Uber Explore adds reservations, activities to the ride-hailing app
Another button is coming to the Uber app home screen: Uber Explore.
Like the name hints, this feature that launched in select cities Tuesday is a new way to find things to do. But instead of having to search Google or Yelp, you won't have to leave the Uber app for it.
Within the Uber Explore tab, you can look through different "experiences," which to start is mostly dining reservations and some live events, like music shows or concerts. Then you can directly make a reservation for, say, 7 p.m. dinner or Sunday afternoon brunch.
Since this is part of the Uber app, you can set up a ride to your meal or click the "ride there now" button after booking. All your payment info from ride-hailing can be used for buying tickets and entrance fees.
Uber has a lot of data on where you've gone and eaten (through Uber Eats), so it'll start with recommendations based on your Uber history. Creepy or helpful, you decide. You can also just go wherever Uber is offering discounts for the ride, up to $10 off.
To start, Uber Explore is available in 14 U.S. cities (Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Memphis, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New Orleans, New Jersey, upstate New York area, Orlando, San Antonio, San Francisco, and Seattle) and Mexico City.
For its launch, Yelp recommendations and reservations are available through the Uber app, but more options will be offered eventually. Uber Explore will also expand to more cities where Uber already operates as a car and food delivery service.
Topics Uber
Sasha is a news writer at Mashable's San Francisco office. She's an SF native who went to UC Davis and later received her master's from the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. She's been reporting out of her hometown over the years at Bay City News (news wire), SFGate (the San Francisco Chronicle website), and even made it out of California to write for the Chicago Tribune. She's been described as a bookworm and a gym rat.
