Fareportal, the company behind online travel brands such as CheapoAir and OneTravel, is targeting the European metasearch market with a deal to buy TripCombi.

Terms of the acquisition have not been disclosed.

The deal is being touted as a way to “elevate” the Fareportal brand outside of its core market of North America.

TripCombi originally started (TLabs here) as TripDelta, with a metasearch-type interface with a twist: by booking so-called “hidden flights” by looking for split tickets where each leg has to be bought separately on the airline or online travel agency website.

The Cologne-based startup received a $120,000 grant from the German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy and was, until the acquisition, part of one of the Microsoft Ventures Accelerators.

The company claims it can save “up to 80%” in airfares compared to its competitors, by using its combination technology.

Still, a maturing travel search sector is dominated in Europe by a number of high-profile brands such as Skyscanner, Momondo, Kayak, Dohop et al.

Fareportal has some 3,500 employees around the world, with CheapOair the most well-known of its consumer-facing businesses.

The company says the Tripcombi team, including co-founder and managing director Nikolas Langes, will be retaining their roles and becoming part of the wider group.

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