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Launch HN: Solve (YC S17) – We Save International Travelers Hours of Time

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Re: Launch HN: Solve (YC S17) – We Save International Travelers Hours of Time

#161

Post by [deleted] »

deepGem wrote: post #31
JimDabell wrote: post #7

One of the first things I do when I arrive in a new country is pick up a local SIM card so I can use my phone without roaming charges. Sometimes this is nice and simple where you just walk to a booth in the airport and pick one up, other times it's a real hassle, having to hunt around for a local shop and fill in personal information on sign-up. Have you considered providing local SIM cards as part of your service?

This is a huge pain in many of the airports that I have travelled. In fact, you'll even get ripped off at some. For example Rome. We paid 50 euros for a supposedly Schengen wide 1GB plan but as soon as we left Italy that SIM was useless. So yeah, I'd definitely pay someone if they can just hand me a SIM at a nominal price as soon as I walk out of immigration/baggage claim Singapore has done this in a great way. As so…

[deleted]

Re: Launch HN: Solve (YC S17) – We Save International Travelers Hours of Time

#162

Post by ctphipps »

deepGem wrote: post #159
Pamar wrote: post #126

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you (or anyone else) has to travel to Japan I endorse https://www.rentafonejapan.com/ - they will have the phone or cell modem delivered to your hotel and you can drop it to the reception or in a mail delivery box on your way to the airport.

Man, Japan is way ahead of the rest of the world, when it comes to certain aspects of convenience.

...and way behind in others. Try finding a pre-paid voice & data SIM in Japan (hint: it doesn't exist due to arcane regulations - non-residents can only get data-only SIMs). Most WiFi spots require registration that require you to confirm identity via a verification email (think chicken and egg).

Re: Launch HN: Solve (YC S17) – We Save International Travelers Hours of Time

#163

Post by ctphipps »

kobeya wrote: post #112
mrtimo wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

T-mobile (Post-paid) has free international data and SMS... works in 100s of countries. No extra cost. This is the sole reason I am a customer. The data is slow, but definitely good enough. It is good enough to use google hangouts to call phones back in the states.

T-mobile also routes though a Texas VPN when you're out of the country, which has its tradeoffs (super annoying latency, but no censorship in places like China).

This is the way that mobile data roaming works - the Internet egress point is your home carrier's, not the carrier on which you are roaming. Nothing special about T-Mobile here.

Re: Launch HN: Solve (YC S17) – We Save International Travelers Hours of Time

#164

Post by shawnsheikh »

pdovy wrote: post #141

I'd agree with other commenters here that it seems pretty expensive for what you're getting, or at least the value proposition is poorly presented. For example, I don't see any reason why I'd want to pay for this at a US airport (at least from the perspective of a US citizen). On the other hand if you told me the immigration line at XYZ airport was typically 45-60 minutes long and you could guarantee me priority acce…

Love all of your points here. The pain for a lot of customers seems to be international travel. You're often not sure what to expect and once you're out of the airport safety can also be a factory.

We're working with a ton of different vendors and suppliers so pricing is a bit opaque, however we're working to normalize and bring down pricing as we grow the business. For example Johannesburg is $140 for the first two travelers and $60 there after.

Overall, the goal is to modernize this industry and provide different products to different customer segments based on price/features. This is just the beginning :)

Re: Launch HN: Solve (YC S17) – We Save International Travelers Hours of Time

#165

Post by shawnsheikh »

anovikov wrote: post #9

Do it guys! There is definitely a demand for this!!! VIP lounges, fast track and other premium services are all different from airport to airport, procedure for ordering them is unpredictable and sometimes cumbersome (like, faxing a request on the company blank and paying through the wire transfer ONLY, no credit cards accepted - that isn't an exception, but more like the accepted practice). If you will figure it out…

Appreciate the kind words and support! You're amazing! Before we started this company definitely felt the low tech insecurities of booking these types of service. To your point, the goal is to definitely "Uberfy" the process as we grow. Thanks again and we hope to serve you soon!

Re: Launch HN: Solve (YC S17) – We Save International Travelers Hours of Time

#166

Post by ctphipps »

shawnsheikh wrote: post #150
rsync wrote: post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Global Entry [0], if you are a US citizen or permanent resident." Ok. But how are they (Solve) going to do it ? Or is the US entry side of things not part of their product offering ?

You're correct in that we can't offer immigrations/customs help in US airports (with the exception of JFK and MIA). However, we can help in about 400 airports around the world. We can expedite clients through departures on international flights. A lot of our clients flying domestic, however, still find value in the service especially families and the elderly.

Wow, that kills your arrivals product in the US then. $375 for someone who will meet me with a smile, watch me line up for immigration and carry bags? An interesting tidbit is that Japan Airlines offers a similar service for free for familes: https://www.jal.co.jp/en/inter/support/family/

Re: Launch HN: Solve (YC S17) – We Save International Travelers Hours of Time

#167

Post by mindhash »

This could work when my non English speaking parents visit my brother in US. Also there are quite a few travel packages that non English people travel on. Its a very useful solution for such groups. I am not sure how big market you are targeting though. It could be big if you look internationally. All the best

Re: Launch HN: Solve (YC S17) – We Save International Travelers Hours of Time

#168

Post by tehlike »

jrbancel wrote: post #104
rsync wrote: post #77

How does this work, inbound, to the US ? When I return to the US (San Francisco) on first class or business tickets there is no segregation of lines/service - you queue up in the big line and wait your turn (45-60 minutes later) like everyone else. Other than diplomats, I see no mechanism for expediting immigration/customs inbound to the US and my (short, reckless) research suggested that expedited immigration/custom…

> I see no mechanism for expediting immigration/customs inbound to the US Global Entry [0], if you are a US citizen or permanent resident. It is life changing. Immigration takes under a minute at a kiosk and there is a priority lane at Customs. [0] https://www.cbp.gov/travel/trusted-traveler-programs/global-...

+1. It took 20 seconds to clear immigration and customs last time.

Re: Launch HN: Solve (YC S17) – We Save International Travelers Hours of Time

#169

Post by tehlike »

anovikov wrote: post #10
refrigerator wrote: post #2

Looks interesting! Out of curiosity, how do you guys actually expedite clients through immigration/customs/security? Do airports really let you do this?

Every airport already has this service. It is simply complicated to order it. Like VIP/CIP lounge/fast track/diplomatic channel/anything. That is a complicated, unsexy business though. It will be hard to pull off on a scale, in many airports.

do things that don't scale.

Re: Launch HN: Solve (YC S17) – We Save International Travelers Hours of Time

#170

Post by kirillzubovsky »

This all sounded incredibly like a very San Francisco first world problem, until I thought of one use case for which you could be incredibly useful - old grandparents who don't speak the language traveling internationally on their own. I know mine are always afraid to travel because there is no one to help them on connecting flight to go cross customs on arrival. $300 to help them move doesn't sound all too bad, when combined tickets are already over a grand.
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