The Heatmap shows how each timeslot sold: how full it got, how fast, how far ahead guests booked, and which channels brought them. It also looks ahead and tells you which upcoming departures are on track to fill. Use it to see where your business is strong, where you are not really selling, and what is likely to sell out while there is still time to act.

The short version: Open the Calendar and choose the Heatmap tab. Every timeslot is colored by how full it is. Click one to see how it sold, drag across several to compare them, or click an upcoming slot to see where it is headed.

What the Heatmap tells you that your bookings list does not

A bookings list tells you how many guests you sold. It does not tell you which departures fill on their own, which ones need a push, or whether a sold-out slot filled in a day or in three months. Those answers decide your pricing, your capacity and where you spend marketing effort.

The Heatmap puts those answers in the calendar you already use. Each cell is one departure, colored by how full it is. Warmer means fuller, with a legend for under 25 percent, 25 to 50, 50 to 75 and over 75 percent full.

Open the Heatmap

1. Open the Calendar.
2. Choose Heatmap on the bar across the top.
3. Pick Month to see a whole tour at once, or Week for a closer look.
4. Use the activity list on the left to show the tour you want to study.

You need access to activity setup to see the Heatmap. Revenue and price figures also need reports access, and they stay hidden without it.

Read the month for patterns

Look across the month before you click anything. A few patterns to look for:

• Departures that are always hot. The same weekday and start time fills week after week.
• Departures that stay pale. A slot you run every week that rarely passes a quarter full.
• A mix on the same day. One start time sells out while another the same day sits empty.

See how one slot sold

Click any slot. The panel on the right shows:

• Fill: booked guests divided by capacity. Cancelled bookings are not counted.
• Pace against usual: how its bookings compare with the usual curve for a slot like it. The usual curve is the average for the same activity, weekday and start time over the last 8 weeks, and it needs at least 3 past departures. Within 7 percent counts as on pace.
• Booking curve: how the slot filled over time, with the usual curve behind it.
• Time to sell out: days from the first booking to the booking that filled the last seat. It shows only for slots that sold out.
• Average lead time: how many days before departure guests booked, weighted by guests.
• Average price per guest, discounts and cancellations, and channels: the reseller's name for reseller and OTA sales, otherwise how the booking was created.

Scroll the panel to see the channel breakdown.

Compare many slots, and ask a different question

Drag across several slots and the panel analyzes them as one group: overall fill, pace against usual, a combined booking curve, the median time to sell out, the fullest and emptiest slots, and revenue by channel.

To ask a different question, choose another activity in the sidebar, drag across its departures, or move to another week. The panel recalculates straight away, so you can compare one tour with another or this week with last.

Look ahead

Click an upcoming slot and the panel shows where it is headed. You see a projected final count with a likely range, and a plain verdict:

• Likely to sell out on the day, or around a date.
• On track for about a percentage full.
• Unlikely to fill, with the percentage it is on track for.

Switch to By channel to see which channels are bringing the bookings in.

Two decisions the Heatmap makes easier

A Saturday departure that always sells out. The month shows the same Saturday start time dark red every week. Click one: it sold out ahead of the usual pace, and the time to sell out keeps shrinking. That is demand you are not charging for or have no room to meet. Raise the price, or add capacity or a second departure. The related lessons on dynamic pricing and bulk capacity show how.

A weekday departure nobody books. A Tuesday afternoon slot sits pale all month and the projection says unlikely to fill. Check the lead time first: if guests book it late, the slot may just be early in its curve. If it stays behind the usual pace, look at the channels. If one reseller brings most of your bookings elsewhere, promote this slot there, add a promo code, or close it with the Status tab.

Read it carefully

• A cold slot is not always a bad slot. Check lead time and pace before you cut it. Some departures simply book late.
• Small numbers swing. A slot with a few seats can jump from 25 to 75 percent on two bookings. Compare slots from the same tour and look at several weeks.
• A projection is an estimate. It comes from booking pace and the last 8 weeks of history, so it is only as steady as that history.
• Unlimited-capacity activities have no fill, pace or time to sell out. They still count toward revenue, lead time and channels.

FAQ

How do I see which timeslots sold out?

Open the Calendar, choose Heatmap, and look for the darkest cells. Click one to see how long it took to sell out and how far ahead guests booked.

What does "ahead of the usual pace" mean?

It compares the slot's bookings now with the average for the same activity, weekday and start time over the last 8 weeks, at the same number of days before departure. Within 7 percent counts as on pace.

Why does a slot show no pace or usual curve?

The usual curve needs at least 3 past departures of the same activity, weekday and start time. New activities and unlimited-capacity activities do not show it.

Does the Heatmap predict sell-outs?

For upcoming slots it projects the final count with a likely range and a verdict such as likely to sell out or unlikely to fill. It is an estimate based on booking pace and history.

Why can't I see revenue in the panel?

Revenue and price figures need reports access.

Related lessons

• Using dynamic pricing effectively: turn a consistently sold-out slot into higher revenue.
• Bulk-Edit Capacity: add seats across the dates that run hot.
• Availability & Status: close or reopen slots that are not selling.
• The Calendar: how the tabs fit together.
• Managing availability & capacity: choose the capacity model behind your numbers.

Next step

Pick your busiest tour, open its month on the Heatmap, and click the darkest and the palest departure. Compare how they sold.

Full video script

Welcome to TripWorks University. Today, we'll show you how to understand how your business really sells, spot your busiest and quietest departures, and see what is likely to sell out before it does.

Every operator wants to know where their business is strong, where it is quietly slipping, and what is about to sell out. Most only find out after the fact. Inside the calendar you already book from, there is a view that shows you how your business truly behaves, and lets you see what is coming before it arrives.

Start with the picture. Every cell is a departure, and the warmer the color, the fuller it is. Pick a tour and look across the whole month. The sold-out slots jump out, and so do the cold ones, the departures you are running that nobody is booking. That is your business, on one screen.

Click any slot and see how it sold, not just that it sold. The booking curve shows how it filled over time, against the usual pace for a slot like this one. You see how long it took to sell out, how far ahead guests booked, and which channels brought them in.

Now drag across several departures and ask a bigger question. Eight slots together: ninety-eight percent full and ahead of the usual pace, with the fullest and emptiest called out. Patterns show up that you would never spot one slot at a time, like which times, days or tours reliably fill.

And you can keep asking. Pick a different tour, drag across its departures, and the answer recalculates straight away. Go back a week and ask again. Compare one tour with another, or this week with last. Instead of building a report, you are just asking the calendar questions, and every answer shows you where demand is strong, where it is soft, and where you are not really selling.

Then it looks ahead. Click an upcoming slot and TripWorks projects where it is headed, with a likely range, and tells you plainly whether it is on track to fill. You can see which channels are bringing the bookings in. So you know which departures are heading for a sell-out, and which need a push, while there is still time to act.

The best operators do not just record what happened. They understand why, and they see what is coming. That is what this gives you: clarity about where demand is strong, honesty about where you are not really selling, and foresight about what is likely to sell out. Your next decision on pricing, capacity or marketing, made on real demand.

Thanks for watching TripWorks University. Visit tripworks.com to keep learning, explore the other lessons in the calendar series, and see how much easier running your day can be. We'll see you in the next lesson.