Make every booking count: Hawaiʻi add-on strategies powered by FareHarbor

Your tours are fully booked. Your staff is maxed out. You’ve squeezed every bit of capacity from your boats, vans, and schedules — but your revenue still feels stuck. Sound familiar?

What if you could boost your earnings without adding a single extra tour or hiring more team members? 

That’s exactly what smart upsells in your reservation software make possible. From snorkel gear to photo packages, offering thoughtful add-ons can turn every booking into a higher-value experience — no pushy sales tactics required.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to use booking software like FareHarbor to introduce upsells at the perfect moment, helping you grow your Hawaiʻi tour business with less effort and more impact.

Why upsells are essential for Hawaiʻi tour operators

Running your tour business comes with plenty of day-to-day challenges — staffing, fuel costs, permits, and operational overhead are just the beginning. That’s why upsells are such a powerful strategy. 

Your guests aren’t just looking for the lowest price — they’re often looking for the best experience. And more often than not, they’re willing to spend a little more when they see the value. The key is making those options visible and easy to add to their booking.

From practical add-ons like reef-safe sunscreen, snorkel gear rentals, and dry bags, to experience upgrades like priority check-in, a welcome cocktail, and Trip Protection, the right add-ons will enhance the customer’s vacation.

What kinds of add-ons work best for Hawaiʻi tours

Your guests fly in from all over the world, dreaming of that perfect day in Hawaiʻi. But let’s face it — they’re not always prepared. There are some items, like a dry towel or waterproof phone case, that they potentially didn’t even think to pack.

 

Not sure what to offer? Here are proven add-on ideas that travelers love — and that fit perfectly with Hawaiʻi experiences.

Physical add-on ideas

• Reef-safe sunscreen
• Towels
• Waterproof phone cases or dry bags
• Snorkel gear
• Cooler for ice and drinks
• Motion sickness kit
• Binoculars

Experience upgrades

• Private tour option
• Premium seating
• Early check-in or extended time
• Welcome cocktail
• Kid’s activity booklet or scavenger hunt

Media items

• GoPro or activity camera rental
• Photo package
• Video package
• Digital photo album

Convenience

• Round-trip transportation
• Cold drinks (alcoholic or soft drinks)
• Pre-ordered snack or meal
• Portable chargers or battery packs

When to introduce the upsell in the booking process

Picture this: Your customer books a snorkel tour and, right in the checkout, they see the option to add snorkel gear. This helps your customer because now they know not to pack their own.

Timing is everything when it comes to upselling. You want to offer the right add-ons at the right moment, without interrupting the flow or overwhelming your customers with choices.

Here are three of the best moments to introduce upsells using your booking software and on-site experience:

1. During booking

The easiest time to upsell is while your guests are already making their reservation. Tools like FareHarbor make it simple to build add-ons directly into your checkout flow. No matter the type of upgrade, your customers can add these extras with just a few clicks before they complete their booking.

2. After booking

Don’t stop at the checkout page. A confirmation or follow-up email can give your guests a second chance to add extras to their reservation. Highlight the convenience or exclusivity of the offer to encourage action.

Pro tip: Create a sense of urgency by offering a limited-time discount. Use messaging like, “Add a GoPro rental before check-in and save 10%.”

3. At check-in

When your guests arrive for their experience, use signage, staff recommendations, or QR codes that link directly to add-on items to encourage last-minute purchases. This works especially well for physical products like reef-safe sunscreen, dry bags, or waterproof phone cases.

Pro tip: Your guests are here to relax, not to make a million tiny decisions. Keep it simple by highlighting just one or two popular add-ons they’ll love.

How FareHarbor makes upselling easy

With FareHarbor, you can build upsells directly into your online booking flow, making it easy for guests to add value to their experience from the moment they reserve.

Combos

Combos makes it effortless for your guests to upgrade their experience with just a few clicks. Set up popular add-ons to appear as an Item within your online booking process. Then, create a combos deal that allows customers to seamlessly purchase 2+ experiences or add-ons in one single checkout. 

Pro tip: To encourage more combos purchases, sell the additional add-on at a discounted rate — and make sure your customers know they’re getting a deal!

Custom fields

Instead of creating a separate item for each upgrade, you can offer popular add-ons directly within your book form using custom fields. This allows customers to easily select and purchase their upsells in seconds!

 

For example, you can offer Trip Protection with a simple checkbox custom field, or or let customers choose a snack using a dropdown custom field. 

 

Pro tip: Be sure to limit the number of custom fields in your book form to avoid booking fatigue and reduce the risk of cart abandonment. We recommend using no more than six custom fields total — including add-ons and any other field types.

Conditional logic

Conditional logic on a booking form lets you create a more streamlined and personalized experience for your customers by showing fields only when they’re relevant. For example, if a customer checks a box saying they need rental gear, a new dropdown will appear with gear package options. Or, if they choose “Other” from a list, a text box pops up asking for more detail. In both cases, the second field stays hidden until it’s needed—keeping your form clean and easy to navigate.

Dashboard and reporting tools

FareHarbor’s Dashboard and built-in reporting makes it easy to track how well your upsells are performing. You can monitor add-on revenue separately from your base tour price, helping you see what’s working, what’s not, and where there’s room to optimize.

Pro tip: Use reporting insights to identify your most popular add-ons and promote them more prominently in your booking flow or follow-up emails.

Flexible pricing

Want to offer limited-time discounts or dynamic pricing on select upgrades? FareHarbor’s pricing tools make it easy to adjust prices based on demand, availability, or promotional campaigns, helping you maximize revenue without overcomplicating the process.

Tips to make your upsells more effective

Your add-ons are only as good as your messaging. 

• Use clear, benefit-focused language (“Keep your phone dry and safe”)
• Include photos of each add-on in the booking flow
• Train your staff to reinforce value at check-in or on-site, without being too pushy
• Test price points and order of presentation to see what converts best

Real-life examples from Hawaiʻi and other tour operators

You don’t have to guess whether this works. We’ve seen operators across Hawaiʻi and beyond turn small upsells into meaningful revenue boosts — here are a few who’ve nailed it.

• Kona Snorkel Trips added a combo tour like “Captain Cook Monument Kealakekua Bay Snorkeling Tour”, with the “Night Manta Ray Snorkeling Tour”, giving travelers a way to make the most of their time on the water, while increasing average booking value.
• Southern Star Dolphin Cruise introduced a preboard pass into their checkout, turning a simple priority boarding into an impressive 25% booking add-on.
• The Gondola Company leveled up their classic gondola rides with premium packages that include drinks and chocolates, adding value for customers and driving higher ticket sales.

These aren’t hard sells — they’re thoughtful add-ons that feel like part of the adventure. And when positioned the right way, they can benefit both your customers and your bottom line.

Small add-ons, big impact for your business

Upsells aren’t about being pushy — they’re about offering more value and convenience to your guests. It’s small touches or VIP experiences that give your guests a Hawaiʻi vacation to remember.

With reservation software like FareHarbor, setting up and managing add-ons is seamless.

Want help setting up smart upsells for your tours in Hawaiʻi? Talk to our team and we’ll help you get started.