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Tarn vs. FareHarbor

An independent, transparently priced alternative built for outdoor outfitters — where you keep your data, your website, and your Stripe account.

FareHarbor is one of the largest booking platforms for tours and activities, owned by Booking Holdings. It's broad and well-distributed. But its standard model adds a per-booking fee at your guest's checkout, runs bookings through its own infrastructure, and is built for activities in general — not the specific way an outfitter runs a river day. Here's how Tarn compares.

How they compare
Tarn
FareHarbor
Pricing model
Published per-booking rate, 3% → 2% (as low as 4.9% all-in)
Per-booking fee (~6%), no monthly
Fee at your guest's checkout
You decide — absorb it or pass it on
Booking fee added at checkout
Payment processor
Your own Stripe account, direct payouts
FareHarbor's processing
Your data & website
Your site; export everything anytime
Widget on FareHarbor infrastructure
Setup
Self-serve, no sales call
Demo + onboarding
Built for
Outdoor outfitters — guides, put-ins, conditions
Tours & activities, broadly
Ownership
Independent
Owned by Booking Holdings
Contract
No contract, no monthly fee
Varies

Comparison based on publicly available information about each vendor's standard offering as of 2026. Vendors change their terms — confirm current pricing and features directly with each provider.

Why outfitters pick Tarn

What you get by switching.

Transparent, published pricing

One published rate — 3% per booking stepping down to 2% with volume, no monthly fee, and no contract. You decide how the fee is handled — absorb it in your prices or pass it on at checkout.

You own your data, your site, and your Stripe

Tarn embeds on the website you already own, runs on your own Stripe account with payouts straight to your bank, and lets you export every booking, contact, and waiver anytime. Nothing is held hostage.

Built for outfitters, not 'any activity'

Guide assignments, daily manifests, put-in locations, live river and weather conditions, deposits, and waivers are first-class — because Tarn is built for the water, not adapted to it.

Set up yourself in an afternoon

No mandatory demo, no multi-week onboarding, no implementation fee. Add your trips, share your booking link, and you can be live the same day.

The honest version

If you run a large, year-round attraction with a dedicated booking desk and lean heavily on OTA distribution, FareHarbor's scale may suit you. Tarn is built for the small-to-mid outfitter who wants to own their data and pricing and run a leaner morning.

Your next season starts at the desk. Make it a short visit.

Set up your trips, take your first booking, and get back to the river — with no monthly fee.

No card required · No monthly fee · Your data exports cleanly if you leave