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NowThingsToDo: Reseller Connection

Connect NowThingsToDo to Ventrata to sync availability and prices and receive bookings instantly.

NowThingsToDo logo

 

NowThingsToDo is a Dublin-based online marketplace for tours and activities, listing more than 70,000 experiences across roughly 170 countries and 3,900 cities and recruiting suppliers through an open program. For operators, it brings consumers buying direct on price, free cancellation and skip-the-line entry, with volume concentrated in Rome, Hanoi, Lisbon, Barcelona and London.

 

Connecting NowThingsToDo to Ventrata will sync your availability and prices and deliver bookings, changes and cancellations with tickets issued automatically.

 

To learn more about partnering with NowThingsToDo, visit nowthingstodo.com.

 

Primary website

Tags

OTA · Tours & Activities OTA

Destination markets

🌎 Global

Source markets

🌎 Global

Specialties

Price-led direct consumers, strongest in Rome, Lisbon and Barcelona

Connection features

Availability Sync · Pricing Sync · Bookings Sync

Developed by

NowThingsToDo (using Ventrata's OCTO API)

 

This reseller connection lets you sell your products through NowThingsToDo without managing availability, pricing and bookings by hand. Features of this connection include:

  • Availability Sync – NowThingsToDo checks your live availability in Ventrata.

  • Pricing Sync – NowThingsToDo gets your prices from your reseller pricing in Ventrata.

  • Bookings Sync – bookings, updates and cancellations from NowThingsToDo are created in Ventrata instantly, and customers get Ventrata tickets.

 

Creating the NowThingsToDo Connection

🔐 Required Role Permissions: See Connections, Modify Connections, See Connection Key

Before you begin:

  • You must have a commercial agreement with NowThingsToDo for them to sell your products. To inquire about partnering with them, contact them via nowthingstodo.com.

  • You must have NowThingsToDo created as a Reseller in Ventrata with their pricing (retail, wholesale/commission) defined correctly. Note that this API connection requires that the reseller is set to the "Bill to my account" settlement method.

 

  1. In Ventrata Dashboard, go to Connections → Connections, click + New Connection, and select NowThingsToDo from the list of partners.

  2. Select NowThingsToDo Reseller from the list of your resellers (must be created before creating a connection). The connection will inherit the reseller's configuration like pricing, allowed destinations, products, etc.

  3. (Optional) You can also set the connection Name of your choosing, which may be helpful if you plan to have multiple NowThingsToDo connections and would like to differentiate between them more easily in the future.

  4. Press the Create Octo Connection button.

 

📗 TIP

If needed, you can also allow or disallow products or destinations on the connection level, in addition to what you have configured on the reseller.

 

Mapping Products to NowThingsToDo

Securely share the OCTO API key shown on the connection you've created with your NowThingsToDo contact and ask them to map your products using Ventrata's OCTO API, with pricing (octo/pricing) enabled. Typically, it takes no longer than a few business days for the NowThingsToDo team to complete this.

 

Your Ventrata configuration is complete. You do not need to take any further steps.

 

📗 TIP

NowThingsToDo can access all products enabled on the connection, but you can also provide the Product and Option IDs from the connection page when contacting them to specify what to map.

 

 

Managing the NowThingsToDo Connection

  • Allow or disallow products: limit which destinations, products and options NowThingsToDo can access. See how to allow or disallow products.

  • Rename the connection to tell several NowThingsToDo connections apart.

 

Connection Features Detailed

This section is for anyone who wants to know exactly how the NowThingsToDo connection works: which Ventrata OCTO API calls NowThingsToDo makes, when it makes them, and what that means for you. Each call links to Ventrata's API documentation.

 

In short: NowThingsToDo pulls everything it needs from Ventrata. It reads your products, checks your availability and prices, and sends bookings and cancellations. Ventrata doesn't push changes to NowThingsToDo, so anything you change in Ventrata reaches NowThingsToDo the next time it checks.

 

Product Mapping

❌

You can't map products from Ventrata. NowThingsToDo maps them on its side, through your account manager or NowThingsToDo's portal.

This works as follows:

  • Get Products (GET /products) – when NowThingsToDo sets up your connection, and whenever it refreshes its listings, it reads every product enabled on the connection, with its options and units (ticket types such as Adult or Child).

  • Get Product (GET /products/{productId}) – NowThingsToDo re-reads a single product to pick up changes to its options, units, booking cutoffs and settings.

  • Mapping on NowThingsToDo's side – NowThingsToDo links each Ventrata option and unit to its own listing and ticket types. Your NowThingsToDo account manager does this for you, or you do it in NowThingsToDo's own portal if NowThingsToDo offers one. You only share the connection's API key.

 

What this means for you: NowThingsToDo can only sell what it has mapped. When you add a product, option or unit in Ventrata, NowThingsToDo may see it on its next refresh, but it won't sell it until it's mapped. So tell your NowThingsToDo account manager whenever you add one.

Content Sync

❌

NowThingsToDo doesn't read your product content from Ventrata.

NowThingsToDo uses the descriptions, images and other content set up on its own side, so update your content with NowThingsToDo directly.

Availability Sync

✅

NowThingsToDo checks your live availability in Ventrata. Ventrata doesn't push availability changes to NowThingsToDo.

This works as follows:

  • Availability Check (POST /availability) – NowThingsToDo sends a product, an option and a date or date range. Ventrata answers with each bookable day or time slot, its status (AVAILABLE, LIMITED, SOLD_OUT, CLOSED or FREESALE), the remaining vacancies, the booking cutoff and an availabilityId, which NowThingsToDo needs to book that slot.

  • Availability Calendar (POST /availability/calendar) – returns one summary per day instead of every time slot, typically to show which dates are open in a date picker.

  • Check at booking – when a customer books, Ventrata checks capacity again before it creates the booking, so NowThingsToDo can't overbook a slot that has just sold out, even if its stored availability is slightly out of date.

 

What this means for you: when you close a date, change capacity or sell out in Ventrata, NowThingsToDo shows it only after its next check, so there can be a short delay. Ventrata's check at booking still prevents overbooking.

Pricing Sync

✅

Your prices come back with every availability check, once NowThingsToDo asks for them with the octo/pricing capability.

This works as follows:

  • octo/pricing capability – NowThingsToDo asks for prices by adding octo/pricing to the Octo-Capabilities header of its requests. Without it, Ventrata sends availability with no prices at all.

  • Availability Check (POST /availability) – with pricing on, each day or time slot comes back with your price per unit (ticket type): the retail price the customer pays and the net price you invoice NowThingsToDo, both from the reseller's pricing in Ventrata (retail and wholesale/commission).

  • Group prices – when NowThingsToDo also sends how many people of each unit type are booking, Ventrata prices that exact group. This matters for Booking Size fares and other group pricing.

  • Booking Reservation (POST /bookings) and Booking Confirmation (POST /bookings/{uuid}/confirm) – the booking comes back with its final retail and net price, so the booking in Ventrata always records the price it was sold at.

 

‼️ IMPORTANT – Ask for pricing to be enabled. When you ask NowThingsToDo to map your products, ask them to enable pricing (octo/pricing) as well, or switch it on yourself if you map in NowThingsToDo's portal. Otherwise it may be off, and NowThingsToDo won't receive your Ventrata prices.

Promotions Sync

❌

Your Ventrata promotions don't apply on NowThingsToDo.

Prices on NowThingsToDo don't include promotions you create in Ventrata. Set up any promotions with NowThingsToDo directly.

Bookings Sync

✅

Bookings and cancellations made on NowThingsToDo are created in Ventrata instantly, and customers get Ventrata tickets.

This works as follows:

  1. Hold: Booking Reservation (POST /bookings) – when a customer starts checkout on NowThingsToDo, NowThingsToDo sends the product, option, chosen slot (availabilityId) and one unit item per person. Ventrata checks capacity again and creates an ON_HOLD booking, which holds the places while the customer pays. If there's no longer room, Ventrata rejects the hold.

  2. Confirm: Booking Confirmation (POST /bookings/{uuid}/confirm) – once payment goes through, NowThingsToDo confirms the hold. The booking becomes CONFIRMED in Ventrata, and Ventrata sends back your booking reference and the tickets (one per person) or a voucher (one per booking), depending on how your product is set up, each with a QR code and a PDF link. NowThingsToDo gives these to the customer, who shows them at your entrance like any Ventrata ticket.

  3. Expire: if the customer doesn't finish paying, NowThingsToDo never confirms, and the hold expires on its own and frees the places.

  4. Cancel: Booking Cancellation (POST /bookings/{uuid}/cancel) – when a customer cancels on NowThingsToDo, NowThingsToDo cancels the booking in Ventrata. Ventrata accepts this only if the booking can still be cancelled and the option's cancellation cutoff hasn't passed. Otherwise it rejects the request, and NowThingsToDo has to contact you.

  5. Change: Booking Update (PATCH /bookings/{uuid}) – lets NowThingsToDo change a booking in place, for example a new date, time or number of people. Some resellers cancel and rebook instead.

 

‼️ IMPORTANT – Bookings sync one way, from NowThingsToDo to Ventrata. If you cancel, change or rebook a booking from NowThingsToDo in Ventrata, for example in the Dashboard, NowThingsToDo isn't notified. Contact NowThingsToDo so the booking is cancelled or changed on their side too, or ask the customer to cancel through NowThingsToDo.

Pickups/Dropoff Sync

❌

NowThingsToDo doesn't send pickup or drop-off details with its bookings.

If your products include pickups, check with NowThingsToDo how it collects pickup details, or arrange them with the customer.

Custom Questions Sync

❌

NowThingsToDo doesn't send answers to your booking questions.

If you rely on booking questions, for example names or dietary needs, check with NowThingsToDo how it collects that information.

Extras Sync

❌

Extras and add-ons can't be booked through NowThingsToDo.

Customers can only book your main products and options on NowThingsToDo. Sell extras separately, for example on arrival.

Redemption Sync

❌

Redemptions aren't reported to NowThingsToDo.

Ventrata doesn't notify NowThingsToDo when a ticket is scanned or redeemed. NowThingsToDo only sees a redemption if it reads the booking back from Ventrata.

Pass Walkup Scanning Sync

❌

NowThingsToDo pass holders can't be scanned at your entrance without a booking.

Customers from NowThingsToDo need a booking made through NowThingsToDo before they visit.

Gift Card Sync

❌

Ventrata gift cards can't be sold or redeemed through NowThingsToDo.

Gift cards bought in Ventrata can't be used on NowThingsToDo, and NowThingsToDo can't sell Ventrata gift cards.

✅ supported · ❌ not supported

 

Good to know: limits and details of the NowThingsToDo connection

  • Delays: availability and prices reach NowThingsToDo only when it checks, so there's always a short delay after you change something in Ventrata.

  • Cancellation cutoff: NowThingsToDo can cancel over the API only before your option's cancellation cutoff. Later cancellations have to be agreed with you.

  • What NowThingsToDo can see: only the destinations, products and options allowed on the reseller and the connection, and enabled for sale on the Direct API source. See how to allow or disallow products.

  • Tickets: NowThingsToDo issues the Ventrata tickets or voucher it gets on confirmation, so your usual scanning and redemption work as normal.

  • Test bookings: NowThingsToDo can send test bookings while it sets up the connection. Test bookings don't use your availability and aren't invoiced.

 

FAQs

No products are displayed on the connection page.

Verify which destinations, products, and options are allowed on your reseller and connection. Next, confirm that your products and options are enabled for sale on the Direct API source. If the issue persists, contact our Technical Support.

My Ventrata products use Booking Size fares, and pricing isn't working correctly on NowThingsToDo.

After every fare change, update the product mapping to ensure the partner tier counts are synced with Ventrata. Ensure the fare is enabled for sale over Direct API.

 

 

Partner Information

NowThingsToDo

12 Aston Quay, Dublin 2, D02 TE81

Ireland

 

Ventrata Partner ID: 8f08c9aa-19d7-4980-ae71-e9121809667d

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