Is there room for SameSky?

Is there room for one more?

That’s the question Intel Corp. executive Jennie Bettles asked herself a year ago, when she witnessed the meteoric rise of Microsoft Corp.’s Mungo Park and Mountain Travel Sobek in the estimated $10 billion-a-year adventure travel niche.

And her answer was yes. Definitely.

“When I was doing market research, I was pleasantly surprised to see a significant amount of opportunity,” she says. So in 1996 Bettles resigned from her post at the Santa Clara, CA, chip maker to form SameSky, a Web site for the “traveler who wants an authentic experience, who wants to get off the beaten track.”

On the outside, her formula sounds similar to Mungo Park’s. The Microsoft-backed mega-site has been staking out market share with a savvy mix of creative marketing and outrageous publicity stunts during the last few months.

But listen closely and the differences become apparent. “SameSky builds and supports a community of explorers,” explains Bettles. “We’re very focused on the community angle.”

In other words, don’t expect Bettles’ Oakland, CA, company to sponsor a Martha Stewart trip north of the border, or a Dr. Ruth excursion to an exotic island. “There are things that Microsoft can’t do. It’s got everything to do with heart and soul-they can’t afford to have it,” Bettles says.

You could probably substitute the word “politics” for “heart and soul.” SameSky is going after upper-middle class, college educated, Volvo-driving, “slightly left-leaning” travelers who American Demographics magazine has referred to as “cultural creatives,” according to Bettles. “They don’t do Disneyland and Waikiki and they don’t cruise,” she adds.

Here’s how SameSky works: travelers access information about offbeat destinations from the home page. A recent SameSky edition featured Peru, for example. From there, the site links to a series of possible itineraries, such as an “Inca Highlands Trek” or “Amazon Expedition.” Through the site’s Adventure Bureau, users may book a trip by specifying their destination or activity.

SameSky uses a travel agency model to make money, and despite the recent commission crisis, Bettles says the system is workable. “I’m applying the same business processes I learned at Intel to travel,” she says.

Functionally, Bettles admits SameSky is not much different from the majority of travel sites. Philosophically, however, the contrasts are glaring. “My general feeling is that there are a lot of people doing mainstream travel. A lot of people are talking about the ‘how’ of travel – getting from point A to point B – but not the ‘why.’”

SameSky seeks to remedy the lack of “why,” Bettles says. “Travel has held a very important place in my life. I want to share that.” Indeed, she credits a trip to the highlands of Guatemala with crystallizing her entrepreneurial ambitions and leading to the incorporation of SameSky. “It was,” she adds, “a series of experiences that played a special place in my life.”

It is too soon to tell if SameSky can carve its own niche within a niche between Mungo Park and Mountain Travel. Don’t expect to see a big SameSky advertising campaign for a while. Bettles doesn’t want to commit her company to accepting more bookings than she and her two full-time employees can handle. Besides, she’s still busy raising capital from individual investors.

But soon – Bettles is hesitant to predict when – SameSky will emerge as a major brand in online adventure travel, she says. Stay tuned.

Christopher Elliott is the author of Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals. Critics have called it “eye-opening” and “inspiring” — it’ll “grab your attention and won’t let go.” Order your copy now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes.

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