Every empty seat is a missed adventure.
Stand-by Tours exists so that never has to happen. We connect spontaneous travelers with unsold seats on top-rated local tours at exclusive stand-by rates — a win for the traveler who books it, and for the operator who'd otherwise send that seat out empty.
EVERY SINGLE DAY, INCREDIBLE TOURS DEPART WITH EMPTY SEATS.
A sunset catamaran with three spare spots. A food tour with room for two more. A mountain hike with space for a last-minute explorer. Meanwhile, just blocks away, last-minute travellers are scrolling for something to do — ready to go. It never made sense to us. Because we've lived it — from the other side.
We come from a tour operator background, and we've felt the sting of watching a tour leave with empty seats. The overhead, the planning, the passion that goes into every departure — and then seats sitting unused while the clock runs down. It's a pain we know well, and it's exactly what inspired Stand-by Tours.
So we built the fix. Travellers grab real-time flash deals, book instantly, and show up. No planning marathons. No full-price regret. Just the best of both worlds: operators run full tours and travellers get great discounts on experiences they'd have loved anyway. That's the simple idea behind Stand-by Tours. And it works — because we've been in your shoes.
The Stand-by Promise
A discount is only worth grabbing if you can trust what's behind it. Here's what every stand-by booking gets you.
Pre-vetted operators only
Every supplier on the platform is verified before they can list a single seat. No fly-by-night guides, no surprises.
Instant confirmation
No waiting on a callback or an email. Book, get your voucher, show up. The seat is yours the second you pay.
Real flash savings
Stand-by rates aren't a marked-up 'sale' price. They're what operators actually need to fill a seat that's about to go out empty.
Top-rated local experiences
Same tours, same guides, same boats — just the leftover capacity, sold at the price of spontaneity.
Turn your empty seats into revenue you'd otherwise lose.
You already run the tour. Stand-by Tours just makes sure every seat on it gets filled.
Incremental revenue, not cannibalized revenue
Stand-by inventory only appears in the final sale window, priced to move — it's not competing with your full-price bookings.
Full control over what you release
You choose which tours qualify, your minimum stand-by price, and how close to departure listings open.
Zero risk, zero setup cost
No listing fees, no minimum commitments. If a seat doesn't sell, you've lost nothing you weren't already losing.
Our core values
The best trips are rarely the ones you planned six months out. We build for the traveler who decides today.
An empty seat on a departed tour is gone forever — no refund, no do-over. We exist to make sure fewer of them go to waste.
Independent guides and small operators built these experiences. We're a channel that works for them, not around them.
No inflated 'was' prices. Stand-by rates reflect what a seat is actually worth in its final hours — nothing more.
Running tours with empty seats?
List your unsold capacity in minutes. No fees, no risk.
Become a supplier