Navigating the slow season: Year-round strategies for tour operators

Whether you’re running snowmobile tours in Colorado or dolphin cruises in Florida, every operator hits a slow patch. That’s just part of the business. But here’s the thing: that slower season? It’s not dead time. It’s prime time for smart planning, business upgrades, and staying top-of-mind with customers.

Whether you’re looking to keep revenue flowing or finally catch up on your to-do list, this guide will walk you through proven strategies to make the most of your off-season — from marketing tune-ups to creative offers that keep customers engaged.

Start with a reset: Prep your tools and calendar for next year

Regardless of your location or the nature of your tour company, you can adjust your business strategy to continue attracting customers all year long. 

For starters, this downtime provides an ideal window of opportunity for you to connect with our team at FareHarbor. While you aren’t as busy running your tours or activities, let us get things dialed in for next season, bring you up to speed on additional avenues for revenue, and make sure you are taking advantage of everything we have to offer! 

Pro tip: Start building out next season’s calendar now! With hotels, flights, and other travel items being booked about 12 weeks in advance, customers want to book tours and activities ahead of time, too. Capture those early-bird customers by building out next year’s calendar now!

Check the data: What worked (and what didn’t)

Off-season is a great time to research what went well this year, what needs to be revised, and figure out how you can repeat the successes.

Does your email marketing need a review? How is your website performing?

Look at your Google Analytics, email marketing metrics, and social media insights. Where did your traffic spike? Which emails drove bookings? This is your chance to double down on what worked — and update what didn’t.

Do things such as optimizing your Google Business Profile and set up email automations. These are things that often get overlooked when you’re busy managing guest expectations, but they go a long way in driving traffic to your tours. It’s almost a set it and forget it way to reach your customers, but good to review each year. 

Then shift gears to social media. Use this time to re-engage with your followers and start planning posts that build excitement for the upcoming months.. Learn more about how to practice social listening.

Shoot for the (5) stars

If you’ve let review responses pile up during peak months, now’s your chance to catch up. 

Not only does this help with customer loyalty and social proof, but it has been proven that responding to Google Reviews specifically will help with your local SEO ranking. Learn more about how to respond to reviews.

Tap into holiday demand with limited-time experiences

If your business does not operate throughout the year, there is still an opportunity to open up for short periods of time to celebrate and embrace holidays such as Halloween, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, and more. 

If you run walking tours in summer, consider a cozy winter edition with holiday lights and warm drinks. Dog sled tours? Offer summer kennel visits or training demos to stay top of mind. 

You might attract more locals by offering holiday-specific tours and activities, creating more awareness of your tour company. This is a great way to entice those customers to book with you and join in the holiday fun, right in their backyard!

Boost sales with holiday campaigns

If holiday-themed events aren’t your thing, don’t forget about Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday, and Giving Tuesday. These are all perfect opportunities to promote gift cards or encourage guests to book in advance for next year.

Partner with other FareHarbor clients

Not interested in running holiday-themed tours or promotions during your off-season? There are other ways to keep the ball rolling. 

More than likely, you are in an area where other FareHarbor clients operate their businesses. If you offer jet ski rentals and can’t stay open in the winter, then pair up and resell a local food tour on your website to make a commission when you can’t operate yourself. 

The FareHarbor Distribution Network (FHDN) brings tour and activity operators together in their communities with the goal of filling more seats and creating new ways for you to fill your pockets (even when you’re closed). 

Offer slow-period discounts

If you already operate year-round but find yourself slowing down significantly during certain times of the year, one of the easiest things you can do is offer seasonal promotions. 

Seasonal promotions will help bring in customers who might not have booked otherwise, or who were on the fence about booking with your company. Offer discounts for those days or periods of time that are slower than usual, and be sure to advertise those prominently on social media and your website.

Get creative with real-time weather and events. If it’s raining, post a muddy ATV ride with a “10% off rain day” code. Heat wave? Add water features to your zip line tour and promote it as a summer cooldown.

Rain or shine, hot or cold, there are ways to turn nearly every situation into a unique opportunity to capture business. Spin it to your advantage, slap a deal on it, and send it out to your followers!

Promoting seasonal discounts

If you are looking for ways to keep customers interacting with your business while you’re closed or hitting a dry spell, brainstorm an awesome user-generated content campaign asking customers to post a picture from their experience on your tour or activity and tag your company.

Turn it into a contest and reward the winner of the contest with a free tour, a unique discount, or cool swag to entice people to interact with your campaign. This will create off-season buzz around your company and create more engagement online with your customers! 

Coming up with regular promotions can be tough! There are a couple of main categories that you can focus on to dial those in: 

• Holiday & Seasonal Promotions: Offer themed discounts for Black Friday or Valentine’s Day, etc.
• Family Promotions: Offer deals that allow families to be able to afford to bring the whole crew!
• Lifestyle Promotions: Offer military, senior, or student discounts. 
• Returning Customer Promotions: Reach out to customers who have already joined you before and try to gain repeat business! 
• Local promotions: Honor your local community and offer promotions for that segment of potential customers. 

All of these promotions can easily be built out in your FareHarbor Dashboard. 

Make your downtime your growth time

The quieter months aren’t just for catching your breath — they’re a strategic opportunity to grow your business, strengthen customer relationships, and build momentum for the year ahead. Whether you’re optimizing your calendar, exploring partnerships, or launching a new promotion, FareHarbor’s tools and team are here to support you every step of the way.

Let’s make this your most productive off-season yet — book a free demo to unlock your next opportunity.