Xola is a highly-rated booking management software for tours and attractions, appealing primarily to more tech- and marketing-savvy business owners familiar with selling online and interested in additional avenues to drive bookings and revenue.
Some of Xola’s most popular features include a homegrown booking engine to increase conversions and direct bookings, channel management to sell tours across OTAs, and a suite of marketing tools to retarget and upsell customers automatically.
However, user reviews note that Xola requires the use of its native online payment gateway, as it does not integrate with other processors. Additionally, it charges a 1.9% + 30¢ fee for online bookings.
Customers see this extra fee at checkout, which can put a bad taste in their mouth and deter them from completing the bookings. As a result, they may turn to competitors who don’t charge such fees or include them in the total cost.
We created this guide to compare common Xola alternatives and highlight top-rated booking software in one place.
We kick off with a review of our tour operator software, Bókun, followed by a list of competitors, focusing on the most favourable options.
Top-Rated Xola Alternatives
1. Bókun
Flexible, scalable tour operator software with low (1%–1.5%) booking fees
As a Tripadvisor company and Viator preferred partner, our activity booking system, Bókun, provides all the tools tour operators and experience providers need to sell online, grow their distribution network, and manage back-office tasks.
Bókun is a popular Xola alternative due to our low booking fees (1% to 1.5%) — some of the lowest in the category. You can choose to cover these fees yourself or pass them on to customers. If you pass them to the customer, we incorporate the booking fees into the total cost instead of showing them as an extra charge.
Users appreciate Bókun for our OTA partnerships, including Viator and GetYourGuide, which enhance visibility and increase bookings. Our preferred partnership with Viator also offers money-saving perks to help keep costs low while exploring online sales channels.
Our comprehensive solution goes toe-to-toe with Xola, offering features like booking and availability management, CRM, customer communications tools, and capabilities for add-ons, upsells, tour packages, automated marketing emails, and pricing optimisation.
We offer a 14-day free trial so you can explore our platform — build tour listings, connect with Viator, set availability, and start receiving bookings. In the following sections, we’ll also review our core features for a brief preview of Bókun.
Design an optimised booking website & increase direct bookings
Bókun offers two ways to enable (and increase) direct bookings —
- You can embed our booking engine widget directly on your site with a few clicks. Users can view your tour listings and availability, confirm bookings, and check out online.
- If you don’t already have a website, you can use our one-click website builder to get up and running. We provide a gallery of website templates, allowing you to customize fields with your images, colours, and branding elements like logos. Most users can design their site in just a couple of hours without any coding knowledge. We also cover the costs to secure your domain and bring your site online.
Read more: How to create a booking website in 7 steps
Your Bókun site is automatically optimised for desktop and mobile, and our team handles site maintenance to keep you running smoothly.
Grow your distribution network via OTAs & Bókun Marketplace
Selling tours on your site is only one avenue to earn bookings — that’s why we integrate with dozens of global OTAs and include a Bókun Marketplace with 27K+ travel industry partners to help you increase tour reservations.
You can connect Bókun to virtually any OTA — not only Viator and GetYourGuide, but also Headout, Tiqets, Klook, Expedia, Civitatis, TourRadar, Trip.com, and the list goes on — to manage bookings and availability in our system.
Our system also connects with Google Things to do so you can promote experiences in search engines.
Our Marketplace includes a diverse network of businesses for you to connect and create partnerships. You can:
- Find resellers to promote your tours and earn you bookings.
- Resell others’ tours for a commission.
- Create travel or tour packages with partners to offer more unique or convenient experiences for travellers.
Our network includes tour and activity businesses, travel agents, DMOs, hotels, resorts, rental providers, and attractions like theme parks and theatres — so you’re bound to find partners who complement your business and support your growth strategies.
Read more: See how one client generated $500,000 in sales via Bókun Marketplace in just 12 months
Note: Bókun also includes the tools to create and manage partner contracts. You can organise all contracts in a central repository, monitor their status, and refer to the details.
Manage tours, pricing & availability
Bókun’s Experiences tab houses our product builder, pricing tools, and availability management, allowing you to design engaging tour listings, create pricing rules, and set availability across all connected sales channels in one place.
The product builder guides you through the steps to create listings, eliminating any guesswork about what to include. After creating listings, you can save templates to streamline this process going forward.
Some of the unique benefits of this tool include:
- You can choose exactly how people book with you — do they need to specify a day and time, just a day, or can they buy a general visitor’s pass?
- You can offer add-ons to experiences and get as creative as you like with them. We’ve seen tour operators enhance experiences with small bites and beverages, photo memories, or branded merch.
- Dynamic pricing lets you optimise revenue from bookings. You can create rules to increase or decrease rates based on set conditions. This is also a nice way to automate seasonal discounts (perhaps for slower seasons).
- Connect with Tripadvisor to automatically feed traveller reviews to your website.
- Keep track of physical inventory with tours (for example, bikes for bike tours) so our system can monitor inventory with bookings and cut-off availability when inventory is out.
You can edit, add, or remove listings from the Experiences tab at any time, and there’s no limit on the number of listings you can create.
Note: Our partnership with Viator allows you to push Viator listings directly to Bókun, automating product setup. These listings will appear on your website and in your Experiences tab, where you can manage them seamlessly in Bókun.
Keep a centralised, real-time booking calendar & easily manage guides
Tour operators primarily invest in booking software to maintain an organised, centralised booking calendar. Bókun consolidates all bookings from your website, OTAs, and partners into one calendar, allowing you to manage availability seamlessly across all sales channels.
This calendar automatically displays new reservations as they’re booked and updates in real-time if travellers modify or cancel their bookings, so you can always see the most current schedule.
You can assign staff members to tours from this calendar, making certain all experiences have a scheduled guide. You and other staff members can access this calendar from our desktop or mobile apps (for iOS and Android), so everybody is always up to date.
Read more: Best channel manager for tour operators
Automate back-office tasks
As mentioned, Bókun provides all the tools tour and activity providers need to manage operations, including automation features that handle certain tasks for you.
Here are some key ways Bókun saves you time:
- Our system integrates with dozens of online payment processors (Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal, Raypd, Worldpay, Braintree, Klarna, and more) so travellers can pay online during checkout. This means you can monitor new revenue in Bókun without needing to send invoices or collect payments upon arrival. We also integrate with your physical point-of-sale system to account for revenue from offline bookings or other in-person purchases.
- Bókun includes a native CRM that automatically captures and stores customer data when they engage with you or book a tour. It saves names, emails, phone numbers, and booking history for easy retargeting later.
- The automated communications tool sends booking confirmations, tickets, reminders before tours, and follow-ups, eliminating the need for you to send these emails for each booking. We provide an email template gallery, allowing you to customise, schedule, and send an array of customer emails — abandoned cart emails, returning customer discounts, marketing newsletters, referral requests, upsells, and more.
- Bókun provides customer portals so travellers can modify reservations without your team’s help. They can reschedule or cancel bookings directly from the confirmation email.
- Our mobile apps show the most current schedule and details of tour bookings, and include ticket-scanning features to support and streamline customer check-in.
Monitor bookings & revenue with Bókun’s reporting dashboard
Bókun includes a reporting dashboard that provides a high-level view of your business performance, allowing you to review bookings and their details, as well as measure revenue. You can use this dashboard to see:
- The number of bookings received over any time frame
- Which experiences are booked most and least often
- New revenue from bookings and total earnings
You can also gain insights into your customer base — understand who’s booking with you and which experiences they prefer — so you can refine your marketing strategies and offer more of what customers want.
These insights can help you tweak your product line, plan for busy and slow seasons, and attract more of your typical customers.
Bókun app store
We also provide an app store that enables users to modify Bókun and customise our solution to their specifications. Our app store features a variety of free and paid tools, including options for collecting and managing tips and solutions for travel agents.
You can explore our app store here.
Getting started
Getting started with Bókun is simple and free — we prioritise ease of use, so our software has little to no learning curve and requires no formal training. You can start a free trial to explore the platform, test the features, and decide if we’re the right booking system for your business.
After the trial period, you can upgrade to a paid plan — starting at $49/month. Our starter plan unlocks access to the core features discussed above and the Marketplace, but we offer upgraded plans to support growing teams.
We offer low (1% to 1.5%) booking fees on online reservations, OTAs, and partner bookings. However, we waive Bókun booking fees on Viator reservations and don’t charge to manage offline bookings.
In addition to our core tour operator software, we offer a channel manager API to support tour operators with a homegrown booking system and want to manage OTA bookings. This is priced per customer. Get in touch with us to learn more.
Start a 14-day free trial here!
2. Bookeo
Bookeo is a popular Xola alternative because it does not charge booking and transaction fees, addressing a major concern for Xola users. Instead, it charges moderate subscription fees.
Bookeo is widely recognized for serving various industries, offering reservation management for fitness centres, hair salons, service providers, schools, and tour operators.
The platform provides a broad feature set to support business operations and drive bookings — including OTA connections, channel management, upselling tools, and merchandise sales. However, without a reseller marketplace, options to grow your distribution network are limited.
Features
- Online booking widget (for existing sites)
- Product management & options to list virtual tours
- Availability management
- Customisable booking management calendar
- Staff management
- OTA connections & channel management
- Integrated POS payment system
- Integrations with online payment processors (e.g., Stripe)
- Automated customer communications
- Customer portals (to reschedule or cancel reservations)
- Waitlisting tools
- Upselling tools
- Options to sell merchandise, gift cards, & vouchers
- Reporting
Pricing
Bookeo offers three packages:
- The Standard plan ($39.95/month) supports 20 products, 20 staff logins, and 1,000 bookings per month.
- The Large plan ($79.95/month) supports 40 products, 40 staff logins, and 2,000 bookings per month.
- The X-large plan ($199.95/month) supports 60 products, 60 staff logins, and 3,000 bookings per month.
Bookeo does not charge booking or transaction fees.
3. Palisis
Palisis is a Zurich-based software company popular among European tour operators. It’s favoured for its OTA partnerships with Hotelbeds, Viator, and GetYourGuide, offering greater visibility for tour operators selling on those channels.
Palisis offers an “all-in-one ticketing and reservation system” with features to manage bookings, sales channels, availability, staff, and other back-office functions. In addition to tour and activity operators, it appeals to attractions, event venues, or other businesses managing high-volume ticket sales.
When comparing Palisis’ booking fees to Xola, they are similar (1.9%). However, Palisis also charges subscription fees for access to its booking management platform, making it less cost-effective than Xola. This pricing suggests it appeals to larger attractions.
Features
- Connections with OTAs & channel management
- Online booking widget
- Reseller network
- Customisable booking calendar
- Tools to create a tailored booking flow
- Ticketing tools (for high-volume ticket sales)
- Native POS & integrations with payment processors
- Reporting
- Mobile apps
Pricing
Palisis offers a basic plan for $49/month, enabling direct bookings, OTA connections, access to the partner network, and a reporting dashboard. Notably, this plan lacks customisation options and integrations with online payment gateways.
Palsis also offers custom enterprise packages (quote available upon request), which grant access to all features and additional integration options.
4. Travelotopos
Travelotopos is also a popular name due to its partnerships with GetYourGuide and Viator, helping tour operators increase online bookings. These preferred partnerships enhance visibility and allow for streamlined setup by syncing products between platforms.
Like Palisis, Travelotopos is well-known in European markets, commonly working with tour operators in Greece, Italy, Spain, and Germany. In addition to solutions for tour operators, they offer a software system for car rental providers.
Travelotopos is reportedly user-friendly and easy to start using. The downside is that they charge a setup fee of $270 and moderate booking fees of 3% once you’re up and running. When comparing pricing models, Xola may still come out on top.
Features
- Online booking engine
- Preferred partnership with GetYourGuide
- Connections with OTAs & channel management
- Booking calendar (with offline reservation management)
- B2B reseller marketplace (+ integrations with hotel reservation systems to broaden your reach)
- Resource management
- Multilingual capabilities to sell tours globally (supports six languages)
- Integrations with online payment gateways
- Integrations with other business applications like ERPs
- Options to offer coupon codes, promotions, & vouchers
- Reporting
- Mobile apps
Pricing
Travelotopos pricing is as follows:
- $270 one-time setup fee
- 3% booking fees for online reservations (from your website or OTAs)
- 1.5% booking fees on agent & reseller bookings
Travelotopos does not charge subscription fees.
5. Rezdy
Rezdy is a well-known booking software brand due to its global presence, support for tour operators at all growth stages, and recent mergers with other booking software brands (Checkfront and Regiondo) to broaden its reach.
Rezdy offers essential booking management tools, including product and availability management, a centralised booking calendar, OTA connections, and a reseller marketplace to drive new business.
However, Rezdy is one of the more expensive booking software options and Xola alternatives. They charge higher subscription fees (the recommended package is $99/month) and booking fees for each online transaction, making comparable tour operator software available at more affordable prices.
Features
- One-click website builder
- Online booking engine
- Connections with OTAs & channel management
- Reseller network
- Product management
- Reservation management
- Live availability
- Automated customer communications
- RezdyPay — Rezdy’s native payment gateway — and integrations with solutions like Stripe, PayPal, Google, and Apple Pay
- Integrations & API
- Reporting
- Mobile apps
Pricing
Rezdy offers three packages:
- Foundation plan ($49/month): The most basic package, featuring tools to sell tours on your website and OTAs, create partnerships, manage bookings and staff, and report on bookings and revenue. This plan has a 2% booking fee for online bookings.
- Accelerate package ($99/month): This package includes upgraded features like automated customer communications and options to create tour packages. This plan has a 1.9% booking fee.
- Expansion package ($249/month): The top-tier plan, providing access to Rezdy’s API and Webhooks for deeper customisation. This plan has a 1.75% booking fee.
All packages include guided onboarding and ongoing customer support.
Bonus: Checkfront & Regiondo
As mentioned, Rezdy has joined forces with booking software brands Checkfront and Regiondo. All three options receive positive reviews and frequently appear on top software lists, so we wanted to highlight them here (you can read more in our guides below).
- Checkfront offers over 100 features to manage tour operator operations and drive new bookings. Tour operators appreciate its user-friendly and robust toolset. While Checkfront does not charge subscription fees, it has a 3% booking fee on every reservation.
- Regiondo is a UK-based software brand that appeals to tour operators establishing their online presence and learning to sell tours through digital strategies. They don’t list pricing on their site, but reviews suggest it can be expensive.
Note: Since the Rezdy merger, Checkfront and Regiondo customers have reported changes to features and pricing to align with Rezdy. If you’re interested in these options, it may be worth conducting further research.
Read more:
- Best Rezdy alternatives: 2024 comparison guide
- Best Checkfront alternatives: 2024 comparison guide
- Best Regiondo alternatives: 2024 comparison guide
6. TripWorks
TripWorks may be a viable Xola alternative due to its similar feature set, which includes native marketing tools to drive new business through online strategies. However, its fees are slightly higher (2.9% + 30¢), making it less of a top recommendation.
Features
- Online booking widget
- Connections with OTAs & channel management
- Reseller network
- Reservation management
- Product & availability management
- Dynamic pricing
- Digital waivers
- Marketing tools to build campaigns & manage online advertising
- Integrations with marketing software & business applications
- Native POS
- Integrations with Apple Pay & Google Pay
- Options to sell gift cards & vouchers
- Reporting
- Mobile ticket scanning app
Pricing
You can join the TripWorks booking platform for free, allowing you to create a profile, add tour listings, and set schedules, availability, and pricing. When you’re ready to accept bookings, you can opt for one of the paid packages.
- The Standard plan includes over 30 core features for selling online and managing bookings and staff.
- The Enterprise plan is recommended for global teams and provides access to the full TripWorks platform.
While TripWorks does not disclose pricing for either plan, the site mentions that travellers must pay a transaction fee of 2.9% + 30¢ for online bookings.
Another important note: TripWorks requires a minimum of $5K in credit card transactions each month (or $30K over six months). If you don’t meet this threshold, they charge a $49/month “inactivity” fee. This makes TripWorks more suitable for large and growing businesses.
7. Peek Pro
Peek Pro is another less-favourable Xola alternative due to its steep booking fees. Although the brand does not disclose pricing online, reviews mention a setup fee of $199 and variable booking fees of up to 6%.
Variable booking fees can be riskier than fixed fees because they fluctuate per booking, making them hard to predict and potentially leading to unexpectedly high costs.
Features
- Online booking widgets
- Customisable booking calendar
- Reservation management
- Product management
- Integrations with OTAs & channel management tools
- Availability & staff management
- Options to sell memberships, add-ons, bundles, gift cards & vouchers
- Marketing tools (including customer retargeting)
- Dynamic pricing
- Fast check-in features, including digital waivers, Kiosk mode, & ticket scanning
- Customer portals
- Peek reseller network
- Peek Capital (to apply for loans)
- Native POS
- Integrations with online payment processors
- Reporting
- Mobile apps
Pricing
Peek Pro does not share pricing online — you have to contact their team for more info.
Reviews suggest Peek Pro charges a setup fee of $199 and variable booking fees of up to 6%.
Read more: Best Peek Pro alternatives: 2024 comparison guide
8. FareHarbor
FareHarbor is the final option on our list. While it has its strengths, it charges variable booking fees (up to 6%) on to the customer, similar to Peek Pro. Users often express concerns about FareHarbor’s booking solution, much like those regarding Xola.
Although the feature sets are comparable (with Xola offering more), Xola’s fees are generally lower. Thus, when comparing the two, we recommend Xola over FareHarbor.
Features
- Website-building services
- Online booking widget
- Customisable booking calendar
- Connections with OTAs & channel management
- Reseller network
- Product management
- Availability management
- Staff management
- Native POS
- Integrations with Stripe
- Customer portals
- Fast check-in features & online waiver tools
- Reporting
- Mobile apps
Pricing
FareHarbor charges variable booking fees on every reservation (up to 6%), which are passed on to the customer.
FareHarbor does not charge subscription fees.
Read more: Best FareHarbor alternatives: 2024 comparison guide
If you’re interested in exploring Bókun’s features and learning more about how our system compares to Xola’s, start your 14-day free trial.
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