Tours, activities and experiences: the key OTAs for your tourism business
Managing online distribution is one of the biggest headaches for any tour operator in Spain.
You publish your activities on several platforms to gain visibility, but each one works differently, has its own audience and requires you to keep prices and availability up to date. When the volume grows, so does the risk of errors: overbooking, poorly closed quotas or sales that don't add up.
So it makes sense to understand which type of OTA best suits each tourism experience and how to group them in a smart way.
Generalist OTAs for tours and experiences
These are international platforms that concentrate a high demand for activities. They work well for operators working with foreign tourists or selling very standardised experiences.
This is where OTAs such as:
GetYourGuide (https://www.getyourguide.com), Viator (https://www.viator.com), Trip.com (https://www.trip.com), TourShark (https://www.tourshark.com), Musement (https://www.musement.com) or Nattivus (https://www.nattivus.com).
This type of channel usually provides volume, but also requires fine control of availability. If you sell the same tour in several places at the same time, synchronisation is no longer optional.
OTAs focused on cultural and urban tours
Free tours, guided visits, historical routes or cultural experiences are best suited to specialised city and heritage platforms.
This group includes Civitatis (https://www.civitatis.com), Buendía Tours (https://www.buendiatours.com), Living Tours (https://www.livingtours.com), Surkad (https://www.surkad.com), Entrées (https://www.entrees.es) or Tour2b (https://www.tour2b.com).
These OTAs are widely used by urban operators in Spain. The challenge here is not usually to sell, but to not to lose control of quotas, especially when working with several daily passes.
OTAs for nature and outdoor activities
Hiking, adventure activities, excursions in natural environments or sports experiences need channels that know how to sell this type of product.
Platforms such as Manawa (https://www.manawa.com), OutdoorVisit (https://www.outdoorvisit.com), CanariasViaja (https://www.canariasviaja.com), Run Away Trips (https://www.runawaytrips.com) or iHoppers (https://www.ihoppers.com) are more aligned with this profile.
In these cases, availability often depends on external factors: minimum groups, weather conditions or limited resources. Having properly configured quotas makes the difference between an orderly operation and chaos.
OTAs for tickets, attractions and closed experiences
Museums, monuments, shows or experiences with a fixed capacity are often best sold through specialised ticketing channels.
Here we find Tiqets (https://www.tiqets.com), Musement (https://www.musement.com) or Gloogs (https://www.gloogs.com).
When the product is closed and time-critical, any timing error translates directly into operational problems at the destination.
OTAs specialising in specific niches
Some platforms work in very specific niches, but they can be highly profitable if they fit your activity.
This is the case of Escape Room Lover (https://www.escaperoomlover.com), Escaperoos (https://www.escaperoos.com) or Escape Radar (https://www.escaperadar.com) for escape rooms, or Marinalia (https://www.marinalia.com) and Aladinia (https://www.aladinia.com) for leisure and gift experiences.
These OTAs do not always generate large volumes, but they attract a highly qualified audience.
OTAs and partners focused on the Spanish market
In addition to the large international platforms, many operators work with national or regional OTAs.
This is where Excursion Center (https://www.excursioncenter.com), Atlántico Excursiones (https://www.atlanticoexcursiones.com), Viajes Teide (https://www.viajesteide.com), AranExperience (https://www.aranexperience.com), Transfers and Experiences (https://transfersandexperiences.com) or Leisure Business (https://www.ociobusiness.com).
They tend to provide more stable sales and a closer relationship, but still require centralised control of availability.
The real problem is not being in too many OTAs.
Being present in several channels is not the mistake. The problem arises when each sale is handled manually.
An operator that sells on its website, on two international OTAs and on a local platform needs to everything is updated on the spot. Otherwise, growth becomes risk.
A well-planned booking system should allow you to synchronise all these OTAs from one place, keep quotas under control and prevent sales from one channel blocking the others.
Choosing the right OTAs based on your experience
Not all platforms work the same for all businesses.
An urban free tour is not distributed in the same way as a kayak tour or a museum ticket. Understanding what type of OTA fits your product is the first step. The second step is to have the right technology in place so that diversification doesn't cause you to lose sleep.
When distribution is well organised, selling in more channels is no longer a problem but a real advantage for your tourism business.
