them available for advance booking. The company adopted the Voyagin name in 2012. Tushar Khandelwal joined the business during the relaunch, which marked a shift toward a more international brand identity and a wider regional opportunity. Rather than operating solely as a domestic Japanese booking service, Voyagin sought to serve international visitors and local customers looking for bookable experiences across Asia. The platform's inventory included tours, attractions, entertainment, and other activities supplied by local operators. Voyagin received seed investment from Digital Garage and other investors in 2012. It subsequently raised $500,000 in 2014 in a round led by Singapore's National Research Foundation and Jungle Ventures. The funding helped the company develop its marketplace and pursue regional growth, although the available reference material does not provide detailed operating or financial metrics. Rakuten announced in July 2015 that it had purchased a majority stake in Voyagin. The acquisition followed approximately six months of discussions, and its price was not made public. For Rakuten, the transaction was a way to extend its travel business into experiences and activities and to increase its participation in the Asian travel market. Voyagin continued under its established brand after the investment, retaining its website while becoming part of Rakuten's wider corporate and commercial environment. The company's marketplace offered activities in Japan and other Asian locations, with selected inventory in Europe and the United States. Its core proposition was the digital discovery and reservation of experiences rather than the sale of conventional package holidays. This placed Voyagin alongside online travel agencies, ticketing platforms, and specialist local-experience businesses. In April 2020, Rakuten announced that Voyagin would be integrated through an absorption-type merger. The transaction was completed on 1 July 2020. Although Rakuten initially retained the Voyagin name and website, the merger removed the company as a separately operating corporate entity. In December 2021, Rakuten changed the service's name to Rakuten Travel Experiences and introduced a new website. The successor operation expanded its destination coverage to North and South America and Oceania as well as the markets associated with Voyagin. Voyagin's historical significance therefore lies in its role as an early Japan-based travel-activities marketplace and as a predecessor to Rakuten's broader travel-experiences service.
- 2021
Rebrand to Rakuten Travel Experiences
[1]The service changes its name and launches a new Rakuten Travel Experiences website in December.
- 2020
Voyagin is merged into Rakuten
[1]The absorption-type merger is completed on 1 July 2020.
- 2015
Rakuten acquires a majority stake
[1]Rakuten announces its majority investment in Voyagin as part of an Asian travel-market expansion strategy.
- 2014
Second funding round
[1]Voyagin raises $500,000 in a round led by Singapore's National Research Foundation and Jungle Ventures.
- 2012
The brand becomes Voyagin
[1]The company relaunches under the Voyagin name with a more international focus; Tushar Khandelwal joins the business.
- 2012
Seed funding is raised
[1]Voyagin raises seed financing from Digital Garage and other investors.
- 2011
FindJPN is founded
[1]Masashi Takahashi and Hiroyuki Hayashi establish the business as FindJPN through Open Network Lab.
Products and positioning
A digital marketplace for discovering and booking tours, tickets, and local travel experiences, with an initial emphasis on Japan and broader Asian destinations.
Travel activities · 2012
Tours and guided activities
Voyagin aggregated tours and guided activities that travelers and local customers could discover and reserve online. The offering emphasized destination-specific experiences supplied by local operators, initially concentrating on Japan and later extending across Asian markets and selected destinations elsewhere.
Travel tickets · 2012
Attraction and entertainment tickets
The platform provided online access to tickets for attractions, entertainment, and other visitor activities. This inventory complemented guided tours and helped position Voyagin as an experiences marketplace rather than a conventional accommodation-focused travel agency.
Successor travel platform · 2021
Rakuten Travel Experiences
After Rakuten absorbed Voyagin, the business was renamed Rakuten Travel Experiences in December 2021. The successor service retained the travel-activities orientation while expanding destination coverage to North and South America and Oceania.
Brand decisions
2021
Rebrand the service as Rakuten Travel ExperiencesStrategyBackground
Following the corporate merger, Rakuten aligned the activities business more closely with its travel portfolio.
Action taken
Rakuten changed the name to Rakuten Travel Experiences and launched a new website in December 2021.
Aftermath
The Voyagin identity was retired as a standalone service brand, while the underlying travel-experiences business continued with broader global coverage.
2020
Absorb Voyagin into RakutenM&ABackground
Rakuten decided to simplify the corporate structure and integrate Voyagin directly into the parent company.
Action taken
Rakuten announced an absorption-type merger in April 2020 and completed it on 1 July 2020.
Aftermath
Voyagin ceased to be an independent company, although the brand and website were retained temporarily.
2015
Rakuten takes a majority stake in VoyaginM&ABackground
Rakuten wanted to expand its travel-market presence in Asia and add activities to its travel-related services.
Action taken
Rakuten acquired a majority stake after approximately six months of negotiations; the purchase price was undisclosed.
Aftermath
Voyagin continued to operate under its name and website within the Rakuten group before later corporate integration.
2012
Adopt the Voyagin brand and pursue international growthStrategyBackground
The business moved beyond its original FindJPN identity and sought to serve travelers across Japan and wider Asian markets.
Action taken
The founders relaunched the platform as Voyagin and developed it as a broader tours-and-activities marketplace.
Aftermath
The new identity supported regional expansion and preceded the company's later majority investment by Rakuten.
Recent events
- 2021
Voyagin is rebranded as Rakuten Travel Experiences[1]
Product launch
In December 2021, Rakuten changed the service's name to Rakuten Travel Experiences and launched a new website.
- 2020
Rakuten announces absorption of Voyagin[1]
M&A
Rakuten announced that Voyagin would be merged into the parent company through an absorption-type merger.
- 2020
Voyagin is absorbed into Rakuten[1]
M&A
The merger was completed on 1 July 2020, ending Voyagin's status as an independent company while its name and website were temporarily retained.
- 2015
Rakuten acquires a majority stake in Voyagin[1]
M&A
Rakuten announced the acquisition of a majority stake in Voyagin to expand its presence in the Asian travel market. The transaction value was not disclosed.
- 2014
Voyagin raises a second funding round[1]
Other
Voyagin raised $500,000 in a funding round led by Singapore's National Research Foundation and Jungle Ventures.
Sources2 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/voyagin · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled