Whale Watching RSVP Website: Boat Seats, Motion, and a Weather Call

A whale watching trip breaks when more people show up than the boat holds, when someone who gets seasick is already on the rail, or when the operator cancels for weather and your list still has maybes who think they have a seat. The boat sells a departure, a number of passengers, and a refund rule that starts when they make the call. A maybe does not add a life jacket.

YoucancreateawhalewatchingRSVPthatfillspassengerseats,recordswhoshouldnotbeonamovingdeck,andstopswhenthebookingisfull.

Boat seats and the manifest

Asktheoperatorwhatonedepartureholds

Callbeforeyousendthelink.Writedowntheboatnameorthetriplength,howmanypassengersareinyourblock,whetherthepriceisperperson,andwhetherachild,alapinfant,oranon-ridingadultcountsasahead.Askwhereyouboard,whattimeyoumustbeonthedock,andthelasttimetheywillchangeaname.Askwhattheydoiftheseaistoorough:movethedeparture,refund,orofferanotherday.Thoseanswersareyourcapandyourweatherline.Donotguessfromaphotooftherail.

Setacapacitylimitonpassengerstheoperatorcounts,notoneveryonewhowasinvited.Whenthelastseatistaken,theformshouldsaythedepartureisfull.Iftheywilladdapassengeronlywhenyoucallbeforeaclocktime,printthattime.Anameaddedaftertheyhaveprintedthemanifestisawalk-up,andwalk-upstakewhateverseatisleftafteryourgroupischeckedin,ifany.

Puttheoperator'sageruleandwaiverruleonthepageintheirwords.Ifaminorneedsaparentonboardtosign,thatparentisapassengereveniftheywouldratherstayonthedock.Spectatorsonthedockarenotpartofthebookingunlessyouarealsoholdingapicnicthere,andapicnicisadifferentheadcountwithitsowncutoff.

Motion is a real constraint

Motion,gear,andwhocanactuallygo

Askeachpersontopickonerole:

Askwhetheranyonegetsmotionsickonaboat,andwhethertheyarefineonacalmbaybutnotinopenwater.Youarenotdiagnosingthem.Youaredecidingwhetherthisdepartureistherighttrip,orwhethertheyshouldtakeaseatonlyiftheoperator'sforecastmatcheswhattheycanhandle.Sayonthepagewhattheoperatortoldyouaboutthetypicalride:harbor,coastal,oroffshore,andhowlongyouareawayfromthedock.Peoplecanbringtheirownremedy.Donotpromiseasmoothride.Iftheoperatorsaidtheheadistheonlyplaceforarestroom,orthatthereisnorestroomatall,printthattoo.Itchangeswhoshouldcome.

Closed-toeshoes,alayeragainstwind,andnohard-sidedcoolersarecommondeckrules.Iftheoperatorsaidit,printit.Askwhoneedsaseatratherthanstandingattherailforthewholetrip,andwhetheranyoneusesamobilityaidthathastocomeaboard.Anoteaboutstairs,anarrowgangway,oraseatletsyouasktheoperatorwhatthatboatcanactuallyofferbeforesomeoneisstandingattheramp.Iftheycannotaccommodatesomething,saysoonthepagebeforepeopledrivetotheharbor.

Puttheweatherplanintheoperator'swords:whodecides,whattimetheydecide,andwhetheramoveddeparturekeepsthesameseatsorstartsanewlist.Aguestwhocanonlycomeontheoriginalmorningneedsawaytosaythat,soyouarenotholdingtheirseatforaTuesdaytheycannotmake.Ifamovedtripisanewyes,donotassumetheoldrosterrollsforward.

Aphoneandanemergencycontactbelongonthesamepage.Thedockisabadplacetolearnwhotocall,andcellserviceoffshoreisnotaplan.TieyourRSVPdeadlinetotheoperator'schangedeadline.Afterthat,alateyesisacallaboutacancellation,notapromise.Ifyouwantnamesreadywhensomeonedrops,keepthemassubsandtellthemtheydonothaveaseatuntilyouwriteback.

Exportthelistthedayyoulock:ridingornot,adultorminorwiththesigningadultnamed,motionnote,accessnote,phone,emergencycontact.AwhalewatchingRSVPisfinishedwheneverypassengerfitsthemanifest,theweatherruleisonthepage,andthemateisnotrebuildingyourgroupatthegangway.