Field Notes

Hospitality marketing notes, from 18° to 20° North.

Direct booking tactics, locals program teardowns, email plays that actually book. What’s working at boutique hotels, restaurants, and vacation rentals across the USVI, Caribbean, and Riviera Maya.

Best Booking Software for Tour Operators (2026): FareHarbor vs Peek Pro vs Bokun

Tour operator guiding guests on a kayak activity, illustrating booking software for tours

If you run tours or activities, your booking software isn’t just a calendar. It’s your checkout, your payment processor, your OTA connection, and the thing that decides how big a bite fees take out of every seat you sell. Pick the wrong one and you either bleed margin on commissions or spend your evenings fixing […]

Mailchimp vs Klaviyo for Restaurants & Hotels: Which Email Platform Wins

Mailchimp vs Klaviyo email marketing comparison for restaurants and hotels

If you run a hotel, restaurant, villa, or bar, your email list is one of the only marketing channels you actually own. No algorithm, no commission, no OTA skimming off the top. So the platform you build it on matters. The fight that comes up most often is Mailchimp vs Klaviyo, and the honest answer […]

How to Respond to Negative Reviews: Templates for Hotels & Restaurants

Hospitality owner learning how to respond to negative reviews on a laptop

A bad review lands and your stomach drops. Maybe it’s unfair, maybe it stings because it’s a little bit true. Either way, the question is the same: what do you actually type into that reply box? Knowing how to respond to negative reviews is one of those skills nobody teaches you when you open a […]

Restaurant Loyalty Program Ideas That Actually Bring Guests Back

Restaurant loyalty program ideas for bringing guests back

You already know the math, even if you have never written it down: the guest who comes back four times this year is worth a lot more than four strangers who each show up once. The trouble is getting people to come back on purpose. That is where restaurant loyalty program ideas earn their keep, […]