5 Essential Elements of Tour Descriptions That Sell

Your tour description is often the final deciding factor between a booking and a bounce. While most tour operators focus solely on logistics and basic information, the most successful companies understand that your tour description is actually your hardest-working sales representative—one that works 24/7 without taking breaks.

After analyzing thousands of tour descriptions and studying the systematic testing done by major online travel agencies (OTAs), we at Guest Focus have identified 12 essential elements that make tour descriptions truly irresistible to your ideal guests. Here, we’re sharing the first five of these — fundamental building blocks that form the foundation of any high-converting tour description.

Editor’s Note: Learn more from Kelsey Tonner from Guest Focus during his upcoming Arival | Elevate session on increasing your conversion rate, open to Arival Insider Free and Pro members. Register here.

Five Essential Elements to Build Highly Converting Tour Description Pages

1. The Perfect Tour Name: Your First Impression

Your tour name is the first touchpoint potential guests have with your tour or experience. The most effective tour names blend descriptive elements with emotional appeal, while also considering search engine optimization (SEO).

Consider these examples:

• “Downtown Asheville Electric Bike Tour”
• “Tastes & Traditions of Seville Food Tour”
•  “Barcelona Electric Bike Tour with Panoramic City Views”

Notice how each name clearly communicates what the tour is while incorporating keywords that potential guests might search for. Avoid common pitfalls like using generic superlatives (“Premier Tahoe Tours”) or forgettable initials (“ABC Party Rentals”).

And if your tour name is primarily descriptive, use your subheadline as the hook, or bold promise, to draw visitors into reading more.

2. The Bold Promise: Hook Your Ideal Guest

Your bold promise acts as a subheadline that captures attention and speaks directly to your ideal guest’s desires. The most effective format follows this simple framework:

Enjoy [Biggest Desire], Without [Biggest Pain], Even If [Biggest Objection]

For example:

“Ride along stunning beaches, secluded coves & towering cedars on our leisurely e-bike tour of Victoria’s most scenic coastal neighborhoods – even if you haven’t been on a bike in years.”

This structure works because it addresses both what your guests want and what might be holding them back from booking. Alternative approaches can work too, such as leading with your unique value proposition:

The key is ensuring your bold promise quickly captures attention and creates immediate interest in learning more about your tour.

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3. Strategic Call-to-Action: Making Booking Easy

Your “Book Now” button should be impossible to miss. The most successful tour companies ensure their call-to-action (CTA) is:

• Visible above the fold (no scrolling required)
• Present throughout the entire page (using a floating button on desktop)
• Always accessible on mobile (using a sticky booking bar)
• Clear and direct (“Book Now” or “Check Availability” rather than vague phrases like “Learn More”)

If you’re using booking software (which you absolutely should), your CTA should connect directly to your availability calendar. This allows potential guests to check dates and complete their booking without leaving your website—reducing friction and increasing conversions.

For mobile users, implement a persistent (“sticky”) booking bar that stays fixed to the bottom of the screen. This ensures your CTA remains visible no matter how far down the page someone scrolls, making it easy for them to book the moment they’re ready.

Editor’s Note: Learn more about booking software in this free Arival guide here.

4. Compelling Media: Show, Don’t Just Tell

Professional photos and videos are essential selling tools. Your media gallery should:

• Feature smiling guests and guides in at least 50% of photos
• Showcase your ideal target customers
• Appear in a mobile-responsive gallery above the fold
• Use compressed images to maintain fast page loading speeds

Professional photography is one of the best investments you can make in your tour business. These images will serve multiple purposes beyond your tour description—they’ll enhance your social media presence, improve your TripAdvisor listing, and provide content for advertising campaigns.

When selecting photos, prioritize authenticity over perfection. Real moments of joy and connection resonate more with potential guests than staged or overly processed images. Remember to optimize all images for web use to maintain quick loading times—slow-loading pages can significantly impact your booking rates.

5. At-a-Glance Details: Remove Uncertainty

Before diving into your main description, provide a quick-reference section that answers the most common logistical questions:

• Price
• Duration
• Departure times
• Meeting point
• Group size
• What’s included
• What to bring

This information should be bulleted, brief, and positioned just below your media gallery. While some companies choose to exclude pricing from this section, we recommend including it—even if it’s just “Starting at…” for variable pricing models.

The goal of this section is to eliminate common barriers to booking by addressing basic questions upfront. This allows potential guests to quickly determine if your tour fits their schedule and budget before investing time in reading the full description.

The Power of a Strong Tour Description Landing Page

When implemented correctly, these five elements work together to create a strong first impression and remove initial barriers to booking. They answer the critical questions every potential guest has when landing on your tour page:

• Is this the right tour for me? (Name and Bold Promise)
• How do I book it? (Call-to-Action)
• What will it be like? (Media)
• What are the essential details I need to know? (At-a-Glance section)

These elements form the foundation of an effective tour description, but they’re just the beginning. Join us for our upcoming Tour Description Tune-Up workshop where we’ll give feedback to attendees’ tour descriptions, in real time, using 12 essential elements of the Guest Focus Formula™ and provide hands-on guidance for implementing them in your tour business. 

Arival Insider Free and Pro Access members are invited to join us at the upcoming Arival | Elevate session with Kelsey Tonner to get tour description feedback in real time: register here. Guest Focus is also offering Arival readers a free copy of their Irresistible Tour Description Workbook, which you can access here. Finally, for the in-person experience, join us for Arival Activate | Edinburgh where Kelsey Tonner will be leading a workshop for attendees.

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