ArtistryHost supports three reservation flows. You pick the one that matches your venue. You can use different flows for different experiences.
No Card Required
The guest reserves a spot with no payment information collected. No card, no charge, nothing to enter. They pay at the venue.
What the guest sees: "Reserve your spot — no card needed."
Best for: low no-show venues with a known audience. Wineries doing tasting reservations, venues where the friction of asking for a card would cost more bookings than no-shows do.
Trade-offs:
- ✓ Lowest possible booking friction. Highest conversion.
- ✓ Nothing to configure on the payments side. You don't even need Square connected.
- ✗ No payment commitment from the guest, so the no-show risk is highest.
- ✗ Nothing on file to charge if a guest doesn't show.
Card on File
The guest saves a card securely at booking, and nothing is charged. The card is tokenized via Square — we never see or store the number. The card is only ever charged if your late-cancellation or no-show policy applies, and even then it's your call: a deliberate, one-tap decision from the run sheet. The guest pays for the experience in person at the venue.
What the guest sees: "Card on file. Pay at the venue."
Best for: pottery studios where final price depends on what the guest makes; cooking schools with variable menus; venues with significant day-of upsells; anywhere no-show protection matters but prepayment would hurt conversion.
Trade-offs:
- ✓ Low cart friction. No money up front.
- ✓ Variable pricing is easy — the final amount is settled in person.
- ✓ Real no-show protection: the saved card backs your policy, on your terms.
- ✗ Payment is collected day-of, so someone at the venue closes out each party.
Full Prepayment
The guest pays the full ticket price at booking — including Apple Pay and Google Pay. The transaction is closed. The booking is confirmed.
What the guest sees: "Total: $75. Pay now." (Or one tap with Apple Pay / Google Pay.)
Best for: public classes with a fixed price (candle bar workshops, paint-and-sip, scheduled cooking classes). High-volume venues that want zero day-of collection.
Trade-offs:
- ✓ Operationally simple. No money to collect day-of.
- ✓ Acts as a commitment device, reduces no-shows.
- ✓ Wallet payments (Apple Pay, Google Pay) keep checkout fast on phones.
- ✗ Slightly lower cart-to-confirmed conversion than the lower-friction flows.
- ✗ Higher chargeback exposure. Full ticket can be disputed.
What about deposits?
Partial deposits — a percentage at booking, the balance later — are on our roadmap. Until then, Card on File covers most of the same ground: the guest commits a card without paying up front, and you stay protected against no-shows.
Guests can manage their own booking
Whichever flow you choose, the confirmation email includes a booking-management link where guests can cancel, reschedule, or change party size on their own — within your policy window. The window is enforced server-side, so a guest can't reschedule their way out of a late-cancellation fee. Most venues see day-to-day phone calls drop noticeably.
Mixing flows
Each experience has its own reservation flow. Public classes can be Full Prepayment while drop-in sessions are Card on File. You don't have to pick one for the whole venue.
Change the flow for any experience from Experiences → [name] → Payment mode. Already-confirmed bookings keep their original payment terms.
Recommendations by vertical
A starting point. Adjust to your specific situation:
- Candle bars & paint-and-sip: Full Prepayment for public classes. Card on File where day-of upsells are a big part of the ticket.
- Wineries & tasting rooms: No Card Required or Card on File works well (low no-show, variable final amount with bottle purchases). Or Full Prepayment for fixed-price tasting flights.
- Pottery studios: Card on File for drop-in sessions. Full Prepayment for scheduled classes.
- Cooking schools: Full Prepayment for fixed-menu classes. Card on File for variable menus.
- Distilleries & breweries: Full Prepayment for tour-and-tasting packages. Card on File for tasting flights billed in person.