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API integration with an OTA or tour operators
API integration with an OTA or tour operators

Here are the steps to allow an agency to connect to your departure plan automatically via API.

Updated over 7 months ago

Index

Introduction

Do you want tour operators to be able to check your availability and make bookings without the need for emails?

Golfmanager is connected to the most important agencies in the sector, see here the complete list, and that can bring you a lot of business to the club. Don't hesitate.

OTAs and tour operators can use Golfmanager's "Consumer APIs" to:

  • View availability of your timetable

  • Get your rate for that day and time automatically

  • Book and pay

  • Cancel if necessary and as long as they are within the cancellation period allowed by the club.

With Golfmanager's "Admin APIs," third-party software can consult, edit, and create records in the club's Golfmanager, including:

  • The ability to view occupancy and edit green fee prices (for example, Priswing)

  • Invoices issued for accounting (e.g. Navision) should be imported

  • Send marketing campaigns based on general data (e.g. inOne)

  • You may also automate any other service using external software.

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What is an API and differences between "admin" and "consumer" Api connections?

API documentation is a set of code that allows two pieces of software to talk to each other automatically and keep them synchronised or connected through technology without human manipulation. With these APIs you can connect your Golfmanager to travel agencies, marketing or accounting software, for example.

There are 2 types of APIs:

  • Consumer API. These APIs are intended for online bookings only (OTAs, TO, etc.). The agency, instead of logging into your website and booking for their clients, they do it from their own software and interact with Golfmanager as if they were logging into the club's website, but without doing so.

  • API Admin. These APIs allow you to manage the complete configuration of your Golfmanager as if you were an employee of the club, but instead of entering through a browser, it is done digitally through the third party software (Priswing, inOne, SAGE, etc.).

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What is the difference between an OTA and a traditional tour operator?

A traditional tour operator is the typical, more or less modern agency that the player goes to with the intention of organising his holiday. In addition to arranging the flight and hotel, the tour operator contacts the club to confirm prices and availability. Traditionally this contact between agency and course was via email or fax, but Golfmanager offers you the possibility for these tour operators to enter your website, identify themselves, and check availability and prices themselves without bothering you via email or telephone. Thanks to Golfmanager you can save a lot of time dealing with all these agencies! So, a traditional Tour Operator is an agency that sends you players "manually", without any technology.

An OTA is a type of agency that sells green fees through a portal or an app. The player who wants to book a green fee, and does so through an OTA, will never visit the club's website or send an email. He will go to the OTA's website or APP and book from there. That website or APP will provide a very good booking experience for the player, checking availability in real time and confirming their booking. Examples of OTAs in golf would be: GF365, Leadingcourses, OnTee, Golfee, Golfspain, etc. Examples of OTAs in other sectors would be: Airbnb, Booking, etc. Therefore, an OTA is an agency that has the technology to automate the booking process for its client.

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Technical documentation on the API

Welcome to the Golf Manager API technical documentation. In this article we will compile all the information required to work with the Golf Manager services.

To consult the technical documentation of the API, you can visit the following link: https://github.com/golfmanager/api_v1

This link will provide you with all the technical and additional details you need to work with our API.

If you need to work with us we have attached the contact information for a second person who can assign tasks and projects, although as a recommendation it is always best to contact Daniel Sillari, the direct manager. The contact email is: dsillari@golfmanager.com

We hope you find the information provided useful and that you make the best use of all the technical material provided.

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Configuration in the system by the club

Steps to connect an OTA via API:

  1. From the Settings Menu > General Settings > App Center.

    You have to download the special plugin called API V1. For more information, go to this link.

    If you do not have permissions to install the plugin, please contact technical support via the chat in the blue system bubble.

  2. From the Main Menu > Contacts.

    You have to create a customer tab for this OTA.

    NOTE. It is always good practice before creating a new tab, to check if that customer already exists.

  3. From the Main Menu > Contacts > Profile Section > activate the Is API option.

    NOTE. This is a way of telling Golfmanager that you want to allow this OTA to connect via API.

  4. Activate the On Credit option or add a Booking Configuration.

    This allows the OTA to book without the need to pay at the time. At the end of the month, you will be able to invoice the OTA with all your outstanding bookings. In case you want to have a Booking Configuration with 100% prepayment, it does not make sense, as apis will always book without paying, so:

    • From the Main Menu > Contacts > Profile Section > a credit field > you have to activate this option.

    • or from the Settings Menu > Bookings > Settings > the Prepaid Percentage field add a prepayment at 0

    • and send a payment link to the agency or company or client.

  5. Optionally you can add an Alias to the customer's record.

    NOTE. This is a good practice because you will see clearly on the booking map which bookings have come through this OTA.

  6. You will probably need to add a Tag to this customer record, the same tag that is on the Booking Type you want to display for booking. As you may already know, the tag is essential to show the correct price to that agency. The way the price works with an agency is usually done in two ways:

    1. Empty. If you don't add any tag to this OTA's tab, they will be shown the same prices that a visitor entering your website would see. They will sell on their APP at the same price as on your website. At the end of the month they will invoice you with their commission.

    2. With a Tag that means a discount. In this case the OTA will receive the agency price and it is important that they add their agreed margin in their APP so that it is sold at the same price as on the club's website. If you set it up so that the OTA receives their agency price, at the end of the month you will send them an invoice with the bookings that they have to pay you at their respective price.

  7. Once you have configured the customer file, it is up to the club to communicate to the Golfmanager technical support team that they wish to connect to this OTA. A simple email or chat in the support bubble is enough, attaching the form filled in and signed by both parties. For more information, go to this link.

  8. From the Configuration Menu > Booking > Booking Types > Name Field.

    NOTE. Leadingcourses will take into account the name of the booking type, to filter and book the booking types agreed with the club.

  9. From the Configuration Menu > Booking > Booking Types > Other section > in the API Tags field.

    TO Leadingcourses and GolfSpain Tours need the club to add to their booking types online the following "API Tags":

    • 18holes

    • 9holes

    • tee1

    • tee10

    • buggy

As in the example below:

  • 18holes tee1 buggy

  • 18holes tee10

  • 9holes tee1

  • 9holes tee10 buggy

Leadingcourses

As you know, the availability provided through the Golfmanager system is loaded into your booking engine automatically. Your booking engine uses API tags to identify products for sale, such as 18 holes, 9 holes or buggies. However, they have noticed two things:

  1. That clubs sometimes forget to add the API tags or API Tags.

  2. That clubs offer more booking types than they currently sell.

What has changed?

To improve the identification of availability and ultimately sell more green fees, your booking engine will now take into account both the API tags and the name of the booking type. If terms such as lunch, dinner, trolley, twilight, early bird, junior or senior appear in the name, your system will recognise them and offer them. It is important to keep mentioning 18 holes or 9 holes in the API tags or in the name of the booking type, so that the customer knows how many holes are available.

Below is an example of the availability of bookings they receive through the API. In the current implementation of your system, this availability object would not be sold because there are no API tags available. However, in the new approach, your system will identify this product as such because of the names 18, buggy and lunch.

Example of an availability object:

Name: 18 holes + buggy + lunch

API tags: [none]

What does this mean for you?

If your booking type setup fits within the guidelines, they ensure a smoother process and will present more of your availability to their customers and ultimately sell more green fees. It is crucial that the products you provide them with are specifically targeted for sale under your agreement with Leading Courses. Mixing TTOO and non-consumer products can lead to complications.

Therefore, make sure that you only activate the products that are indicated in your agreement with them. In addition, it is your responsibility to ensure that availability and prices are accurately maintained through the API connection.

Please check and make sure that availability, products and prices are correct as soon as possible.

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Pricing by the OTA

Since OTAs usually display the same price on their website as on the club's website, and the player pays the same on one site as on the other.

  1. Each time an OTA makes a booking:

    1. the club charges the full fee paid by the player to the OTA.

    2. The OTA invoices you for that total and they add the concept of -15% commission (or whatever is agreed).

  2. Each time an OTA makes a booking:

    1. the club charges the - 15% fee (or whatever is agreed) of what was paid to the OTA.

    2. The OTA invoices you with the same amount as in GM as these already come without the 15% commission.

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Authorization Form

In order for a TTOO or company to be able to connect through an API, you will first have to send the document completed and signed by both parties to Golfmanager. Click on the Document button below to download it:

Document

The fields to fill in the form are the following:

  • Course name. Name and details of the club requesting integration

  • Consumer API. These APIs are intended for online bookings only (OTAs, TOs, etc.). The agency, instead of entering your website and booking for their clients, they do it from their own program and interact with Golfmanager as if they were entering the club's website, but without doing it (Leadingcourses, Golf Breaks, Yourgolftravel,...)

  • Partial admin API. These APIs allow you to manage the partial configuration of your Golfmanager as if you were an employee of the club, but instead of entering through a browser, it is done digitally through the third party software (Priswing, Golfdirecto, SAGE, etc.). The club has to contact that company to specify which functionalities it needs to add in this section.

  • Full admin API. These APIs allow you to manage the complete configuration of your Golfmanager as if you were an employee of the club, but instead of entering through a browser, it is done digitally through the third party software (inOne, Smartpanel, etc.)

  • IP's Addresses. The club has to contact that company to specify the IPs from which they will work.

  • Company name. Name and details of the company with whom the club wishes to integrate.

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Checking the availability of an OTA

Once you have completed the previous OTA configuration steps, if you wish to check the availability of the OTA online, you have several options:

  1. From the Main Menu > Client list:

    1. Select the ID of the corresponding OTA client

    2. In their customer file, deactivate the Is Api tab

    3. Click on the Save button

    4. Now go to the consumer booking website (you can also replace "/admin" with "/consumer" in the URL of your browser) and log in with the user of that OTA

    5. Check that it is correctly configured and that it shows the Booking Types correctly

      IMPORTANT. Once you have checked that it is OK, go to the customer tab and re-enable the It's API option.

  2. Run a Debugger for more information

  3. Perform a test on the consumer booking website with a client-test that you have created in your client database and with the same configuration that OTA has in its client file. Except for the field Is Api, this field must be deactivated in your client-test.

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TTOO and Agencies connected to Golfmanager

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URL to access Apis

Demo: https://mt-es.golfmanager.com

Demo APP: https://mt.golfmanager.app

Europa AWS: https://mt-aws-europa.golfmanager.com

Asia AWS: https://mt-aws-asia.golfmanager.com

América AWS: https://mt-aws-america.golfmanager.com

Marriott AWS: https://mt-aws-marriott.golfmanager.com

Golf Santander AWS: https://mt-aws-santander.golfmanager.com (the api has to give us a fixed IP and we pass it to the IT department).

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Technical help on how to connect

If you are an integrator starting to use the APIs, here are the basics to get you started:

  1. Request test credentials from the Golfmanager team

  2. Access the API documentation.

If you have problems with the connection, try the following using Postman. Create an account and follow the steps:

3. Copy and paste this text into the GET function https://mt.golfmanager.es/api/tenants.

You could use more detailed functions in the API documentation in point 2.

NOTE. The ending of .es may change depending on the server you have requested access to. There is .es and .app for testing, and .com for production. It is important that you know which server you have been given access to. You have all the accesses in the links of the previous section.

4. Fill in the login details with those provided by Golfmanager.

5. Click on "Send"...

If you get an answer below it means that everything is starting to work properly.

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