Home → Arctic Reservations → Add-ons → Add-Ons and the Reservation Process
9.4. Add-Ons and the Reservation Process
Now that we have created all of the Add-ons for our Trip Type and associated all of the necessary inventory constraints with each add-on, let's look at how this information appears and functions when making a reservation through the backend and online.
First let's look at the "Create Reservation Form" through the backend. For our reservation, we have a party of four who want to go on our river trip. Notice that Arctic automatically fills in selections for each of the add-ons we set up as an "Include by Default" add-ons with a note saying "Auto adjusted, Originally 0" as shown here:
Also notice, in the next image, that for each of the add-ons we created with an inventory constraint that Arctic tells us how many we have available and how many guests can use each item if we told Arctic the item could be shared.
If our guests were happy with a 4 person raft for their trip and wanted the Shuttle then we would be ready to proceed with the reservation. But, if our guests want to put 3 people in the 4 person raft and a single person in the double kayak, Arctic will display the following error:
The reason we would get this error, if the guests want to put 3 people in the 4 Person Raft and 1 person in the Double Kayak, is because we have told Arctic that the Double Kayak must be "Fully Allocated" meaning that they must have 2 guests per Double Kayak to completely fill the boat.
Since our "Boat Preferences" are both optional and our guests can choose either option, if the guests want to have everyone in their party in a Double Kayak they can do that even though the 4 Person Raft is the option that is automatically selected for them. To accomplish this you would simply enter 0 for the number of guests for the 4 Person Raft and enter 4 for the number of guests for the Double Kayak.
If we try to make this reservation without selecting either option, we will get the following error:
Arctic will display this error because our "Boat Preferences" are part of a "Set of Choices" which means that Arctic will require us to make a selection from the choices offered for each guest on the reservation to be sure they have the necessary equipment to complete their trip. In this case, since we have 4 guests, we need to make sure we have made 4 selections for the "Boat Preferences".
If we are out of inventory for one of the add-ons with a required inventory, for instance, the 4 Person Rafts, this is what we will see on the "Create Reservation Form":
Notice that Arctic lists the available inventory for the 4 Person Raft as 0 but has still entered the number of guests into this selection. This is because we told Arctic that the 4 Person Raft Add-on should be included by default. However, even if we do not catch the fact that we don't have enough 4 Person Rafts for this reservation, once we click "Submit", Arctic will give the following error:
This error will alert us to the fact that we do not have enough inventory for the 4 Person Raft Add-on to complete the reservation. However, we can look at the inventory available for our other boat selection to see if we can accomodate our guests on this trip with Double Kayaks. If we can, our guests can then choose to go on this date in Double Kayaks or go on another date in a 4 Person Raft.
Now let's look at how the Add-ons look on the "Reservation" page for the Guest Facing Site. Again, we have a party of four who are making a reservation online for our river trip.
If our guests used the "Filters" for number of guests to search for trips online, when they choose a trip by clicking "Reserve", Arctic will pre-fill their "Reservation Form" as shown here:
Notice, that Arctic not only pre-filled the number of guests for the trip but also pre-filled the add-ons that were set up to be "Included by Default".
If our guests did not use the "Fitlers" to enter the number of guests, and they choose a trip by clicking "Reserve" as they enter their guest count, Arctic will automatically update any of the add-ons that were set up to be "Included by Default" to match the number of guests they entered for their party.
Now let's look at how the errors appear for the guests when they don't meet all of the selection requirements or allocation requirements for their reservation.
If our guests want to put 3 guests in the 4 Person Raft and 1 guest in the Double Kayak, this will be the error they receive:
The reason the guest will receive this error is because we told Arctic that the Double Kayak Add-on must be "Fully Allocated" meaning it must have 2 guests to operate each boat. When the guest selects a double kayak the system will assume they are putting 2 people in the boat. Since our guest entered 4 guests for their reservation count, the system is letting them know that they have more boat selections than they need for the number of guests they want to reserve for. To proceed they would need to change the 4 person raft passengers to be 2 and 1 double kayak will be selected for 2 of their party.
Also notice that Arctic will give your guest the information they need to call you with questions or to make an inquiry if they can't figure out what they need to do to complete their reservation.
Now, let's look at the error the guest will receive if they try to skip making a boat selection.
The reason the guest would get this error is because they did not make a selection for one of the "Boat Preferences" options that we set up as "Set of Choices" add-on. They must make a selection so that each person in their party will have the necessary equipment to go on the river trip. In this case, since there are 4 guests in the party, they need to make 4 boat selections.
Also again notice, that if they are confused and cannot figure out what they must do to complete their reservation that Arctic provides them with information so they can call or submit an inquiry to get help completing their reservation.
Finally, let's look at the error our online guests would recieve if there isn't enough inventory for one of the options they chose. In this instance the 4 Person Raft. If our guest chooses the 4 Person Raft for their trip and there are not enough rafts to fill their needs they will receive the following error:
This will let the guest know that we don't have enough rafts for their reservation. They can also choose to take Double Kayaks for their trip or choose a different date if they really would prefer the 4 Person Raft to the Double Kayaks. Again, if they cannot figure out what they need to do to complete their reservation they can choose to call you or make an inquiry to get assistance with their reservation.
You have probably noticed that the "Required Add-on" we created for our Life Jackets hasn't appeared in any of the Add-on options for either a backend reservation or an online reservation. Arctic automatically adds these items for your guests and allocates them according to the "Required Inventory" settings we set up for the add-on.
To make sure that Arctic is allocating your "Required Add-on" inventory items correctly, go to the "Rental" menu and choose "Items". On the "Rental Items" page, click the "View Usage" button next to the item in question. In this case, we would click the "View Usage" button next to the Life Jacket item. This will display the follow "View Usage" page:
Notice for our life jackets, we have four reservations on March 13th. The quantity of life jackets being allocated for each reservation entry is listed as a negative for each of these reservations because these life jackets will be allotted for the reservations until their trip ends and they have been put back in circulation. The negative number shows us that Arctic is removing these items from the available inventory. Notice also that each reservation shows when the allocation will end and the life jackets can be used again by other guests. The Allocation End Time is deteremined by the settings you set up on the "Required Inventory Form" for Life Jacket Add-on. This page not only tracks the inventory for our life jackets from our trip reservations but also from our rental reservations. If you want to know what activity each allocation is associated with, whether a trip or rental, click the blue "Activity Numbers" to view the "Activity Details" page for each allocation.
This is the only place where "Required Add-ons" are tracked so when you are setting up your trip add-ons it is always best to do a test reservation to be sure each Required Inventory Item for a "Required Add-on" is being allocated correctly. You can also use the "View Usage" pages for each of the other add-ons that have inventory constraints to verify the correct number of items are being allocated per reservation/guest. If the correct number of items are not being allocated, you will need to go back to the "Required Inventory Form" for the add-on in question and double check your settings. Most often, allocation mistakes happen because the sharing settings and allocation settings are incorrect.
It is important to test your settings for the required inventory for each add-on to make sure Arctic is calculating the number of items correctly. If you do not verify these settings it can lead to overbooking/underbooking issues.
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Important Notes
* Be sure to test and configure add-ons early in the setup process. Once you begin booking reservations, changing add-ons will not reallocate gear for existing reservations automatically due to the complexity of checking and updating all reservations. Instead, if updates are necessary, you must individually edit reservations (simply going to the edit page, and pressing save will force Arctic to update allocations).
* Required inventory items will directly affect the trip availability number. If one of your required add-ons has only 3 items left, but the trip has 10 openings based on the "opening" entry, the add-on availability will take precedence and the trip will be listed as having only 3 spots left.
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If you have more questions please feel free contact us at support@arcticreservations.com.