Whether you’re a planner or you wait until the last minute when it comes to planning your own vacations or activities, as a tour operator, it is imperative to think ahead. One major piece of planning to consider: building out your company’s booking calendar and getting next seasons’ availabilities online!

It can be tempting to push this off until just before your busy season begins, but trust us, you need to plan ahead. There’s one important reason why you should start planning for next year right now:

If you don’t build out your calendar, you will lose out on potential revenue!

In the tourism and activities industry, many travelers are planners. According to Google, hotels and flights are typically booked about 12 weeks in advance, and within that time frame:

• There are 3x more searches for experiences than hotels.
• There are 8x more searches for experiences than airfare.

Even though your season may seem like it’s months away, many travelers are already planning their trips for next year, and in the three months leading up to their trip, they’re likely to be looking for the types of tours and activities you offer. You know what they say — you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. Take the shot and have your availabilities ready for the early planners!

An additional benefit of planners is they also tend to be spenders. According to Booking.com, travelers who book their activities in advance spend 47% more on lodging and 81% more on transportation that those who book at the last minute. This makes them a valuable target audience because these travelers are willing to spend more on their trip overall, including booking an activity or experience with your company!

Not every traveler books their activities months in advance, but many do research well ahead of time to determine their options for when they reach their destination. These have researched activities and have ideas for what they want to do on their trip, when the activities are offered, and the cost of those activities. Being able to see availabilities on your calendar for next year lets them know your company is prepared for the next year, and they’ll keep you top of mind when they’re ready to book. If you don’t have future availabilities visible, then your competitor may! Don’t lose out — let us do the work for you.

The travel industry is one of the most lucrative and diverse sectors when it comes to online commerce. In 2016, Skift forecasted that global travelers will book about $278 billion worth of travel online in the following five years. With so much of our industry moving to the online space, you want to be ready for all the customers looking to book your experiences on your website. Don’t rely on clients to call you to find out your schedule for next year. Have your calendar planned in advance so potential clients can book online with you the second they’re ready to do so.

Don’t miss out on this potential revenue! Build out next year’s calendar now so you can capture those early-bird customers. Building out your calendar is easy: Just reach out to our team at FareHarbor, give us your schedule for the year, and let us do the rest of the work. With this done, you can rest easy knowing that anyone who wants to book with you, can book with you.

Ready to be a planner? Reach out to your AM or FareHarbor support today and get started.