Best Apps for Booking Tours, Activities and Experiences

Some of my favourite travel memories have come from the experiences I’ve booked along the way — from island trips and sightseeing tours to activities I probably wouldn’t have discovered otherwise.

Booking your must-do experiences before you travel can make planning much easier, particularly when you’re visiting somewhere for the first time or travelling during a busy period.

I’ve personally used GetYourGuide and Viator during trips to Barcelona, Turkey, Albania and Thailand, and one thing I’ve learned is that it pays to look at more than one platform. Similar experiences can have different itineraries, prices, availability and inclusions depending on where you book.

Here are some of the best websites and apps to check when planning tours, activities and experiences for your next trip.

GetYourGuide

GetYourGuide is one of the platforms I use most when researching things to do in a new destination.

I’ve booked through GetYourGuide during several of my trips, including Barcelona, Turkey, Albania and Thailand. I particularly like being able to browse a wide selection of activities in one place and quickly see what’s available before building my itinerary.

Depending on the destination, you’ll find guided tours, attraction tickets, boat trips, day excursions, food experiences and plenty more.

During my time in Phuket, for example, I booked several experiences through GetYourGuide, including island tours and other activities that became some of the highlights of my trip.

Best for: An excellent all-round platform for tours, attractions, day trips and experiences.

Viator

Viator is another platform I’ve personally used across Barcelona, Turkey, Albania and Thailand.

It offers a huge range of activities, from traditional sightseeing tours and attraction tickets to private excursions, boat trips and more unusual local experiences.

I find Viator particularly useful when I already have an idea of what I want to do but want to see the different versions of that experience available.

Two tours may visit similar places but offer very different itineraries, group sizes or extras, so looking beyond the tour title can uncover a much better option.

Best for: A huge variety of tours and useful alternatives when you’re looking for a particular experience.

Klook

Klook is particularly worth checking when travelling around Asia, although its coverage extends to destinations around the world.

Alongside tours and attractions, you’ll find theme park tickets, activities and other travel services, making it useful when organising several parts of a trip.

For destinations such as Thailand and elsewhere across Asia, Klook can be a useful addition to your search because its selection may differ from the larger global tour platforms.

Best for: Attractions and experiences across Asia, with growing worldwide coverage.

Expedia

Expedia may be better known for hotels, flights and package holidays, but its Things to Do section is also worth checking when planning your itinerary.

Depending on where you’re travelling, you’ll find sightseeing tours, attraction tickets, excursions and other activities.

It’s particularly convenient if you’re already using Expedia to organise other parts of your holiday and want to research several elements of the trip in one place.

Best for: Travellers already using Expedia for flights, accommodation or holiday planning.

Trip.com

Trip.com is another useful option, particularly for travellers heading to Asia.

Alongside flights, hotels and transport services, you’ll find attraction tickets, tours and activities across a growing number of destinations.

It may not always be the first place that comes to mind when looking for a tour, but it’s worth including in your search when you want to see what other activities or prices are available.

Best for: Asia travel and organising several parts of a trip through one platform.

Hoppa

Hoppa is useful when you want to arrange your airport transfer before you travel.

Depending on the destination, you can book shared shuttles and private transfers between airports, hotels and resorts.

Having your transfer organised in advance can be particularly useful when you’re arriving somewhere unfamiliar or landing after a long flight. Instead of working out local transport when you arrive, you already know how you’re getting to your accommodation.

Before booking, check whether you’re choosing a private or shared transfer, the luggage allowance, pickup instructions and expected journey time.

Best for: Pre-booked airport, hotel and resort transfers.

12Go

12Go is slightly different from the other options in this guide because its main strength isn’t sightseeing tours — it’s helping you get from one destination to another.

You can search for trains, coaches, ferries, speedboats and transfers, making it particularly useful for multi-stop journeys and island hopping.

This can be incredibly helpful in destinations where you’re trying to piece together several forms of transport. Instead of searching individual operators separately, you can explore potential routes and schedules in one place.

Although particularly well known for travel across Asia, 12Go also covers routes in other parts of the world.

Best for: Ferries, trains, coaches, transfers and travelling between destinations.

Should You Book Activities Before You Travel?

For an experience I definitely don’t want to miss, I prefer to have it booked before I arrive.

This is particularly important for popular attractions, limited-capacity experiences, island tours and activities during peak travel periods.

However, I wouldn’t fill every day of a holiday with advance bookings.

Part of travelling is discovering places once you’re there, so I prefer to organise my must-do experiences while leaving some free time in the itinerary.

That gives me the security of knowing the important things are booked without making the entire trip feel like a timetable.

What Should You Check Before Booking a Tour?

Finding an activity you like is only the beginning. Before paying, read the full listing carefully.

I recommend checking:

• Recent customer reviews
• Full itinerary and duration
• Hotel pickup and drop-off
• Meeting point and start time
• Group size
• Meals and drinks
• Attraction or entrance fees
• Equipment provided
• Additional charges
• Cancellation and refund terms

Pay particular attention to what’s not included.

An activity with a lower headline price may require additional payments for entrance fees, transfers or other essentials, while a slightly more expensive option could include everything.

The final value matters more than the first price you see.

Read Recent Reviews, Not Just the Rating

A high star rating is useful, but it doesn’t tell you everything.

I prefer reading a selection of the most recent reviews before making a decision. They can reveal details that aren’t obvious from the official description, such as how organised the day was, whether transport was comfortable, how much time was spent at each stop and whether the experience felt overcrowded.

One negative review wouldn’t necessarily put me off.

What matters more is whether several recent travellers are highlighting the same problem.

Check the Cancellation Policy

Even carefully planned trips can change.

Weather can affect boat tours, flights can be disrupted and sometimes you simply need to rearrange your itinerary.

Check the cancellation conditions for the individual activity before booking rather than assuming every experience sold through the same platform follows identical rules.

For weather-dependent activities in particular, it’s worth understanding what happens if the operator cancels the experience.

Don’t Automatically Choose the Cheapest Tour

Imagine two island tours where one costs slightly more but includes hotel pickup, lunch, entrance fees and snorkelling equipment.

The cheaper tour may look better in the search results, but once those extras are added, it could end up costing more.

Price matters, but so do the itinerary, reviews, convenience and what’s included.

I’d rather pay slightly more for an experience that suits me better than save a small amount and spend an entire day wishing I’d chosen differently.

Which Tour Booking Platform Is Best?

There isn’t one platform I’d declare the best for every traveller, activity and destination.

From my own travels, GetYourGuide and Viator are the two platforms I’ve personally used across multiple countries, so they’re natural starting points when I’m looking for tours and experiences.

Klook and Trip.com are particularly worth exploring for trips around Asia, while Expedia offers another option if you’re already using it to organise your holiday.

For getting to and from the airport, Hoppa is useful for arranging transfers in advance.

And when the challenge is figuring out how to travel between destinations, rather than what to do when you arrive, 12Go can help with options such as trains, coaches and ferries.

Ultimately, choose the experience that offers the right itinerary, good recent reviews, suitable timings and a price you’re comfortable paying.

Final Thoughts

We recommend comparing GetYourGuide, Viator, Klook, Expedia, Trip.com, Hoppa and 12GoAsia before booking activities, attractions or transport.

Checking multiple platforms can help you find better prices, discover unique experiences and travel with confidence.

Looking for your next adventure?

Explore hand-picked holiday deals, honest hotel reviews, practical travel guides and destination inspiration from around the world. Whether you’re dreaming of Thailand, a European escape or somewhere completely new, discover more ideas to inspire your next trip.