Travel agencies & tour operators
Books and taxes for destination management companies.
A client invoice that pays net 60, vendor deposits due long before that, and a final guarantee that changes the bill after the event is over. Your own bookkeeper stays on it all year, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
October netted $13,000. The convention program's final guaranteed headcount came in higher than the deposit covered, so I booked the extra catering cost against that program instead of general expenses.
- Client invoice, Meridian programClient program invoices
- Marriott volume rebateVendor rebates
- Convention center depositVenue and hotel deposits
- Motorcoach transport, programTransportation and motorcoach costs
- Catering guarantee adjustmentGuarantee adjustments
Why your books are different
A destination management company's books go wrong across many programs running at once.
You are billing an event planner or incentive house net 30 while paying a dozen local vendors up front, and a client's final guaranteed headcount can change what a venue bills you after the program already ran. Blended into one general ledger, you cannot tell which program actually made money.
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1
Client invoices lag the vendor payments by months
A meeting planner might pay your invoice sixty days after the program runs, while the venue, transportation company, and caterer all expect payment closer to the event date. The cash gap can look like the business is struggling even when every program is profitable.
What we doTracks what clients owe against what vendors have already been paid, so a normal invoicing lag does not read as a cash problem. -
2
A final guarantee changes the bill after the event is over
Venues and caterers bill against a guaranteed headcount given a few days before the event, and if the actual attendance runs higher, the final invoice can land weeks later for more than the program's original budget.
What we doMatches the final guarantee adjustment to the program it belongs to, so a late invoice does not look like an unrelated cost. -
3
Vendor rebates sit apart from what a program earned
A hotel or venue may pay you a volume rebate on top of your program markup, and if that rebate is not tracked to the program that earned it, it either gets missed entirely or makes an unrelated month look unusually strong.
What we doTracks vendor rebates against the program that generated them, so that income lands where it actually belongs. -
4
Simultaneous programs blur together in one account
Running three programs for three different clients in the same week means vendor payments and client invoices moving at once, and without tracking by program, you cannot tell which one is actually profitable and which one is barely breaking even.
What we doKeeps every vendor cost and client invoice tagged to its program, so profitability shows up program by program, not just as one blended number. -
5
International client payments complicate the timing
An incentive house or agency paying from abroad can add currency conversion and wire delays on top of the usual invoicing lag, so a payment that looks late might already be in transit.
What we doFlags international client payments and tracks the conversion, so a normal wire delay does not get mistaken for a client falling behind.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a destination management company.
Set up once for how client invoices, vendor payments, and rebates move by program. You never sort an invoice. Gus does, and an accountant checks every one.
Money in
- Client program invoicesWhat event planners, incentive houses, or agencies pay for a program you executed.
- Program depositsUpfront payments securing your services before a program runs.
- Vendor rebatesVolume rebates from hotels or venues, tracked to the program that earned them.
- Onsite service feesExtra charges for staffing or changes requested during the program.
- Planning and proposal feesWhat you charge for site research and program design, whether or not it books.
Money out
- Venue and hotel depositsPayments to secure space before the client's final guarantee is locked.
- Transportation and motorcoach costsGround transportation booked for the program's attendees.
- Catering and vendor paymentsLocal vendors paid for food, entertainment, and decor.
- Guarantee adjustmentsFinal invoice differences billed after actual attendance is known.
- Program manager payrollStaff who run programs on the ground.
- Booking and program management softwareWhatever tracks program budgets and vendor payments.
- Errors and omissions insuranceCoverage sized for program-scale bookings.
- Wire and currency conversion feesWhat the bank keeps on international client payments.
What we watch for you
- Margin per program
What a program actually nets once every vendor cost and rebate is counted against the client invoice.
- Days to client payment
How long clients are taking to pay after a program runs, since it varies by client.
- Vendor rebates earned
Income from hotels and venues that is easy to miss if it is not tracked by program.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so a busy program season does not end in an April surprise.
Ask Gus
Things destination management companies ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
I matched the extra cost to that specific program, so it shows up as part of what that event actually cost instead of looking like a random expense.
Not necessarily. International payments often carry wire and conversion delays on top of normal terms. I flagged it so you can see it is in transit, not overdue.
Yes, I keep every vendor cost and invoice tagged to its own program, so you can see each one's real margin instead of one blended number.
The tax side
The tax side of a destination management company's business.
Most of what matters here is matching vendor costs and rebates to the right program and the right year.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Program revenue and timingRevenue from a program is usually recognized when the program is delivered, not when the client eventually pays the invoice, which matters when a program runs in one tax year and gets paid in the next.
- Vendor rebates as program incomeA rebate from a hotel or venue is usually income tied to the program that earned it, and tracking it that way keeps each program's real profitability accurate.
- 1099s for local vendors and contracted staffA local guide, entertainer, or contracted program manager paid $2,000 or more in 2026, and not on payroll, gets a 1099-NEC by January 31.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income, which comes out right when program costs, rebates, and client invoices are booked to the program and year they belong to.
Deductions destination management companies miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Site inspection travel
- Errors and omissions insurance
- Program management software
- Wire transfer fees
- Trade show booth fees
- Continuing education courses
- Website hosting
- Professional photography for proposals
- Mileage to client meetings
- Home office square footage
- Phone and internet share
- Business liability insurance
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
A destination management company's year, kept every month.
Programs run on a client's calendar and invoices pay on their own schedule. Your team keeps you ahead of both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Plan the program calendar
Last year's return gets started, the 1099 list for local vendors and contracted staff is finalized, and next year's programs start getting proposed.
- April
Filed before conference season
Your return is filed and signed as spring conference and incentive programs run and summer bookings get proposed.
- July
Midyear program check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and how this year's programs are performing once vendor costs and rebates are counted.
- October
Peak program season
Fall conference and meeting season is often the busiest run of programs for many DMCs, so Gus looks at margin by program and what is worth doing before December.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for destination management companies. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions destination management companies ask first.
A client's final guarantee came in higher than expected and the venue billed us more after the fact. How is that tracked?
Gus matches that extra cost to the specific program it belongs to, so it shows up as part of what that event actually cost rather than as a stray expense weeks later.
Clients pay net 60 while vendors expect payment much sooner. Does that cash gap look bad in the books?
It should not. Gus tracks what clients owe against what vendors have already been paid, so a normal invoicing lag reads as timing, not trouble.
We get rebates from hotels for the volume we book. How does that income get recorded?
Gus tracks the rebate against the program that earned it, so it shows up as real income for that event instead of getting lost or landing in the wrong month.
We run several programs at once for different clients. Can Gus show me which one is actually profitable?
Yes. He keeps vendor costs and client invoices tagged to their own program, so you can see each program's real margin instead of one number for the whole month.
My books are behind from a busy conference season. Can you still take this on?
Yes. Send the bank statements and vendor invoices you have. Gus sorts it and most owners know where they stand within a week.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
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We keep books for the business next door too.
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- Independent travel agents
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What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever