How Big Coast takes trip deposits online, in Canadian dollars
Picture a wet night in February. Someone on the Prairies is planning a summer trip to the coast. They want a day on the water off Denman Island. They find Big Coast Marine Adventures, pick a trip, and pick a date. Then they pay a deposit and go to bed. The trip is held.
No one had to answer a phone. No one had to chase a cheque. That is the part of the Big Coast site this post is about.
A real charter, not a demo
Big Coast Marine Adventures is a real charter business on Denman Island, in the Northern Gulf Islands of BC. Captain Pat runs fishing charters and sightseeing tours. Big Coast is a client of ours, and guests book trips on its site today.
Most of our other example sites are made-up businesses we run as demos. This one is not. That is why we like to show how its booking works.
How a guest pays
On the Big Coast site, each trip has a card with its price in Canadian dollars and a Book Now button. A guest picks a trip, a date, and a time of day. Then they move on to the deposit.
The deposit is 25% of the trip, plus GST. Prices on the site are in CAD, and GST is 5%. The guest pays by card through Square. The money goes into the captain's own Square account. We never hold it.
The other 75% is the balance. By default, the guest saves their card, and the balance is charged 24 hours before the trip. The guest can say no to that. If they untick the box, the card is not saved. They can pay the balance on the boat by cash, e-transfer, or card instead. Guests can also pay the balance early from their own account on the site.
If a saved card does not go through, the guest gets an email with a link to pay. Guests who did not save a card get reminder emails before the trip, with the same kind of pay link.
Clear rules when plans change
Plans change on the coast. Weather turns. A ferry is full. So the cancel rules sit right on the booking page, in plain words, before anyone pays:
- Cancel 72 hours or more before the trip, and the guest gets back what they paid.
- Cancel between 24 and 72 hours before, and the deposit is kept. A balance not yet charged is not charged.
- Cancel under 24 hours before, or do not show up, and the full price applies.
- If the captain cancels for weather or safety, the guest gets back everything they paid.
Guests can cancel from their account. The captain does not have to work out what each guest is owed. The rules do that.
What this means for your charter
Everything the Big Coast home page shows comes with a Launch of our Fishing Charter starter. That includes trip and price cards with Book Now, and booking with deposits paid into your own account. The tools behind the scenes come too, like the card on file and the balance that charges itself. We set it all up with your name, your boat, and your trips.
You choose the payment account. It can be your own Square, Stripe or PayPal. Money from guests goes there, not to us. If you also take cards in person on a card reader, that part costs extra.
A Launch is $2,500 CAD plus GST, paid once. You get two hours, live, with one of our people. We set up your deposits with you and make one real test payment. We also connect your Google or Microsoft calendar and make one real test booking.
Then we show you how to change the site yourself. You tell it what you want in plain English, like a text message. Type "add a sunset tour for four guests" and it shows up. Type "change the deposit note to mention Interac e-Transfer" and the words change. On the call, you make one real change this way, with us beside you.
Your site runs in your own Replit account. We charge $0 a month. Your host bills about $20 US a month for use. That is the host's bill, in US dollars. Our prices are in Canadian dollars. You own the code, and you can leave any time with a full copy.
See it, then talk to us
Look at the Fishing Charter starter to see what comes with it. When you are ready, start your Launch. If you have questions about your boat and your trips, book a free call. It takes 20 minutes, and you can ask us anything.