Hi, I’m David Ciccarelli — Founder & CEO of Lake.com
I build category-defining marketplaces. Today, I’m focused on Lake.com: the #1 platform for vacations by the water—lake houses, beach houses, luxury villas, and water-adjacent experiences.
Lake.com is a vertical OTA built for the shift to AI-first travel discovery.
We’ve designed Lake around a deep, water-specific taxonomy across 10,000+ destinations, transparent pricing, and faster supply onboarding through property management system (PMS) integrations.
Featured In
Forbes · The Wall Street Journal · Business Insider · BBC · CBC · MIT Sloan · Globe & Mail · National Post · Travel + Leisure
Why Lake.com Wins
Vertical Focus
Waterfront data that generalist OTAs don’t model well (dock, boat launch, shoreline, water depth, and more).
AI-first Discovery
Lake already shows up in 47% of U.S. AI-generated vacation rental results, outperforming larger incumbents in that channel.
Simple Economics
10% host fee, 0% guest fee, designed to increase conversion while improving host alignment and providing transparent pricing for guests.
Traction
Lake.com has 40,000 listings across 10,000 destinations throughout North America and Europe and reached 100,000 monthly active users.
The Opportunity
Water-adjacent stays represent an $84B global market, expanding toward a broader $200B “water vacations” opportunity as experiences layer on top of lodging.
About Me
I’m a 20-year entrepreneur who’s built and scaled online marketplaces, raised institutional capital, and led teams through multiple phases of growth. I’m a Harvard Business School graduate, and my work has been featured across major business and travel publications.
Through writing, speaking, and mentoring, I aim to support fellow founders and contribute to the broader conversation around innovation and entrepreneurship. I’ve published with Forbes, MIT Sloan, and The Globe & Mail, and frequently appear on podcasts and at industry events.
→ Get my notes on building Lake.com.
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