Booking software for pools and beach clubs: what it must do

At the end of September the sunbeds are stacked and the season is over. Anyone running a pool or a beach club already knows what didn't work: the phone ringing while there's a queue at the entrance, the same spot promised to two customers, weather cancellations handled by word of mouth. Booking software for pools and beach clubs is there to remove these problems. In this article we look at what it has to do, with two systems we built in the province of Enna, Sicily: CinePiscina Evolution in Leonforte and La Dolce Vita in Regalbuto.

A first version of custom software takes 6 to 10 weeks. If you want the system ready for May, message us now on WhatsApp at +39 389 591 6034.

What is actually booked

Before choosing software, write down on a sheet of paper what you sell. For a pool or a beach club the typical items are:

• the day pass, or a half day in the morning or afternoon;
• the spot, meaning umbrella and sunbeds, in a specific row;
• weekly, monthly or season passes;
• extra services: lunch, changing cabin, parking;
• evening events, if you hold them.

Each item needs four answers: how many places there are, at what times, at what price and with which cancellation rule. That sheet is the basis of the quote. The clearer the rules, the simpler the system is to build.

The spot map

At a beach club the customer wants to choose where to sit. The system shows a map with the rows and the free spots. The price can change by row and by period: the front row in August doesn't cost the same as the fifth row in June. Staff block season-pass holders' spots from the map, so nobody sells them by mistake.

At a pool you usually don't choose the sunbed. You book an entry in a time slot, up to a maximum capacity. The system closes the slot when it's full and reopens it if someone cancels.

Payment, deposits and weather

Arguments at the entrance almost always come from money and weather. The rules need to be decided beforehand and shown to the customer while booking:

• full payment online or a deposit, with the balance on arrival;
• what happens if it rains: a new date, a voucher to use within the season or a refund;
• until when you can cancel without losing the deposit.

The system applies the rules by itself. Staff don't have to negotiate case by case with the customer in front of them.

Entry with a QR code

With the booking confirmation the customer gets a QR code on their phone. At the entrance staff scan it with a phone or a tablet and immediately see the name, the service and the spot.

We did this for OchoTours, a platform for selling tours and experiences in Malta. At the start of each tour a scanner app validates the ticket in a second, with no paper lists. For a beach club or a pool the principle is the same: the queue at the entrance gets shorter and nobody gets in with a booking that has already been used.

What staff see every morning

CinePiscina Evolution in Leonforte is a pool by day, a cinema in the evening and a bistro. Before, the phone rang constantly and staff spent more time handling calls than guests. Every double booking turned into an argument at the entrance.

Today the customer picks a day and a service and books on their own. Each service has its own rules for places and times. Staff start the day with the list of who is arriving, where and at what time. The phone is no longer the only channel.

The same goes for La Dolce Vita on Lake Pozzillo, where a single system handles the B&B rooms, the pool day passes and the restaurant tables. If you run several services in one place, we wrote about it in managing several services from one platform.

Commission platform or your own system

There are ready-made platforms for pools and beach clubs. Some take a share of every booking, others charge a subscription. They are fine if it's your first year, if bookings are few and if your venue fits their model.

The limits show in high season. The share grows with bookings, which means in August, when you work the most. Customer data sits on the platform. The rules are the ones the software allows, and an unusual combination, like a pool that turns into a cinema at night, often can't be done.

Your own system is paid for at the start. After that, you pay us no percentage on bookings. The rules are yours and the data stays yours. To choose, look at two things: how many bookings you take in a season and how far your rules are from the standard ones.

Timing and cost

We don't publish a list price for software, because it depends on how many services and rules there are. We start with a free analysis, where we go through the sheet of what you sell together. Then you get a written quote, split into phases.

A first version takes 6 to 10 weeks. If you start in autumn, in spring you have time to test it with your staff before opening. How we work is explained on the custom software page.

Frequently asked questions

Does the system work from a phone?

Yes. Customers book and pay from their phone. Staff check the day's list and read QR codes from a phone or a tablet.

Can I sell season passes?

Yes. The pass is a product with its own dates and, if needed, an assigned spot. The system keeps the spot blocked for the whole period.

Can I keep taking bookings by phone?

Yes. Staff enter them in the same calendar as the online bookings. That way there is one availability and spots don't overlap.

Get the system ready for next season

Send us what you sell, how many spots or entries you have and how you take bookings today. Message us on WhatsApp at +39 389 591 6034 or use the contact form. We reply within one working day and set up the free analysis.