HouseTrip.com, one of the largest holiday rental websites in the world, today announces a USD$40M Series C funding round led by Accel Partners, with existing investors Balderton Capital and Index Ventures also participating. The investment will be used to expand its marketplace into more territories and develop new products and services for travellers and hosts.

HouseTrip launched in January 2010 with a vision to make online booking of holiday rentals as easy as booking a hotel and to empower property owners around the world to generate income by offering a more authentic accommodation experience for travellers. The website provides guests with a compelling selection of more than 130,000 properties available in over 15,000 destinations around the world. By the end of 2012, travellers will have booked more than 3 million nights' sleep via HouseTrip since its launch.

HouseTrip has achieved phenomenal growth in a highly fragmented market by systematically building quality supply and choice for each of its target destinations. The company is particularly focused on Europe, the largest segment of the $100billion+ global holiday rental market.

Arnaud Bertrand, Co-founder and CEO of HouseTrip, says: "My wife and I created HouseTrip on the back of a painful experience booking a holiday rental. We knew there had to be a better way to discover and book holiday rental accommodation that was both anxiety-free and easy-to-use."

HouseTrip has simplified and standardised the process of booking holiday rental properties and provides travellers a safe and secure way to discover and reserve accommodation. Additionally, HouseTrip offers powerful tools and services to hosts to help them generate more income and make their lives easier when managing their properties and bookings.

Junjun Chen-Bertrand, Co-founder and CFO, adds: "We are very excited to welcome Accel Partners as we look to expand internationally. Their experience in taking companies global will be a critical asset for the next phase of our growth."

Sonali De Rycker, Partner, Accel Partners, says: "In a short space of time HouseTrip is fast becoming the destination of choice for the European traveller. With a world-class product and management team, HouseTrip has the potential to create a very successful marketplace in the exciting category of vacation rentals."