Traveling to away Gator games could get easier with a new Airbnb-style app.
Edoardo Moauro, a 22-year-old recent Georgia Institute of Technology graduate, co-created the app Spots to make traveling to away games feasible. Spots is a home-sharing app that lets students stay with other students in different college towns.
Moauro and three other team members are currently touring SEC schools to promote Spots. They arrive at UF on Tuesday.
All hosts on the app live off campus but relatively close to their school, Moauro said. Students can be guests or hosts, and prices start as low as $15 a night.
Both guests and hosts on Spots must be current students registered with an .edu email. The Spots team also conducts background checks, reviews social media and calls prospective hosts.
The app, which has been live on the Apple’s app store since last year, currently has more than 5,000 users at 600 schools across the nation, Moauro said.
“You get to know the people,” Moauro said. “They introduce you to their friends, and you really get a sense of the city that I feel you wouldn’t get if you’re staying in a hotel.”
Gabriel Gonzalez, a 19-year-old UF exploratory freshman, said the app opens up the possibility to attend more away games — something he’s only had the opportunity to do when he’s had friends to stay with.
“It’s cheap, and it helps you out,” Gonzalez said. “So that’s always good for college students.”
