Over the years, we’ve worked with hundreds of tour and activity operators, from tiny one-person setups to fast-scaling businesses. And one pattern we’ve noticed time and again is this: while some tour businesses flourish, others stay stuck in the same spot for years. They’re passionate, hardworking, and committed to their craft… but their business just doesn’t grow.
So, what’s the difference? Why do some tour businesses take off while others don’t grow?
Let’s break down five common (and fixable) reasons why some tour businesses get stuck, and what you can do to get unstuck.
1. No Plan, No Progress
If you asked a tour operator, “What’s your goal for the next year?” many would say, “I want to grow.” That’s a great starting point, but it’s not a plan—it’s a wish.
Successful growth doesn’t happen by accident. It’s usually the result of setting specific targets, mapping out what it takes to reach them, and holding yourself accountable along the way. That might sound like business school 101, but it’s amazing how many tourism businesses operate day-to-day without any real roadmap.
We often ask operators: If you had to double your bookings in the next 12 months, what would you do differently starting today?
You might:
- Build stronger relationships with local hotels and travel agents
- Launch new products to reach a wider audience
- Invest in a new website or SEO
- Hire a marketing assistant
- Improve your booking process and follow-up emails
- Start partnerships with other operators or influencers
The difference between staying small and growing can often be traced to one thing: intentionality. Even a modest, written growth plan can act like a compass, helping you make smarter daily decisions and focus your efforts where they count most.
2. Thinking Small = Staying Small
If you want to run a bigger business, start acting like a bigger business. This doesn’t mean throwing money around or pretending you’re something you’re not—it means laying the groundwork for growth. That could mean investing in a scalable booking system(opens in a new tab), improving your branding(opens in a new tab), or rethinking your customer experience from a broader perspective.
We’ve seen this play out many times. Tour businesses will say, “We’ll upgrade our website once we’re bigger,” or “We’ll hire help when we’re busier.” But without these changes, they never get busier.
It’s like trying to grow a plant in a tiny pot. If the roots don’t have room to spread, the plant won’t thrive. Give your business room to grow by making it ready for growth before it arrives. Sometimes that means taking steps that feel slightly ahead of where you are—because that’s how you get where you want to be.
3. The Product Is Too Niche (or Not Clear Enough)
Let’s say your tour is a historical walking tour focused on a specific battle that took place in your town in the 1700s. That might be fascinating… to a very specific type of customer. But if you’re relying on casual tourists looking for fun or family-friendly things to do, your message may not resonate.
We’re not saying niche is bad—on the contrary, niche can work really well if there’s a large enough audience and your product is clearly positioned. But what we often see are tours that are either:
- Too narrowly focused to scale, or
- So vaguely described that potential customers don’t “get it”
Take a look at your current offering. Ask yourself:
- Is this something a large number of travelers would be excited to book?
- Is it obvious (within seconds) what makes this tour worth taking?
- Could someone visiting my city for the first time understand the appeal?
Successful tour businesses either go broad (with mass appeal) or deep (with a clearly defined niche and loyal audience). If your product doesn’t fall into either of those categories, it might be time for a reposition or even a redesign.
4. Scarcity Thinking: The Growth Killer
One of the biggest barriers to growth isn’t the market or competition—it’s the mindset.
We’ve spoken to so many tour operators who hesitate to invest in growth because they’re afraid of spending. We get it—running a seasonal or small tourism business comes with risk, and every dollar counts. But there’s a difference between being careful and being stuck in a scarcity loop.
For example, not hiring a professional photographer because “it’s too expensive” might be costing you thousands in lost bookings every season. The same goes for holding off on an upgraded website, avoiding paid ads, or never outsourcing tasks you struggle with.
Here’s a simple mindset shift: instead of asking, “How much does this cost?”, ask “What could this return?”
If professional photos cost $750 but increase your conversion rate by 15%, how long until that investment pays off? If an assistant frees up 10 hours of your time each week, what could you do with those hours to move your business forward?
Thinking with a growth mindset doesn’t mean throwing caution to the wind—it means seeing expenses as potential investments and evaluating them accordingly.
5. Working In the Business, Not On It
This one’s tough because it hits close to home for many small business owners.
When you’re the guide, the manager, the admin, the marketer, and the customer service rep all in one, it’s easy to spend every day just getting through your to-do list. But if you don’t carve out time to work on the business, it won’t grow.
Growth work often looks like:
- Reworking your positioning or messaging to better match your ideal audience
- Identifying bottlenecks in your customer journey and addressing them
- Developing long-term distribution strategies with resellers, OTAs, or affiliates
- Investing time into understanding your analytics beyond surface-level stats
- Exploring seasonal or niche tour variations to boost off-peak revenue
- Allocating budget to test bold marketing ideas, not just safe bets
The reality is: growth doesn’t happen during leftover time. It happens when you intentionally make space for it.
We recommend setting aside a block of time each week to focus on strategic work. Even two focused hours can lead to small but meaningful improvements. Over time, those improvements stack up and become the momentum you need to break out of the “not growing” cycle.
Bonus: Track What Matters
One final note: growth requires measurement.
It’s amazing how many operators aren’t quite sure where their bookings come from, which tours are most profitable, or what their email open rate is. You don’t need a degree in analytics, but you do need a short list of metrics that actually matter to your business.
Here are a few to start with:
- Weekly bookings (per product)
- Conversion rate from website visitors to bookings
- Cost per booking from ads
- Average customer review rating
- Repeat or referral bookings
Once you start measuring consistently(opens in a new tab), you’ll see patterns—what’s working, what’s not, and where your best opportunities lie.
There’s no one-size-fits-all formula for tour business success. But in our experience, most businesses that stay small do so not because of bad luck, but because of subtle patterns that become hard to break: vague goals, limited thinking, an unclear product, scarcity mindset, or being buried in day-to-day tasks.
The good news? Every single one of these is fixable.
The key is to be intentional, to give your business space to grow, and to regularly check in on where you’re headed. Growth takes work, yes—but more importantly, it takes direction.
If you’re feeling stuck and want help putting some of these ideas into action, we’re always here to talk. After all, helping tour businesses grow is what we do best.
Is Your Website Holding You Back?
If you’re serious about working on your business, your website is one of the best places to start. We’ve put together a free Website Checklist specifically for tour and activity operators to help you spot missed opportunities, improve conversions, and make sure your site is truly working for you. Enter your contact info below and we’ll send it right to your inbox. No fluff – just clear, practical steps to help you make your website work smarter.
Your website might look great – but is it performing?
Let’s find out!
By submitting this form, you agree to Tourism Tiger contacting you via email.