# Meet TicketPa: how our booking system works, from booking page to check-in

Published 2026-09-25, updated 2026-10-14 by the TicketPa team. Source: https://ticketpa.com/blog/meet-ticketpa-booking-software-for-tour-operators

TicketPa is an online booking system for small businesses that sell time slots: tours, classes, workshops, escape rooms, boat trips and tastings. Guests book and pay on your own booking page, and your team runs schedules, guest lists, payments and check-in from one place, on a phone or a computer. The name is short for Ticket Personal Assistant.

This article explains how TicketPa works, step by step: from setting up your business to the moment the last guest is checked in. It also says plainly what TicketPa doesn't do yet, so you can tell whether it fits.

## What is TicketPa?

TicketPa is booking software for anything people book by start time and place. It runs in the browser, so there is nothing to install for you, your team or your guests, and it works in any country and currency. You set your activities and times once, share your booking page, and TicketPa keeps your calendar, places and guest lists in step as bookings arrive.

## Who TicketPa is for

TicketPa fits any business where guests book a start time at a place, run by a small team: an owner, a few staff and hosts. For example:

- [Tours](https://ticketpa.com/tour-booking-software): walking, food, city and day tours
- [Classes](https://ticketpa.com/class-booking-software): cooking, art, language and dance classes
- [Workshops](https://ticketpa.com/workshop-booking-software): pottery, craft and hands-on sessions
- [Escape rooms](https://ticketpa.com/escape-room-booking-software), sold one group per game
- [Boat trips and water sports](https://ticketpa.com/boat-tour-booking-software): boat trips, kayak tours and surf lessons
- [Tastings](https://ticketpa.com/wine-tasting-booking-software): wine, beer and food tastings

You don't need a website, a developer or a sales call to start.

## How TicketPa works, step by step

### 1. Set up your business

Create your account and add your business with its country, timezone and currency. Add the places where your activities happen as locations, each with an address, a map link and notes for guests, such as "look for the orange umbrella".

### 2. Create your activities

For each activity, add a description, photos and its tickets:

- **Tickets per person,** such as adult, child and family.
- **Private groups,** priced per group, which book the whole time slot.
- **Paid extras,** such as lunch, photos, materials or gear hire.

Then set its weekly schedule, for example every day at 10:00 and 14:00, and TicketPa creates time slots up to four months ahead. Choose its booking rules (how close to the start guests can book, how far ahead, and the smallest and largest group), its cancellation policy, and a waiver if guests need to sign one. If an activity needs staff, rooms or equipment, say who can run it and what it uses, and TicketPa puts free staff on each booked time slot without double-booking anyone or anything.

### 3. Share your booking page

Every business gets its own booking page with your logo, your colour and a short intro. Share the link on Instagram, your Google Business Profile and in WhatsApp chats, or paste a short snippet into your website to add a Book now button.

### 4. Guests book and pay

Guests see live availability, pick a date, a time and their tickets, and book in a few taps on any phone, with no app and no account. You choose how they pay:

- **On arrival,** in cash, by card or by bank transfer, recorded by your team at check-in.
- **Online when booking,** through your own Stripe or PayPal account.
- **Their choice** of the two.

While a guest checks out, their places are held, so two people can never book the last spot.

### 5. TicketPa sends the emails

Every guest gets a confirmation with a QR ticket, a reminder before they arrive at the time you choose, and a thank-you afterwards that links to your review page. If you move or cancel their booking, they get an email about that too. Guests paying online who don't finish checking out get one reminder before their places are released.

From their ticket, guests can cancel up to the start time and get the refund your policy allows, or move to another time slot while cancelling is still fully refunded. They can also sign your waiver there before they arrive.

### 6. Run the day from your phone

The Today view shows the day's time slots, who is coming, what is still to collect and the latest bookings. Open the guest list for any time slot, scan QR tickets with your phone camera, and check in a whole group or only the guests who have arrived. Add walk-in guests on the spot and record their payment. Mark no-shows by hand, or let TicketPa mark them after each time slot.

When the weather turns, cancel the time slot from its guest list. Every booking on it is cancelled, online payments are refunded in full, and every guest gets an email with your note and a link to book another time.

### 7. See how it is going

Reports show bookings, guests, money and places taken by activity and by channel (your booking page, your team or walk-ins) for any date range, with a daily trend chart and a CSV download.

## Your team

Invite your team with the access they need:

| Role    | What they can do                                                                   |
| ------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Owner   | Everything, including payments, members and the business itself                    |
| Manager | Activities, schedules, bookings, the booking page and reports                      |
| Host    | The day itself: their time slots, guest lists, check-in, walk-ins and payments due |

Hosts don't see your reports or payment settings.

## Built to work in any country

TicketPa is not tied to one market. You set prices in your own currency, including currencies without cents such as the Japanese yen. Time slots follow your location's timezone, so a 10:00 class stays at 10:00 when the clocks change, and guests can enter phone numbers in any international format. Pay on arrival works everywhere, and online payments work wherever Stripe or PayPal does.

## What TicketPa replaces

Many small businesses run bookings on a mix of tools that were never meant for it:

| Before                                            | With TicketPa                                     |
| ------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------- |
| Booking requests in WhatsApp, Instagram and email | One booking page with live availability           |
| A spreadsheet or paper list per day               | A guest list for every time slot                  |
| Losing track of who has paid                      | Every booking shows what is paid and still to pay |
| Working out refunds by hand                       | Refunds that follow your cancellation policy      |
| Messaging every guest when a session is cancelled | One action that refunds and emails everyone       |
| Guessing how the season went                      | Reports by activity and channel for any range     |

## Direct bookings next to your marketplace listings

Many tour and activity businesses sell through online travel agencies such as Viator and GetYourGuide, and that is fine: they bring guests who would never find you otherwise. TicketPa is where you take bookings directly, from your website, your Google profile, social media and repeat guests, without commission on the ticket price. It also syncs with Viator and GetYourGuide, so their bookings land in the same calendar and every channel sells from the same places. We compare the costs in [OTA commission vs direct bookings](https://ticketpa.com/blog/ota-commission-vs-direct-bookings).

## What TicketPa costs

TicketPa has three plans: Basic at €19 a month, Standard at €49 and Pro at €99, plus a small fee only on bookings paid online (2%, 1% or 0.5%). Bookings paid on arrival carry no fee, and every plan starts with a 30-day free trial of Standard. See [pricing](https://ticketpa.com/pricing) for what each plan includes.

## What TicketPa doesn't do yet

So you can judge the fit honestly, here is what TicketPa doesn't do today:

- **No memberships, class passes or multi-week courses.** Guests book and pay for single time slots.
- **No gift vouchers, promo codes or deposits.** Guests pay the full price, online or on arrival.

## Frequently asked questions

### What does TicketPa stand for?

TicketPa is short for Ticket Personal Assistant. The idea is that it takes care of the booking admin, such as availability, tickets, payments, reminders and guest lists, so you can spend your time hosting and looking after guests instead of answering messages.

### Is TicketPa a marketplace like Viator or GetYourGuide?

No. TicketPa is booking software, not a marketplace. It powers your own booking page, so guests book with your business directly and their details stay with you. You can keep selling through online travel agencies too, and use TicketPa for the bookings that come from your website, Google, social media and repeat guests.

### Can I use TicketPa for classes and workshops, not only tours?

Yes. If guests book a start time and a place, TicketPa fits: cooking classes, pottery workshops, tastings, escape rooms and boat trips work the same way as tours. You set the times and the number of places, add tickets and extras, and guests book them.

### Do I need a website to use TicketPa?

No. Every business gets its own booking page with a link you can share, so you can take bookings without a website. If you already have one, paste a short snippet to add a Book now button that opens your booking page, or link a button you already have to it.

### Can guests book on their phone?

Yes. The booking page works in any mobile browser, with no app and no account to create. Guests pick a date, choose a time and tickets, pay if you ask them to, and get their QR ticket by email. The page is designed for small screens first, because that is where most guests book.

### How much does TicketPa cost?

Plans start at €19 a month, plus a fee of 2%, 1% or 0.5% on bookings paid online, depending on the plan. Bookings paid on arrival carry no fee on any plan, paying yearly gives two months free, and every plan starts with a 30-day free trial of Standard with no card needed.