Online Booking for Captains Who Hate Computers

You got into this to fish. Not to fight with software.

We get it. If you wanted to spend your days clicking buttons and staring at screens, you'd have gotten an office job.

But here's the thing: online booking doesn't have to be complicated. This is the no-BS guide for captains who'd rather be on the water than on a computer.

Why This Matters (Even If You Hate It)

First, let's be real about why you're reading this.

The world changed. Your customers changed with it.

The reality: a significant portion of booking attempts happen outside business hours—while you're out on the water, asleep, or having dinner with your family.

That means two-thirds of your potential customers are trying to book while you're asleep, out fishing, or having dinner with your family.

If your only option is "call me," most of them are booking with someone else.

The Minimum You Actually Need

Here's the good news: you don't need a complicated system. You need exactly three things:

That's it. Everything else is nice-to-have.

The Two Approaches

There are basically two ways to handle this:

Option A: The Free (But Manual) Approach

You can cobble together free tools:

• Google Calendar (for availability)
• Venmo or PayPal (for deposits)
• Your phone's email (for confirmations)

Cost: Free

Reality: You'll spend 10-15 minutes per booking manually handling what software does in seconds. Over a season, that's 20+ hours of admin work.

Option B: Actual Booking Software

A tool built for this:

• Shows your calendar automatically
• Collects deposits at booking
• Sends confirmations without you doing anything
• Syncs to your phone calendar

Cost: $40-150/month typically

Reality: You spend 2 minutes setting up a trip type, then never touch it again. Bookings come in while you sleep.

What "Easy" Actually Looks Like

Let me walk you through what modern booking software actually does, because it's simpler than you think.

Setup (once):

1. Create your trip types: "Half-Day Inshore," "Full-Day Offshore," etc.
2. Set your prices and deposit amounts
3. Mark which days you're available
4. Connect your bank account for payouts

Daily use:

1. Nothing. Seriously.
2. Bookings come in
3. You get a text/email notification
4. Money arrives in your account
5. Customer gets all the details automatically

That's the whole thing.

The Stuff You're Probably Worried About

"My customers aren't tech-savvy"

Some aren't. That's fine—they can still call. But consider:

• 85% of Americans have smartphones
• If they can use Facebook, they can click "Book Now"
• The people who can't figure it out will call anyway

You're not losing the phone-callers. You're gaining the online bookers.

"I don't want to learn something complicated"

Good news: if you can order something on Amazon, you can use booking software. Modern tools are built for regular people, not IT specialists.

Most captains we talk to are up and running in an afternoon. Not a weekend. An afternoon.

"What if something goes wrong?"

Like what? Customer books the wrong day? They can see your calendar before they book—that's harder to mess up than a phone call.

Double-booking? Software prevents that automatically. Way safer than keeping track in your head.

"I like talking to my customers before they book"

You still can. Many operators add a note like "Questions? Call me at XXX-XXX-XXXX before booking."

The difference is that customers who don't need to talk can just book. The ones who want to chat will still call.

Getting Started (The Lazy Version)

If you're ready to try this but want to do the absolute minimum:

You can be live in under an hour. No exaggeration.

What Changes (And What Doesn't)

The relationship with your customers doesn't change. You still meet them at the dock. Still fish with them all day. Still shake their hand at the end.

What changes is all the admin stuff that was eating your time and costing you money.

A Word About Fees

Yes, booking software costs money. But watch out for how they charge:

Flat monthly fee: You pay $X/month regardless of bookings. Better for busy operators.

Percentage per booking: They take 3-10% of each booking. Sounds small, adds up fast.

Read the pricing page carefully. "Free" often means "high percentage fees."

The Honest Truth

You probably won't love using booking software. You'll tolerate it. Like doing your taxes or changing your oil.

But tolerating 20 minutes of setup to save 20+ hours of admin work and capture thousands in lost bookings?

That's a trade worth making.

Your boat is for fishing. Your phone is for talking to people you like. Let software handle the scheduling.

Want to see what the simplest booking setup looks like? Try our interactive demo—no signup required.