How to become a TourRadar supplier

How to Become a TourRadar Supplier

Rezdy helps tour suppliers to connect with large online travel agents and smaller resellers. TourRadar is an online platform for multi-day tours. This article is Rezdy’s view to increase your chances with getting listed on TourRadar.

What is TourRadar and how does it work?

TourRadar.com is a Global Online Marketplace and Distribution System (GDS) where travellers and agents search, compare and book multi-day group tours. Bookings and enquiries are sent directly to the Tour Operator for confirmation and response via an easy to use customer ‘Enquiry to Booking’ (E2B) conversation platform.

TourRadar is the world’s trusted online marketplace for multi-day tours. With its headquarters in Vienna and regional support centres in Brisbane and Toronto, TourRadar has a vision of bringing like-minded travellers together for journeys of a lifetime. Whether it’s trekking Kilimanjaro, heading on a coach tour in Europe or a safari in Kenya, they connect travellers to more than 20,000 tours in over 200 countries. TourRadar is on a mission to ensure booking tours are made easy for everyone.

Multi-Day Group Tours

TourRadar works with professional tour operators running multi-day group tours. Their Marketplace and tools are suited exclusively for multi-day tours with ready-to-book itineraries.

Benefits

By connecting with TourRadar you will have your tours and activities listed on the TourRadar.com Marketplace increasing your overall distribution.

TourRadar also offers the ability for paid marketing to actively promote your tours, You also get access to the “Meet Others App” which is free to use for you and your customers.
On top of all these great benefits, you can also enter to win the “Most Amazing Tour and Guide of the Year” awards hosted by TourRadar.

Why Suppliers Should Register for TouRadar?

There are several things you have to account for before you register with TourRadar. Not every tour operator will be listed by default, but if you can offer the following, we think you’ll improve your chances.

Clearly state what is and what is not included

List inclusions and exclusions clearly in the tour description so that there is no confusion and travellers can make informed decisions.

No Cutoffs – Short Minimum Notice

Allow last minute bookings and specify how many hours before the tour starts can customers book with you. Of course, you need enough time to prepare your tour before people come, but keep your minimum notice as close to the starting time of your experience. TourRadar attracts a lot of last minute bookers that are looking for something to do on the day. You want to make sure your products are available to book, so make sure to push the minimum notice as close to the starting time.

Add videos to my tours

Upload a video and use tags to feature it on my tours in the TourRadar.com Marketplace and my Facebook Apps. Good quality videos can illustrate the atmosphere on your trips much better than words and in just a couple of minutes, you can convince a customer to travel with you.

A Strong Connection

Not only technical, but also in the customer experience. For starters, your booking software should have a solid API integration with TourRadar. You’d want to avoid manual work as much as possible. When sharing your availability with TourRadar, you want the booking information pushed into your booking software, so it automatically populates your CRM, sales reports and manifest. This will avoid lost customers and makes it easy to keep control over your bookings, even when it’s a large volume.

Keep responses short and establish a dialogue

Your response to an inquiry should not be an essay. Be quick, catch the customers at a point when they are still online and surprise them with a fast, short and a helpful response. Start a dialogue instead of delivering long lists of information.

Accept Bookings 2 Years in Advance

Schedule your availability for 2 years. Make sure people can book 2 years in advance. It’s good practice to make sure all your availability is published across as many channels as possible. But make sure it’s also available for a long time. The earlier you fill up your tours the better. TourRadar attracts a lot of people exploring your destination. Travellers that want to know what they’ll get to see and do in your destination before they book their hotels and tours. Some travellers take up to 2 years to prepare their trips, so make sure you always have the availability to attract them to your destination.

Pictures, Beautiful Pictures

A picture says more than a thousand words and makes your product stand out of the rest. Be aware that your product is listed next to your competitors’. The best picture is likely to receive the booking. Having striking high-resolution pictures and videos will help you stand out and make your listing always look professional, no matter where it’s being promoted.

Detailed Product Descriptions

Spend some time to write a special description for your tour specifically for TourRadar listing. OTAs want unique descriptions for tours and travels because they are easier to get to the top of the list of search engine responses. Look at the listing of similar products already live on TourRadar, use this format. Don’t include inconsistent symbols, special offers or your email address when you submit it.

Why use Rezdy to connect your availability with TourRadar

If you are interested in having your products listed in the TourRadar Marketplace, please visit the operator page and fill out the questions on the ‘apply now’ link.

Once you are a TourRadar supplier, simply send your Preferred Rates through your Rezdy software and you can work with TourRadar to have your tours listed.
Simply click ‘Connect’ to share your rates and enable TourRadar to check your live availability on Rezdy. You may need to speak to your TourRadar Business Development Manager to complete the mapping between systems

Who can join?

TourRadar works with professional tour operators running multiple day group tours.

There is no cost for a Tour Operator to list on TourRadar, however, there is a set of terms and conditions each Tour Operator should agree to and also a standard Service Fee payable for all confirmed bookings. TourRadar processes all payments from travellers at the time of booking, at which point the Tour Operator should invoice TourRadar for the cost of the tour, minus the relevant Service Fee. It is important to note that, unless the Tour Operator is financially bonded, TourRadar will not pay the invoice until the end of the month in which the tour has departed.

Being a Rezdy customer will not guarantee you to be accepted by TourRadar as one of their suppliers, however, TourRadar prefers tour operators using a real-time booking software provider that is integrated with them, as it will allow TourRadar to provide a better service to their own customers. (Thus, we strongly recommend you to mention Rezdy in the application process.)

Application process

TourRadar carefully screens all applications. Due to the large volume of applications, they are only able to respond to applications that have successfully passed the initial screening process.
Once you receive confirmation that your application has been successful, TourRadar will guide you through the easy setup process and inform you of all the key aspects such as commission, invoicing, etc.

Setup and booking process

You can add your tours to the TourRadar platform either via a activity reservation system (like Rezdy), an XML feed or manually using your TourRadar Dashboard. Once your tours are added you are ready to receive bookings!

When a traveller submits a booking for your tour, TourRadar will immediately notify you. You have 48 hours to confirm that you can take the passenger and by clicking one button, you confirm the booking. TourrRadar’s platform is very easy to understand and includes Q&A videos to guide you should you get lost. Their team is also always happy to assist you over the phone/ e-mail.

If you operate multi-day tours and activities and would like to connect to TourRadar, please fill out the TourRadar supplier application form.

Curious to see whether Rezdy is right for you? Book a free demo today, or register for your complimentary 21-day trial, we know you’ll love it.