Overview
Google Things to Do (GTTD) is a Google Search and Maps feature that allows potential customers to discover and explore local attractions, tours, activities, and events in any destination. It provides recommendations based on location, making it an excellent tool for travellers looking for new experiences.
Potential customers are directed from the Google Things to Do interface to your website, where they can book directly via your Zaui Online Booking Engine. Google offers both commission-free listings and paid options for increased visibility.
For a visual overview, watch our Google Things to Do Video Overview and Walkthrough Guide.
What’s Covered in This Article
- Why is Google Things to do important?
- Program Eligibility
- Enrolling in Google Things to do
- Adding your Tours into Google Things to do
- Things to do requirements for all Zaui users
- Configuring Things to do in your Zaui system
- Where to find your Tours and Activities on Google Things to do
- Google Things to do Modules
- Things to do ads
- Bookings & Payments
- Reporting
- Google Things to do Error Messages
- Disabling Google Things to do
Why is Google Things to Do Important?
Google Things to Do helps businesses reach travellers searching for experiences. It increases visibility in search results and allows customers to find your offerings via:
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Google Search (e.g., "[City] Tours", "Things to Do in [City]")
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Google Maps
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Visual carousels showcasing available activities
By listing your tours on Google Things to Do, you can bypass OTAs (like GetYourGuide or TripAdvisor), ensuring that customers book directly through your website, helping you avoid high commission fees.
Program Eligibility
Eligible Products
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Guided or self-guided tours
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Tour-related transportation (e.g., bike, boat, kayak rentals)
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Recurring tourist events (weekly shows, seasonal events)
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VR/AR experiences at a physical location
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Day-use of hotel facilities (e.g., spa visits)
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Multi-day tours (excluding overnight hotel stays)
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Food and drink experiences (e.g., wine tours, brewery tastings)
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Archery, axe-throwing, laser tag, and paintball
Ineligible Products
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Airport pickups, car rentals, or transit-only services
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One-time events (e.g., concerts, sports matches)
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Virtual experiences (must take place in a physical location)
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Overnight hotel stays and multi-day cruises
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Restaurant coupons for individual meals
For the most up-to-date eligibility details, refer to Google Things to Do policies.
Enrolling in Google Things to Do
To participate in Google Things to Do, you first need a Google Business Profile. This allows you to display essential information like your location, opening hours, photos, and customer reviews. If you haven't set up a profile yet, visit google.com/business.
Business Categories
Business Categories
To qualify for GTTD, you must select at least one eligible category (this can be ither you either primary or secondary category) in your Google Business Profile:
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Tour Operator
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Tour Agency
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Travel Agency
Ensure your business profile is complete, up to date, and accurate to improve your search ranking.
Adding Your Tours to Google Things to Do
There are two ways to list your tours on Google Things to Do:
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Manually via Google’s Tickets & Activities Editor in your Google Business Profile.
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Automatically via your Zaui system (Recommended).
Why Use Zaui for GTTD?
✅ Automated Sync – Information from Zaui is directly fed to Google.
✅ Increased Visibility – Appears across multiple Google surfaces.
✅ Access to Paid Ads – Enables participation in Things to Do Ads.
✅ Dynamic Pricing – Supports real-time price adjustments.
✅ No Additional Cost – Included as part of your Zaui system.
Things to Do Requirements for Zaui Users
1. Business Address
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Your Zaui company address must exactly match your Google Business Profile address.
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Update this under Settings > Company Info.
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If you operate in multiple locations, add the corresponding address under each Activity’s Google Settings tab.
If you are a Service Area Business review this guide.
2. Minimum Tour/Activity Requirements
Each tour must:
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Have a website landing page with a "Book Now" button.
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Be bookable online.
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Have an end date in the future.
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Be available for booking within the next 365 days.
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Have matching pricing across your website and GTTD.
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Indicate if it is guided or self-guided.
*Landing page requirements:
Google Things to do directs potential customers to the page on your website specifically promoting the tour they are interested in. Therefore your site should follow best practices for web design and speed; and be optimized for mobile and desktop devices.
Requirements for landing pages include:
- Price should be visible and meet the requirements of the GTTD price policies
- The page should include a link to your booking engine with live availability
- Images should be high quality, at minimum 300 x 300 pixels and be unique to the tour
- A specific product description
- Information on highlights, inclusions & exclusions, and relevant Points of Interest visited on the tour
- Closely match what is shared with GTTD and configured in your Zaui system
Configuring Google Things to Do in Zaui
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Navigate to Activities > Activity List.
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Select the activity you want to configure.
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Click on the Google Settings tab.
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Complete the required fields:
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Inventory Type (Operator Direct vs. Official)
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Website Landing Page
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Highlights, Inclusions & Exclusions
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Categories (Guided Tour or Self-Guided Tour)
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Images (Minimum 300x300 pixels)
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Related Points of Interest
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Note: Updates made in Zaui take effect within 24 hours.
Google Settings Tab Configuration
This is where you enter all the additional information required for Google Things to do. Empty fields can affect how high on a page your product appears in search results, therefore more information is better and accuracy is essential. The minimum required fields are indicated with an asterisk.
The table below will help you determine what needs to be filled in for each field:
|
Field |
Description |
Formatting Comments |
|---|---|---|
|
Inventory Type |
Operator Direct: Use for tour and activity products that link directly to the tour operator's website. Official: Use for attraction or point of interest products that link to the official website |
By default, Operator Direct is selected |
|
Website Landing Page* |
The URL for the product page on your website. The page must be specific to the product and include a Book Now button linked to your booking engine |
|
|
Website List View Page |
A list view page is typically a display of multiple activities or tours, providing a snapshot of available options. It allows potential customers to view and compare activities quickly, showcasing key information such as titles, descriptions, prices, and durations |
Only provide a list view page URL if the activity is prominently displayed. If the activity in question is in the bottom half of the list, it likely will not be used by Google |
|
Highlights |
Enter phrases and keywords that describe the highlights of your tour. These highlights help potential customers discover and explore the top-rated things to do in a particular area |
The Highlights, Inclusions, Exclusions and Must Knows fields will not accept any special characters or formatting. You can only use a comma and space to separate each entry. For example admission, lunch, shuttle bus |
|
Inclusions |
List what’s included in your product i.e. admission, meals, souvenirs |
|
|
Exclusions |
List what’s not included in your product i.e. admission, meals, gratuities |
|
|
Must Knows |
List any important information that the customer must be aware of before taking part in the activity |
|
|
Categories* |
Labels to help Google accurately present your product when a user searches for an attraction or point of interest |
*At minimum you must indicate whether your tour is a:
|
|
Fulfillment Type |
Select how customers can present their tickets as proof of purchase |
Select from |
|
Images |
Add image URLs of attractions or special landmarks that are included in the activity. The image in your Zaui system will also be displayed in Google Things to do feeds. The best practice for images is to have them hosted on your website and use that as the URL |
|
|
Related Points of Interest |
Add at least one relevant 'Point of Interest' to each of your activities. A point of interest is a popular location or landmark that is either specifically included in your activity or nearby a tour operation or may be encountered while on a tour. More on points of interest below. |
Select the correct address from the suggestions that pop up once you start typing the name of the POI |
|
Advanced Settings |
Description |
Formatting Comments |
|
Google Profile Activity Address |
For those operating out of more than one physical location and have Google Business profiles for each location |
Input the exact address as listed in your Google Busines profile for the location that corresponds with the activity you are setting up |
|
Languages |
List all the languages the product is offered in |
"en" is the typical standard and will be the default if this field is left blank |
Where to Find Your Tours on Google Things to Do
Your tours can appear in:
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Your Google Business Profile
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Google Search results (e.g., "[City] Attractions")
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Google Maps
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Things to Do Ads
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Related Points of Interest
| Google Things to do search experiences | ||
Relatated Points of Interest
Points of interest are required for the Experiences Booking module and optional for other modules.
We recommend adding at least one relevant POI regardless of your type of operation as there is no harm in adding points of interest in your local area as this gives you the chance of surfacing on an experiences module.
To add a point of interest, start typing to filter to the desired location.
For each point of interest you add, indicate whether admission is included or not included in the price of your tour.
- If your tour visits the point of interest in question, and the admission to enter it is included in the cost of your tour, OR the point of interest is free to visit (for example, a famous plaza, fountain or statue), indicate that admission is included.
- If your tour visits a point of interest that has a paid admission but the cost is not included in the price of your tour, indicate that admission is not included
Google Things to Do Modules
Google Things to Do has four modules:
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Booking Module – For attractions and ticketed venues.
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Experiences Module – For tours visiting a specific point of interest.
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Operator Booking Module – For tours not tied to a specific attraction (Best suited for most Zaui users).
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Ads Module – Paid ads to boost visibility.
More on this in the Google Things to do Error messages section.
The Booking Module
Examples of tourism operations suited for the Booking Module include Museums, Art Galleries, Zoos and Observation towers.
The Experiences Module
Examples of tourism operations suited for the Experiences Module include skip the line tours, hop on hop off, city tours, and attractions which must be booked as part of a tour.
The Operator Booking Module
Examples of tourism operations suited for the Operator Booking Module include ziplines; wilderness experiences such as aurora viewing, dog sledding, whale watching and horseback riding; bike rentals.
Important note: To be eligible for the Operator Booking Module your business must exist and be findable on Google Maps. Register a Google Business Profile if your company is not yet listed.
The Ads module
Things to do Ads
Things to do ads are configured separately and appear in a different format to traditional Google Ads. In order to participate in TTD ads, follow the steps below to connect your Ads account to the Things to do center:
Step 1. Link the Things to do Center to your Google Ads account
- Contact Zaui Customer Success requesting Zaui’s Things to do Center account ID.
- Once you have the account ID, go to your Google Ads account, click the Tools icon
- Then Click Data Manager
- In the “Featured products” section, select Things to do Center from the list.
- Enter the Things to do Center account ID to choose the feed to connect to.
- Once you have added the TTD Account ID, Contact Zaui Customer Success who will review and approve the request.
Step 2. Create a Travel Campaign
Once your Things to do and Google Ads accounts have been linked, follow these steps to create a new Travel campaign.
Bookings & Payments
✅ Customers book directly on your website, not through an OTA.
✅ No commission fees or invoicing required.
✅ Bookings appear in Zaui as confirmed and paid.
✅ If Online Booking Notifications are enabled, you will receive an email notification.
Reporting
When possible, bookings received through this distribution channel will be attributed as Google Things to do. This will allow you to run reports to see how many of your customers are finding you via a Google Things to do interface.
One important aspect to keep in mind is that the source of the booking is carried from your website to the booking engine. For this reason, there are many different factors that can affect the accuracy of the booking source. These factors include the privacy settings of the customer, the browser type being used by the customer, switching from one device to another, etc.
Google Things to Do Error Messages
For a list of potential errors that could come up and the best way to fix them, head over to Understanding Google Things to do Error Messages.
Disabling Google Things to Do
Google Things to Do is enabled by default in Zaui. To disable:
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Go to Settings > Marketplace.
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Click Google Things to Do.
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Click Disable Integration and Save.
Next Steps
Start configuring your activities in Zaui to take full advantage of Google Things to Do. For assistance, contact Zaui Support.