Outdoor attractions & tours
Books and taxes for trolley and sightseeing tour companies.
Hop-on hop-off ticket sales, private charter bookings, CDL driver wages, and a fleet of trolleys or buses that needs fuel and upkeep every week. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
June came in at $19,800. The trolley engine overhaul from the fleet mechanic is booked as equipment, not a repair.
- Hop-on hop-off ticket batchRoute ticket sales
- Corporate charter depositCharter bookings
- Trolley engine overhaulVehicle maintenance
- Diesel fuel deliveryFuel
- CDL driver payroll runDriver wages
Why your books are different
Trolley tour books go wrong in the same four places.
A generalist sees ticket sales and a bus. Your business runs licensed vehicles that need real mechanical upkeep, employs CDL drivers whose hours are regulated, and books private charters that get paid weeks ahead. When the books do not know that, you cannot tell what a route actually costs to run.
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1
A major vehicle repair looks like routine upkeep
An engine overhaul or a trolley body restoration can cost tens of thousands of dollars. Filed as maintenance, it wrecks one month's number and hides what the fleet actually needed.
What we doFlags large vehicle work the day it happens, books it as equipment when it extends the vehicle's life, and gets the accountant's call on how it gets written off. -
2
Charter deposits get counted before the tour runs
A company books a private charter for a conference weeks out and pays a deposit, with the balance due the day of. Counting the whole thing when the deposit lands overstates that month and understates the one where the tour happens.
What we doHolds charter deposits until the tour date, so income lands in the month the trolley actually ran. -
3
Fuel costs get bought in bulk and dumped into one month
A bulk diesel delivery or a fuel card top-off can make one month look expensive compared to a route that ran the same schedule every week.
What we doKeeps fuel in its own steady line and tells you when a bulk purchase, not more driving, is why a month looks costly. -
4
Driver pay does not separate from route income
CDL drivers paid hourly or by route do not map cleanly to ticket revenue unless someone tracks them together, making it hard to see whether a route actually earns its keep.
What we doKeeps driver wages against route ticket income, so you can see which routes and schedules actually pay for themselves.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a trolley tour company.
Set up once for how you get paid and what you spend. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Route ticket salesHop-on hop-off and single-route tickets, walk-up and online.
- Charter bookingsPrivate and corporate charters, tied to the tour date.
- Online travel agency bookingsSales through Viator or GetYourGuide, at full ticket price.
- Group and school bookingsField trips and group tours booked ahead.
Money out
- Driver wagesCDL driver pay, hourly or by route.
- Vehicle maintenanceEngine work, brakes, and body repair.
- FuelDiesel or gas for the fleet.
- Vehicle insuranceCommercial auto coverage for the fleet.
- DOT complianceVehicle inspections and driver compliance costs.
- Narration equipmentOnboard sound systems and headsets.
- City permitsLicensing to operate on public streets and at stops.
What we watch for you
- Cost per route
Fuel and driver pay against ticket income for each route, so you know which schedules are worth keeping.
- Charter share of income
How much of the month comes from private charters versus regular route tickets.
- Vehicle maintenance trend
Repair and upkeep costs tracked over time, so a big overhaul month does not look like an emergency.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things trolley tour owners 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 logged it as equipment, since it extends the trolley's life well beyond this year, and flagged it so the accountant decides how it gets written off.
Not until the charter runs. I hold that deposit until the tour date, so income lands in the month it actually happened.
A bulk diesel delivery landed this month. I kept it in fuel so you can see it was a stock-up, not more driving.
The tax side
The tax side of a trolley tour company.
Most of what goes wrong here is timing: charters counted too early, and major vehicle work filed as a plain repair.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Vehicle depreciationTrolleys, buses, and major mechanical rebuilds are business equipment. Bonus depreciation is 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025, and Section 179 can often write off qualifying vehicle work in the year it is done.
- Deferred revenue on charter depositsCharter deposits are not fully earned the day they are collected. They get recognized as income when the tour actually runs.
- Worker classification for CDL driversDrivers who follow your route, schedule, and safety procedures are employees, and CDL requirements make the employment relationship even clearer in most cases.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when the books are right all year.
Deductions trolley and sightseeing tour companies miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Diesel or gas fuel
- Engine and brake repair
- Commercial auto insurance
- DOT inspection fees
- City street operating permits
- Narration and headset equipment
- Driver uniforms
- Trolley body and paint work
- Booking app fees
- Online travel agency commissions
- Signage and route maps
- Dispatch radios
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 trolley tour year, kept every month.
Your busiest routes run on the local tourist calendar. Your taxes come on a schedule regardless. 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 year
Last year's return gets started, the 1099 list is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so the slower months do not catch you short.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed ahead of the busy spring and summer tourist season.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand at the height of the season, and whether route and charter income is tracking ahead of last year.
- October
Before the slowdown
A look at vehicle work worth doing before winter and anything worth buying 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 trolley and sightseeing tour 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 trolley tour owners ask first.
Can Gus keep charter bookings separate from regular route tickets?
Yes. Charter income and route ticket sales get their own lines, so you can see which side of the business is carrying the season.
We had a major engine overhaul this year. Is that fully deductible right away?
Often it can be. Major vehicle work that extends the trolley's life gets logged as equipment, and the accountant decides how much comes off this year.
Our drivers are CDL licensed and work set routes. Are they employees?
Yes, in almost every case. Drivers who follow your schedule and routes are employees, and Gus keeps their wages tracked against route income.
A corporate client booked a charter and paid a deposit weeks ahead. When does that count as income?
The month the charter actually runs. Gus holds deposits until the tour date so income matches real activity.
Our books are behind from a busy tourist season. Is that a problem?
No. Send the bank statements you have. Gus sorts them, the accountant checks them, 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.
More in outdoor attractions & tours
We keep books for the business next door too.
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- Hot air balloon rides
- Outdoor go-kart tracks
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- Skydiving centers
- Small amusement parks
- Small aquariums
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- Walking & food tours
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- Arcades
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- Esports & LAN gaming centers
- Haunted houses & haunted attractions
- Ice skating rinks
- Indoor go-kart tracks
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