Waitlist
Let travelers join a waitlist when a trip is fully booked, and notify them automatically when seats open up.
Keep taking interest even after a trip fills up
A plugin is a small tool you add to WordPress to give your website more features. An add-on is an extra tool that connects to WP Travel Engine to add one specific feature.
Waitlist is a premium add-on for WP Travel Engine. It lets travelers join a waitlist when a trip is fully booked. That means you can keep collecting interest even after all seats are sold.
When seats open up later, you already have a list of interested travelers. That can happen when someone cancels, when you increase capacity, or when you add a new departure date.
This works especially well for high-demand trips and limited-capacity departures. For example, if your Everest Base Camp group trek sells out, you can still collect names from travelers who want the next opening. That helps you turn missed chances into real bookings.
If you want a quick overview before you set anything up, watch the video below.
Key features
Here is what the Waitlist add-on gives you.
- Join Waitlist: Allow travelers to register for trips that are fully booked.
- Availability Modes: Show the waitlist only when fully booked, or from the start.
- Waitlist Capacity: Set the maximum number of travelers who can join.
- Booked & Available Seats Display: Show the number of travelers already on the waitlist and remaining spots.
- Email Notifications: Automatically notify travelers and admins when seats become available using customizable email templates.
- Admin Management: View, email, and delete waitlist submissions from the dashboard.
These are the main tools you will work with once the add-on is active. Next, make sure you have everything in place before installation.
Prerequisites
What you'll need before you start.
- You have WP Travel Engine installed and activated on your WordPress site (Version 6.5.0 or higher).
- You have installed and activated the Fixed Departure Dates add-on.
- You have installed and activated the Waitlist add-on.
- You have added at least one trip.
If all four are ready, you are in good shape to move on.
Benefits at a glance
This table gives you the business value at a quick glance.
| Feature | Benefit |
|---|---|
| Join Waitlist for sold-out trips | Capture bookings even after trips are full. |
| Availability Modes (Fully Booked / From the Start) | Access early demand and manage interest effectively. |
| Waitlist Capacity Control (Global) | Limit entries and manage operational capacity across all trips. |
| Booked & Available Seats Display | Monitor waitlist status at a glance. |
| Automated Email Notifications | Keep leads engaged and informed without manual work. |
| Admin Management Tools (View, Email, Delete) | Efficiently manage all waitlist submissions from the dashboard. |
| Custom Labels & Messages | Maintain clear communication and branding across trip pages. |
Once you know what the add-on does, the next step is making sure it is active in WordPress.
Installing the Waitlist add-on
This part confirms the add-on is installed and switched on where WP Travel Engine can use it.
See how to activate a Pro add-on license key for the full installation and activation walkthrough.
Verification
Use these checks to confirm the add-on is active and ready.
What you'll need before you start: access to your WordPress dashboard. The WordPress dashboard is the main admin area of your website. You can find these menu items on the left sidebar of your WordPress dashboard.
Open Extensions settings
Go to WP Travel Engine - Settings - Extensions.
This is where WP Travel Engine keeps its extra feature settings.
Confirm the tab is present
Look for the Waitlist tab under Extensions.
If you can see the tab, the add-on is active and connected properly. You are ready for the full setup.
Troubleshooting
If something does not look right yet, start with the matching issue below. Most setup problems come down to one missing step.
The Waitlist tab is not showing up under Extensions
Start by checking whether the Waitlist add-on is installed and activated in WordPress. Then check your WP Travel Engine version and make sure it is version 6.5.0 or higher.
If the core plugin is out of date, the add-on may not appear correctly. Once both are active and updated, go back to WP Travel Engine - Settings - Extensions and check again.
I installed the add-on but nothing changed on my trip pages
Installation only makes the feature available. You still need to configure the waitlist settings before it appears on your trip pages.
Open the full Waitlist setup guide and follow the settings steps there. After setup, check one of your fully booked trips again.
The Fixed Departure Dates add-on is not installed - do I need it?
Yes. The Waitlist add-on depends on the Fixed Departure Dates add-on.
Waitlist works with trips that use fixed departure dates. If Fixed Departure Dates is not installed and active, Waitlist will not work as expected.
I cannot find where to download the Waitlist add-on
Check the downloads area in your WP Travel Engine account. That is usually where your purchased add-on files are stored.
If you still do not see it, confirm that the purchase was completed under the same account you are logged into. Then download the Waitlist add-on file from there and upload it to WordPress.
My license key is not activating
The most common causes are an expired license, the wrong key, or a domain mismatch. A domain mismatch means the license was activated for a different website address than the one you are using now.
Copy the key again from your account and paste it carefully. If that does not work, check whether the license is still active and whether it matches your current site domain.
Frequently asked questions
These answers cover the questions most tour operators ask before they move on to setup.
If you're still stuck or have a question we didn't cover, our support team is happy to help. Reach out at our support page and we'll get you sorted.