SEO for Tourism Operators · NZ, Australia, US, UK & CA
SEO for tourism operators that gets you found, then booked.
When a traveller searches for your kind of experience in your part of the world, you want to be the one they find, not just the OTA listing above you. We get your business to the top of Google and the map pack, so more of them book direct.
Clear monthly pricing
How much does SEO for tourism operators cost?
then scale up as you grow
Every plan includes strategy, on-page, technical and local SEO and AEO as standard, plus monthly reporting in plain English. No lock-in contracts. Want to build your own estimate? Use the calculator below.
From Christchurch, for tourism operators
SEO from someone who knows how travellers search.
EightySix Digital is a New Zealand SEO agency that helps businesses get found on Google and in AI search.
I’m based in Christchurch, close to the South Island’s tourism heartland. Travellers search for the experience and the place together, from “guided heli-hike near Franz Josef” to “fly fishing guide Queenstown”, and often months before they arrive.
So your SEO isn’t built off a generic checklist. It’s aimed at the searches that bring bookings, including the ones from visitors who haven’t reached New Zealand yet. No bullshit, just more of the right bookings.
Results from a tourism client
Found on Google, booked direct.
No bullshit
Tourism SEO, in plain English.
Not sure what SEO actually does? Here’s the whole thing in three steps.
-
A trip gets planned
Someone, maybe on the other side of the world, searches for what to do in your part of the country.
-
You show up
SEO puts your business at the top of Google, the map pack and AI answers, right when they’re deciding.
-
They book you
They tap through to your site and book direct, because you were the one they found first.
What’s included
Everything your tourism business needs to rank.
Everything that moves the needle, handled for you and reported every month.
Activity + location SEO
We rank you for the experience and the place together, like “jet boat near Hamilton”, where ready-to-book visitors search.
International visitor search
Travellers from the UK, US, Australia and Canada search in different words, from different places. We research how your guests actually look for you.
Seasonal content & planning
Ski season, summer, shoulder months. We plan pages and content around when people plan, which is usually well before they travel.
On-page SEO
A page for each experience, tour or room, with clear information, so Google knows exactly what you offer and where.
Technical SEO
Speed, mobile, indexing and schema, so your site loads fast on a phone abroad and Google can read it properly.
Content & authority
Guides and links that answer what travellers ask, from what to wear to how to get there, and earn mentions from local and travel sites.
AEO for AI
Included as standard. Be the operator named in Google AI Overviews and voice answers, and add GEO to be recommended by AI trip planners.
Reporting & management
Clear monthly reporting in plain English: rankings, visits and the direct bookings your SEO brought in.
Map pack & reviews
Google Business Profile and reviews, done properly.
For a local experience, your Google profile is often the first thing a traveller sees and the last thing they check before they book. It gets its own focus here.
The map pack, your shopfront on Google
A profile set up properly, with the right categories, accurate hours and a booking link, is how you appear in the map pack when someone searches near where you operate.
Categories, services & photos
The right primary category, your experiences listed as services, and real photos of real trips, not stock images, so the profile shows what a guest actually gets.
A review strategy that works
A simple, honest process for asking every guest for a review while the trip is fresh, and replying to every one that comes in. We never buy or fake reviews.
Reviews in guests’ own words
Reviews that mention the activity and the place help Google and AI tools understand what you do. You can’t script them, so we make it easy for guests to say what they enjoyed.
Last-minute bookings
Plenty of tourism decisions are made the day before or on the day, on a phone, near the place. A current profile with photos, reviews and a booking link wins those bookings.
Seasonal updates & posts
Closing for winter, opening for the season, a new departure. We keep your profile current so nobody turns up to a closed gate or books a trip that isn’t running.
Every kind of operator
Built for the way you operate.
Whatever you sell, we target the exact searches that bring that booking in.
Adventure activities
Jet boating, rafting, canyoning and more. We rank you for the activity plus the town, where visitors decide what to do with their free day.
Guided tours & day trips
One page per tour, built around the questions people type: what’s included, how long it takes, where it leaves from.
Heli-ski & heli-hike
High-value trips researched well in advance. We target the planning searches, so you’re in the running before the decision is made.
Fishing guides & lodges
Rivers, species, seasons and lodge stays. We target the specific searches from anglers who already know what they want.
Boutique lodges
Rank for the place and the stay, and give travellers a reason to book direct. See how direct bookings work.
Ski & winter operators
Seasonal pages and content that peak when people plan their snow trip, not after the season has started.
The compounding curve
SEO is a snowball, not a switch.
Unlike ads, SEO builds on itself. The work this month keeps paying off next year. Tourism is seasonal, so timing matters: starting before your busy season gives the work time to land, and the pages you build for summer are already working when the next one arrives. Results vary by destination and competition, and we won’t promise numbers.
- Early movement within a few months
- Compounding growth as the work stacks up
- Bookings that keep coming without paying per click
How it works
A clear process. Real results.
- 01
Audit & research
We map the searches travellers use for your experience, size up the operators and OTAs you’re up against and find the bookings worth ranking for.
- 02
Strategy
A tailored plan built around your experiences, your seasons and the countries your guests come from.
- 03
Optimise
On-page, technical, local and Google Business Profile work each month, aimed squarely at the searches that bring bookings.
- 04
Grow & report
Clear monthly reports on rankings, visits and direct bookings, so you see exactly what your SEO is bringing in.
Pricing
Two ways to start.
Pick a simple fixed plan, or build your own. SEO & AEO included as standard, no lock-in, ever.
$600/mo
4 hours a month · local focus
Built for owner-operators and small tour businesses. We manage your Google Business Profile and handle the on-page basics, so you get found for your activity and your area without the big spend.
- Google Business Profile management
- Local map-pack optimisation
- On-page SEO basics for your site
- Monthly reporting, no lock-in
from$750/mo
5+ hours a month · build your own
For tourism businesses chasing real growth. SEO and AEO included as standard, scale the hours to suit, and add GEO for AI search.
- Everything in Small Business, plus
- Keyword strategy, content & links
- AEO included, GEO optional
- Scales with your goals
Switch currency above. NZ prices add GST.
Build your Full SEO plan
Five hours a month is the minimum for a full plan. The bigger your site and the more competitive your area, the more hours you’ll want.
SEO and AEO are in your plan as standard. GEO adds the PR, backlinks and content placement that get you recommended inside AI tools.
SEO and AEO as standard: keyword strategy · on-page, technical & local SEO · schema · content optimisation · monthly reporting in plain English. No lock-in contracts.
Get started
Get your plan & a fixed price
Send the plan you built above and I’ll come back with a fixed price and a couple of ideas to get your tourism business ranking. No pressure, no lock-in.
- A fixed price, no surprises
- You’ll talk to the person doing the work
- No spam, no lock-in. Cancel any time.
Want a free check-up first? Get a free SEO audit →
Awesome experience with setting up a new business website, patient, helpful, great explanations and communication, brilliant timeframe. Highly recommend!
Karamu Horse Adventures · Google review
What is SEO for tourism operators?
SEO for tourism operators is the work that gets a tour, activity or lodge business to show up at the top of Google when travellers search for what you offer. It covers the experience and the place together, your Google Business Profile and reviews, and the content that answers the questions travellers ask, so more of them find you and book direct.
How much does SEO for tourism operators cost?
SEO for tourism operators starts from NZ$600 a month for a focused local plan, or from NZ$750 for the full plan, which begins at five hours of work a month and then scales by the hour. Every plan covers strategy, on-page, technical and local SEO with monthly reporting, and the full plan adds AEO for AI search as standard. Build an estimate →
How long does SEO take for a tourism business?
SEO is a long game, not an overnight fix. Many businesses see early movement within a few months, with stronger, compounding results as the work stacks up. Google Business Profile work can bring quicker wins. Tourism is seasonal, so starting before your busy season gives the work time to land. Results vary by destination and competition.
Do you do Google Business Profile and reviews?
Yes, and for a local experience it’s often where the best bookings come from. We set up and optimise your profile, build a simple and honest review process, keep seasonal details current and target the map pack. See the Google Business Profile section →
Which searches will you target?
The ones that bring bookings: the experience plus the place, like “fly fishing guide Queenstown”, planning searches from visitors still deciding where to go, and the questions travellers ask before they book. We research how your guests, including those in the UK, US, Australia and Canada, actually search and target the terms worth winning.
Can I outrank Viator and GetYourGuide on Google?
For some searches, yes. For others, big OTAs will keep ranking above you. SEO targets the searches you can win, like the specific experience in your specific place, and the map pack, where a strong profile and reviews count for a lot. For searches on your own business name, Google Ads can keep OTAs from sitting above you.
Will SEO get me more direct bookings?
That’s the whole point. By ranking you for the searches travellers use when they’re planning, SEO sends more of them to your own site. Pair it with a booking-ready website and Google Ads, and see how direct bookings work across all of them.
Do you only work with tourism operators in New Zealand?
No. We do SEO for tourism businesses across New Zealand, Australia, the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada, and price in NZD, AUD, USD, GBP and CAD.
Keep reading
Related tourism guides.
- Google Business Profile for Tourism Operators: The Complete Guide
- Google Reviews vs TripAdvisor: Where Tourism Operators Should Focus
- Pre-Winter Marketing Checklist for Ski, Heli and Winter Activity Operators
Ready to climb the rankings?
Start with a free SEO audit. I’ll show you exactly where your tourism business stands and what it’ll take to be found first, no bullshit, no pressure. Part of a wider plan to win more direct bookings. Curious what OTA commission costs you? Try the OTA commission calculator.