Glossary
Every term you meet when you take bookings online, explained in a few sentences each: how time slots, cut-offs and capacity work, what OTAs, net rates and channel managers are, and what the payment words on your statement mean. Written for tour, activity, class and workshop businesses, with links to the guides that go deeper.
A booking a guest started on the booking page but did not finish, usually because they left the checkout before paying. Booking software can hold the places for a few minutes and then release them, and some systems email the guest a reminder with a link back to their unfinished booking. Tracking abandoned bookings shows where guests drop out.
See also: Place hold, How guests book
A paid extra sold alongside a ticket, such as photos, lunch, equipment hire or a transfer. Guests add it while booking and pay for everything in one go, so the business sells more per booking without a second transaction. Add-ons have their own price and can be optional or required for an activity.
See also: Ticket type (price option), Set prices for an activity
The places a business still has to sell for each start time, after existing bookings, holds and closed dates are taken out. Live availability means the booking page shows the current number in real time, so two guests can never buy the same last place. Keeping it right is the core job of booking software.
See also: Capacity, Time slot, How time slots work
The latest moment a guest can book a start time, such as two hours or one day before it begins. Also called lead time. A cut-off gives the team time to prepare, assign a guide or buy supplies, and stops bookings arriving after the group has already left the meeting point.
See also: Booking window, Booking rules, Set booking rules and a cancellation policy
The part of booking software that checks availability, prices a selection, holds places during checkout and records the finished booking. Guests see it as the booking page or widget; the business sees it as the calendar filling up. A good booking engine prevents double bookings and applies the business's rules on every channel.
See also: Booking software, Booking page
A charge per booking or a percentage of its value that booking software or a marketplace adds on top of, or takes out of, the ticket price. Some systems charge the guest, some the business, some both. A fee of 6% on a €100 booking costs €6, so compare fees on your own volume, not the headline price.
See also: How much does booking software cost? Subscriptions, booking fees and real 2026 prices, Commission, Card processing fee, Pricing, Cost calculator
A web address that opens a business's booking page or one activity on it, ready to book. It goes in an Instagram bio, a WhatsApp reply, a Google Business Profile, an email signature or a QR code on a flyer, so guests can book from wherever they found the business, without a website.
See also: How to take bookings from Instagram, Google and WhatsApp with one booking link, Share your booking page
The public page where guests pick a date, a start time and tickets, enter their details and pay. Booking software hosts it under the business's name and branding, so a business needs no website of its own to sell online. The page shows live availability and sends guests a confirmation when they finish.
See also: Customise your booking page, How guests book, Booking widget (Book now button)
The short code that identifies one booking, printed on the ticket and in every email about it. Guests quote it when they call, and the team types or scans it at check-in to find the booking at once. A reference stays the same when a booking is moved, paid or partly refunded.
See also: QR ticket, Find bookings
The limits a business sets on how guests may book: the cut-off before a start time, how far ahead the calendar opens, and the smallest and largest group one booking can hold. Booking software applies them automatically on every channel, so the team never has to turn away or chase a booking that broke a rule by hand.
See also: Booking cut-off, Booking window, Group size limits, Set booking rules and a cancellation policy
Software that lets guests book and pay for a service online at a time the business offers, and gives the business one calendar, guest list and payment record for every booking. Also called a booking system, reservation software or a booking platform. For tours, classes and activities it sells places in time slots rather than appointments or rooms.
See also: What is booking software? A plain guide to online booking systems, How to choose booking software: 10 questions to ask before you sign up, Booking engine
Where a booking stands: confirmed, awaiting payment, cancelled, checked in or marked as a no-show. The status changes as the guest pays, the team checks them in or someone cancels, and every change is kept in the booking's timeline. Reports count bookings by status, so cancelled bookings never inflate the numbers.
See also: Booking statuses explained, No-show, Check-in
A small piece of code a business pastes into its own website to let visitors book without leaving it, as a Book now button or an embedded calendar. The widget talks to the same booking engine as the booking page, so availability, prices and rules are the same everywhere. It works on any website builder.
See also: How to add a booking button to your website: WordPress, Wix, Squarespace and Shopify, Add a Book now button to your website, Booking page
How far ahead guests can book, such as 90 days or four months. A booking window keeps the calendar open as far as the schedule is certain and no further, so the business is not committed to dates it may need to change. Together with the cut-off it frames when each start time can be sold.
See also: Booking cut-off, Schedule, Set booking rules and a cancellation policy
The terms that say whether, when and how much a guest gets back when they cancel: free cancellation until 24 hours before, for example, then no refund. Guests must see the policy before they book. Booking software shows it on the booking page and the ticket and applies it automatically when a guest cancels online.
See also: Tour cancellation policy: 4 templates and how to automate refunds, Cancellation window, Refund, Set booking rules and a cancellation policy
The period before a start time during which a guest can still cancel for a full refund, such as 24 or 48 hours. Once it closes, the policy's late terms apply: a partial refund or none. A clear window reduces last-minute cancellations because guests who change plans do it while a refund is still possible.
See also: Cancellation policy, How guests cancel or move a booking
The most places one start time can take: the seats on a boat, the stations in a workshop or the people one guide can lead. Booking software counts every booking against it and closes the time slot when it is full. Capacity can be changed for one date without touching the rest of the schedule.
See also: Availability, Time slot, Resource, Edit a time slot
What a payment processor such as Stripe or PayPal charges to take a card payment, typically a percentage of the amount plus a fixed sum per transaction, and more for cards issued abroad. It is separate from any booking fee the software charges, and it is taken out of the payment before the money reaches the business.
See also: Payment processor, Booking fee, Online payment fees explained, Cost calculator
A tool that lists the same time slots on several sales channels, such as a business's own booking page, Viator and GetYourGuide, and keeps availability in sync across them. When a place sells anywhere, it disappears everywhere, so marketplaces never oversell. Some booking systems include one; others connect to a separate channel manager.
See also: Online travel agency (OTA), Sales channel, OTA commission vs direct bookings: real costs and how to take bookings direct
A payment reversed by the guest's bank after the guest disputes a card charge, for example for a tour they say they never booked. The processor takes the money back from the business and usually adds a dispute fee. Clear confirmation emails, a visible cancellation policy and check-in records are the evidence that wins disputes.
See also: Payment processor, Confirmation email
Recording that a guest has arrived for their start time, by scanning the QR code on their ticket or ticking them off the guest list. Check-in shows at a glance who is still missing, lets the team take outstanding payments on the spot and gives reports the real attendance rather than the number of bookings.
See also: Check guests in, Scan tickets, QR ticket, No-show
Days a business does not sell, such as public holidays, maintenance days or a season break, taken out of the calendar without changing the weekly schedule. Also called blackout dates. Booking software hides closed dates from the booking page and can cancel or move any bookings that were already made on them.
See also: Close dates for holidays and days off, Schedule
The share of each booking that a marketplace or reseller keeps for bringing the guest, typically 20% to 30% of the ticket price on online travel agencies. The business receives the rest, often weeks later. Commission is the price of reach; direct bookings through the business's own page carry none.
See also: OTA commission vs direct bookings: real costs and how to take bookings direct, Online travel agency (OTA), Net rate, Direct booking, Cost calculator
The automatic email a guest receives as soon as their booking is complete, with the date, start time, meeting point, what they paid, the cancellation policy and their ticket. It is the guest's proof of booking and the first place they look for details, so booking software sends it within seconds, under the business's name.
See also: Emails your guests get, QR ticket, Reminder email
A part of the price paid when booking, with the rest paid on the day or closer to it. Deposits secure a place for expensive or private experiences without asking for the full amount months ahead, and they make a no-show cost the guest something. Booking software records the balance still due against the booking.
See also: Pay on arrival, No-show, Take a payment in person
A booking a guest makes with the business itself, on its booking page or website, by phone or in person, rather than through a marketplace or reseller. Direct bookings carry no commission, give the business the guest's contact details and let it set its own terms. Most operators aim to grow their direct share.
See also: OTA commission vs direct bookings: real costs and how to take bookings direct, Commission, Booking page
Selling the same place, guide or piece of equipment twice for the same time, usually because bookings came in through two channels or two people took them by hand. Booking software prevents it by counting every channel against one capacity and holding places while a guest checks out, so the last place can only be sold once.
See also: Availability, Place hold, Overbooking
Prices that change with demand: higher for a sunset cruise on a Saturday in August, lower on a wet Tuesday in March. Airlines and hotels do it by algorithm. Tour and activity businesses mostly do it by hand, with seasonal prices, early-bird rates and last-minute discounts set per time slot or per ticket type.
See also: Seasonal pricing, Set prices for an activity
One booking for several guests, such as a family of four or a school class of 25, made by one person who pays for everyone. The booking takes that many places from the time slot and gets one reference and one ticket for the whole group. Group discounts can be set for larger numbers.
See also: Private booking, Group size limits, Ticket type (price option)
The smallest and largest number of guests one booking can hold, set per activity: at least two for a tandem kayak, at most eight for a kitchen with eight stations. Limits stop bookings that cannot run as sold and keep a single large booking from taking a whole time slot by accident.
See also: Booking rules, Minimum participants, Set booking rules and a cancellation policy
The list of everyone booked on one start time, with their names, tickets, what they have paid and whether they have signed a waiver. The host opens it on a phone at the meeting point to check guests in. It is what hotels call an arrivals list and tour companies a manifest.
See also: Manifest, Check-in, Check guests in
The person who runs a time slot: the guide on a tour, the instructor in a class, the skipper on a boat or the game master in an escape room. In booking software a host is a team role that sees its own time slots and guest lists without access to payments or reports.
See also: Team roles, Resource, Team roles and permissions
A booking that is confirmed the moment the guest pays, with no one at the business having to accept it first. It is the opposite of on-request booking, where the guest waits hours or days for a yes. Marketplaces rank instantly confirmed products higher, and guests booking for tomorrow expect nothing else.
See also: Confirmation email, Online travel agency (OTA)
The list of passengers or participants for one departure, with names and contact details, originally a legal requirement for boats and coaches. In booking software it is the printable or on-screen guest list for a time slot, used for safety counts, check-in and reporting who actually travelled rather than who booked.
See also: Guest list, Check guests in
Where guests gather for a start time: a landmark, a shop door or a jetty. It appears on the booking page, in the confirmation email and on the ticket, often with a map link, because a guest who cannot find the group becomes a no-show. Each location can have its own meeting point.
See also: Add and manage locations, No-show, Confirmation email
The fewest guests needed for a start time to run, such as four for a cooking class or ten for a coach tour. If the minimum is not reached by the cut-off, the business cancels the time slot and refunds or moves the guests. It is a rule for the time slot, not a limit on one booking.
See also: Group size limits, Booking cut-off, Cancel a time slot
The price a business receives from a reseller or marketplace after commission is taken out. If a tour sells for €100 at 25% commission, the net rate is €75. Resellers quote in net rates and add their own margin, so a business should check the net rate, not the shelf price, when agreeing a contract.
See also: Commission, Reseller, OTA commission vs direct bookings: real costs and how to take bookings direct
A guest who booked but did not arrive and did not cancel. No-shows cost the business the place, the host's time and often the revenue, which is why many operators take payment or a deposit in advance. Booking software marks no-shows at check-in, by hand or automatically after the start time, and applies the no-show policy.
See also: How to reduce no-shows with your booking system: 8 settings that work, Mark no-shows, Deposit, Reminder email
A payment the guest makes by card, wallet or bank transfer while booking, through a payment processor, so the money is taken before the day. Online payment cuts no-shows and queues at the meeting point, but it carries a processing fee and makes refunds a routine the business has to run properly.
See also: How to take online payments for tours and activities: setup, card fees, payouts and refunds, Payment processor, Pay on arrival, Choose how guests pay
A marketplace that sells tours, activities and attractions to travellers and keeps a commission on each booking: Viator, GetYourGuide, Klook, Tiqets and Civitatis are among the largest. OTAs bring guests a small business could not reach alone, in return for 20% to 30% of the price and the guest's contact details.
See also: OTA commission vs direct bookings: real costs and how to take bookings direct, Commission, Channel manager, Direct booking
Taking more bookings for a start time than it has places, whether by mistake, because two channels were not in sync, or on purpose to cover expected no-shows, as airlines do. For tours and activities it means turning guests away at the meeting point, so booking software is built to make it impossible.
See also: Double booking, Capacity, Channel manager
Letting guests book now and pay on the day, in cash, by card or by bank transfer, with the team recording the payment at check-in. It works in every country and avoids online payment fees, but it leaves the business exposed to no-shows. Many businesses offer it alongside paying online, or only for some activities.
See also: Choose how guests pay, Take a payment in person, Online payment, Deposit
A link the business sends a guest by email or message to pay for a booking that was made by phone, in person or without payment. The guest opens it, pays by card and the booking is marked as paid. Links usually expire after a set time, with a reminder sent before they do.
See also: Email a payment link, Online payment
The company that moves money from the guest's card to the business's bank account, such as Stripe or PayPal, and charges a processing fee for it. Booking software connects to the business's own processor account, so the money never passes through the software company. The processor also handles refunds and disputes.
See also: Connect Stripe to take online payments, Card processing fee, Payout, Chargeback
The transfer of money a payment processor has collected from guests to the business's bank account, usually on a rolling schedule a few days after each payment, or weekly. Payouts arrive net of processing fees and refunds, which is why the amount rarely matches a day's bookings exactly. Marketplaces pay out on their own, slower, schedules.
See also: Payment processor, Commission
Places set aside for a guest while they finish checking out, for a few minutes, so nobody else can buy them in the meantime. If the guest pays, the hold becomes a booking; if they leave, the places go back on sale. Holds are how booking software sells the last two places without a double booking.
See also: Availability, Abandoned booking, Double booking
A booking that takes a whole time slot for one party, so no other guests join: a private tour, a hen party in the pottery studio, a boat for one family. It is sold at a flat price rather than per person, and the time slot closes to everyone else the moment it is booked.
See also: Group booking, Ticket type (price option), Set prices for an activity
A ticket with a QR code that encodes the booking, sent by email and opened on the guest's phone. At the meeting point the host scans it with a phone camera to check the group in, which takes a second per booking and needs no printer, no scanner and no app on the guest's side.
See also: Scan tickets, Check-in, Booking reference
Money returned to a guest after a cancellation, in full or in part according to the cancellation policy, or in full when the business cancels. Online payments are refunded through the payment processor to the original card, usually within five to ten working days. Processing fees are often not returned to the business.
See also: Refund a booking, Cancellation policy, Weather cancellation
An automatic email sent before a start time, often the day before, repeating the time, the meeting point and what to bring. Reminders cut no-shows because most are forgetting rather than changing plans. Some businesses send a second reminder a few hours ahead, and one to guests who have not signed their waiver.
See also: Send booking reminders, No-show, Confirmation email
Moving a booking to another start time instead of cancelling it, by the guest from their ticket or by the team. Rescheduling keeps the revenue and the guest, so booking software makes it easier than cancelling: a guest who can still cancel for free can usually move for free too, to any time with places left.
See also: Move a booking to another time, How guests cancel or move a booking, Cancellation window
A third party that sells a business's tours or activities to its own customers for a commission or at a net rate: a hotel concierge, a tourist information office, a travel agent or another operator. Resellers book on the guest's behalf, so the business needs a way to record their bookings and track what they are owed.
See also: Net rate, Commission, Sales channel
Anything a time slot needs besides a place for the guest: a guide, a boat, a kitchen station, ten harnesses. Booking software with resource management counts how many of each a start time uses and never plans more than the business owns, even when two activities share the same kit or the same people.
See also: Manage equipment and spaces, Capacity, Host
An automatic email sent a few hours after a visit asking the guest to leave a review, with a link to the business's Google, Tripadvisor or other review page. Asking everyone, soon after, while the experience is fresh, is the reliable way to grow reviews, which in turn bring the next guests.
See also: Ask guests for reviews, Confirmation email
Where a booking comes from: the business's own booking page, a marketplace such as Viator, a reseller, a phone call or a walk-in. Reports by channel show which ones bring the guests and what each costs in commission, so a business can decide where to spend its effort and where to raise prices.
See also: Direct booking, Online travel agency (OTA), Read your reports
The repeating pattern of start times a business offers, such as 10:00 and 14:00 every day from April to October, from which booking software creates the time slots guests can book. Set the schedule once and the calendar fills itself months ahead; one-off times, capacity changes and closed dates are added on top.
See also: Set a schedule for an activity, Time slot, Closed dates (blackout dates)
Different prices for different parts of the year: high season, shoulder season and low season, each with its own rate per ticket type. Seasonal pricing is set in advance and known to guests, unlike dynamic pricing, and it is the most common way tour and activity businesses match their prices to demand.
See also: Dynamic pricing, Set prices for an activity
What each team member can see and do in booking software: an owner runs everything including payments and billing, a manager runs the day-to-day, and a host sees only their own time slots and guest lists. Roles keep guest data and money where they belong and make it safe to add seasonal staff.
See also: Team roles and permissions, Invite team members, Host
One way to buy a place at one price: adult, child, student, family or private group. Each ticket type has its own price and can count as more than one place, as a family ticket does, or take the whole time slot, as a private group does. Guests mix ticket types in one booking.
See also: Set prices for an activity, Add-on (extra), Private booking
One bookable start time on one date with its own capacity: the 10:00 kayak tour on 12 July, with 12 places. Booking software for tours, classes and activities sells places in time slots, the way appointment software sells a person's time and hotel software sells nights. Every booking, check-in and report hangs off a time slot.
See also: How time slots work, Capacity, Schedule
Admission to an attraction, museum or exhibition for a set arrival window, such as 11:00 to 11:30, instead of any time that day. Timed entry spreads visitors across the day, caps how many are inside at once and ends the queue at the door. It is sold like a time slot with a large capacity.
Value added tax charged on the ticket price at the rate the business's country sets for its kind of service, included in the price guests see in the EU. Booking software prices are usually quoted without VAT, and booking fees and processing fees may carry VAT too. The business, not the software, accounts for VAT on its bookings.
See also: Pricing, Booking fee
A document a guest exchanges for the experience, issued when they bought it somewhere else: a marketplace booking, a gift purchase or a reseller sale. The host checks the voucher's code or reference at the meeting point and records the redemption, so the reseller can be invoiced and the place counted as used.
See also: Reseller, Online travel agency (OTA), QR ticket
A document in which a guest acknowledges the risks of an activity, confirms they are fit to take part and agrees to the business's terms, required for most adventure and water activities. Digital waivers are signed online before arrival, under each guest's own name, so the briefing starts without a clipboard going round.
See also: Ask guests to sign a waiver, Guest list
A guest who turns up without a booking and joins a start time with places left. The team adds the walk-in to the time slot on the spot, takes payment and counts them against capacity, so the guest list, the reports and the number of places still for sale all stay right.
See also: Add a walk-in, Capacity, Pay on arrival
Cancelling a start time because of weather that makes it unsafe or pointless, such as high wind on the water or a storm on a hike. Good booking software cancels the whole time slot in one step: every guest gets an email with a link to rebook, and online payments are refunded. A clear weather policy sets expectations.
See also: Cancel a time slot, Refund, Cancellation policy
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