About Karibu

“Karibu” (kah-ree-boo) means “Welcome” in Swahili. This is why we exist.

Our mission is to make people feel welcomed and the world more familiar through human connections, cultural understanding, and a deeper sense of community. We do this through peer-to-peer, travel planning for people who are interested in authentic, locally-vetted, and personalized experiences.

Our approach is to match anyone planning a trip to a new country with people who grew up in that country to share tips and help plan the trip. Consider Karibu your personal travel planner for authentic, unique, and local experiences!

We hope this is more than just a business, but a small contribution to a broader movement towards empathy and kindness.

In ecology, there’s a concept called Edge Effects. When two different ecosystems collide, there is a greater chance for new life. Cities and all their cultural enclaves are perfect live illustrations of this concept.

Over the next few decades, a few trends have been happening and will continue to happen:

• Cities are growing in diversity. People are moving and the places we live are getting more diverse.

• At the same time, traveling is more personalized. More and more, we want personal and authentic experiences. We want to interact with the local community. We want to tips from people who call these places home.

• In-person, offline community is essential. We desire in-person, human connections. We see this as a core foundation to building and nurturing healthy communities.

We see these trends as an opportunity.

Stay updated, and tell us what you’d like to explore!