Yododo, China's leading hostel booking and independent travel community, announced today that it has received $4 million in Series A financing from Gobi Partners. With the growth of China's middle class, the overall travel sector has been booming, and niche segments such as hostel booking have also seen significant growth.

'As independent travel becomes more popular within China, the non-traditional accommodation segment (e.g. hostels, short-term rental houses) will become more widely accepted,' said Don Jiang, a partner at Gobi Partners. 'Yododo has grown with this new market opportunity, and with Gobi's support, we believe that its future upside potential will be huge.'

Yododo.com has already established itself as the largest Chinese independent travel community, with over 6 million users actively discussing and sharing travel information, itineraries, and strategies in popular community forums. In 2008, Yododo launched its local hostel booking platform to provide more convenient and cost-effective services for its users.

'Since the company's was first established, we have enjoyed steady growth,' noted Marriane Miao, CEO of Yododo. 'Users trust our platform and actively contribute to the community on a daily basis.'

On top of hostel booking services, Yododo aims to provide one-stop services for independent travelers, including destination travel tips, suggested itineraries, as well as food and activity recommendations. Apart from these, Yododo also provides services that help its users find travel buddies, share and manage their travel photos, and track and review previous travel experiences.

In terms of future plans, Miao expressed, 'With this new round of financing, we are confident in our future growth potential. We will continue to focus on improving user experience by expanding our hostel network, improving service quality, and increasing range of product offerings. We will also begin to increase our marketing efforts to drive further expansion.'