This sucks to share but in early October 2026, Tripaneer B.V. – the company behind BookYogaRetreats, BookYogaTeacherTraining, BookSurfCamps and a handful of other “Book” sites – was declared bankrupt by a Dutch court. If you listed retreats there, you may be sitting on deposits you can’t see, guests you can’t easily reach, and a booking calendar that suddenly feels like a house of cards.

I’ve been hosting retreats for over 15 years, and I want to share that this is not a “you did something wrong” moment. It’s a wake-up call. And it’s the exact reason I keep beating the drum on SEO for retreat leaders and building your own AI + SEO system.

Because when someone else owns your traffic, your guest list, and your booking button, someone else owns your business. You’re just renting it.

What Actually Happened With Tripaneer

Here’s the short version, without any drama: Tripaneer B.V. was put into bankruptcy by the District Court of Amsterdam on October 1, 2026, after a short suspension of payments at the end of September. The company ran a group of themed marketplaces where guests paid a deposit to the platform and paid the balance directly to the retreat host. A creditors’ meeting is scheduled for December 9, 2026, and the official claims process runs through the ClaimsAgent case page for Tripaneer B.V.

That means a lot of hosts are now trying to figure out which deposits they’ll ever see, which guests still expect to show up, and how to talk to those guests without making promises they can’t keep.

I’m not going to predict how the claims shake out. I’m not your attorney, and nobody knows yet. What I do know is how to make sure something like this never takes your business down (there are hundreds of hosts who will not be able to pay for the retreat they are hosting due to this and where does that put the paid guests?).

If You Were Listed With Tripaneer: Do These Things Now

This is not legal advice. Your agreements and the trustee’s instructions run the show here, so talk to your attorney if real money is on the line.

• Export everything you’re allowed to keep. Booking lists, guest contact info your agreement permits, payout history, invoices, listing copy, photos and reviews. Save it outside the partner dashboard while you can still log in.
• Make a simple spreadsheet. For every booking: what the guest paid, who they paid, what you’ve received, and what’s still due.
• Contact upcoming guests first. Tell them what you know, what you’re checking, and when you’ll update them. Don’t promise refunds you can’t guarantee, and don’t double-charge anyone for a deposit they already paid.
• Follow the official claims process. Use the ClaimsAgent case page and file before the creditors’ meeting if you’re owed money.
• Watch for scams. Anyone emailing your guests (or you) claiming to be a “refunds department” and asking for card details is a giant red flag.

Now let’s fix the bigger problem.

Rented Land vs. Owned Land

I want to be really clear: marketplaces aren’t evil. Some of them introduce you to guests you’d never reach on your own, and that has value. Especially when you are first starting out.  The problem is when the marketplace becomes the whole business.

When your dates, your deposits, your reviews, and your guest relationships all live on a platform you don’t control, you’re building on rented land. And rented land comes with rules you didn’t write. Commission changes. Algorithm changes. Terms that say the platform still gets paid even if the guest later books on your own website. And yes, sometimes the landlord goes bankrupt.

Owned land is different. Owned land is your website, your email list, your search rankings, your reviews, your past guests, and your reputation in AI search. Nobody can delist you from your own business.

What “Your Own System” Actually Looks Like

When I say “build your own system,” I don’t mean you have to code a booking engine in your garage. You can absolutely use tools. On this week’s podcast I walk through my entire tech stack – HoneyBook, WeTravel, Retreat Guru, Canva, Metricool, ClickUp, Podia and more.  Here’s the difference: renting software is fine. Renting your audience is the problem.

When you use a booking tool, you’re still the seller. The guest finds you, books with you, and stays on your list. When you rely on a marketplace, the guest found the marketplace, and you’re one of the listings.

Here’s what an owned system includes:

• A real home base. A website and retreat sales page that clearly says who you are, what the retreat includes, the price, and how to book with you directly.
• A booking and payment tool where you’re the seller. Your name on the agreement, your deposit terms, your payout timing.
• An email list and CRM. Every inquiry, every guest, every “maybe next year” lives in a system you can export anytime.
• An AI + SEO visibility plan so people (and AI tools) can actually find you without a marketplace in the middle.

That last one is the piece most retreat leaders skip (seriously…do YOU have an SEO + AI marketing plan?).   It’s also the piece that changes everything – and it’s the foundation of how to turn retreats into recurring revenue instead of starting from zero every launch.

Why SEO for Retreat Leaders Is the Booking System Nobody Can Take From You

Here’s the thing about marketplaces: they’re basically giant SEO and advertising machines. They rank on Google for “yoga retreat Costa Rica” so you don’t have to. That’s the service you’re paying commission for.

When you build your own SEO, you stop paying rent for traffic and start owning it.

In my book Retreat Business Marketing: The AI + SEO Playbook, I call this the Visibility Triad. 

Three ways guests find you today:

1. SEO: Get Found on Google

People are searching for retreats like yours right now. Women’s wellness retreat in Texas. Leadership retreat for small teams. Grief retreat near me. If your website isn’t answering those searches, a marketplace is answering them for you.

Start simple:

• Pick a few phrases your ideal guest would actually type.
• Build a retreat page for each retreat, with the location, dates, who it’s for, and what’s included right on the page.
• Write blog posts that answer real guest questions. What to pack. Is a solo retreat weird. How to choose a retreat.
• Get your Google Business Profile set up if you have a venue.

If you want the official rulebook, Google’s own SEO starter guide is surprisingly readable.

2. AEO: Get Recommended by AI

This is the part that’s moving fast. Your future guests are asking ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Google’s AI results things like “What’s a good women’s retreat in the Texas Hill Country?”

AI tools pull from websites, reviews, podcasts, articles and conversations across the internet. If your business only exists inside a marketplace listing, you’re basically invisible to them. And if that marketplace disappears, so does the only place AI could see you.

To show up in AI answers:

• Put clear, specific facts on your website: location, retreat type, who it serves, price range, what makes it different.
• Add FAQs to your retreat pages, written the way a real person would ask.
• Get mentioned in other places: podcast guest spots, local press, partner websites, Reddit and Quora threads where your expertise actually helps.
• Collect reviews on platforms you control or that stay with you, like Google.

3. GEO: Guest-Driven Growth

Your past guests are your most powerful marketing channel, period. They refer friends, they come back, and they leave the reviews that both Google and AI tools trust.

But you can only lean on them if you actually have their info. That means every guest goes into your email list and CRM, gets a real follow-up after the retreat, and gets invited back. This is where retreat leaders build waitlists and repeat guests instead of starting from scratch every single launch.

The Profit Side That’s Not Talked About

Let’s talk margins…because breaking even is not success.  Marketplace commissions often run 15% or more (sometimes as high as 30-40% to get found). On a retreat with a $3,000 ticket and 12 guests, that’s $5,400 or more walking out the door. For a lot of retreat leaders, that’s not a small expense. That’s the profit.

When you own your visibility, that money stays in your business. And a guest who found you directly is way more likely to join your email list, buy your next offer, and come back next year. That’s how to make money with retreats long-term: not by chasing more bookings at a thinner margin, but by owning the relationship.

A Realistic 90-Day Transition

You don’t have to rip down every listing tomorrow. Here’s how I’d do it.

• Days 1 to 30: Stabilize. Export your records, take care of current guests, and make sure your website has a clear retreat sales page with a “book with me” button that sends people to a tool where you’re the seller.
• Days 31 to 60: Build your foundation. Choose your keywords, update your retreat pages, add FAQs, set up Google Business Profile, and start collecting emails from every single inquiry.
• Days 61 to 90: Turn on visibility. Publish one helpful blog post a week, pitch yourself to a few podcasts, ask past guests for Google reviews, and point all your social posts to your own site instead of a listing.

After that, decide on purpose what role marketplaces still play. Some leaders keep one listing for discovery. Others walk away. Either is fine, as long as it’s a choice and not a dependency. And respect any existing agreements while you transition.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is SEO for retreat leaders?

SEO for retreat leaders means setting up your website and content so people searching Google for retreats like yours can find you directly. It includes choosing the right keywords, building clear retreat pages, writing helpful blog posts, and earning reviews and mentions that build trust.

Should I stop listing my retreats on marketplaces?

Not necessarily. Marketplaces can be a useful extra channel for discovery. The risk is making them your only channel. Use them as a supplement while you build your own website, email list and search visibility, and always read the commission and contact terms carefully.

How do I get my retreat to show up in ChatGPT or AI search?

Give AI tools something to work with. Put specific facts about your retreat on your own website, add FAQs written in natural language, collect reviews on Google, and get mentioned on podcasts, partner sites and community forums. The more consistent and clear your information is across the internet, the more likely AI tools will recommend you.

What should I do if I had bookings through Tripaneer or BookYogaRetreats?

Export every record you’re allowed to keep, list what each guest paid and to whom, contact upcoming guests with honest updates, and follow the official claims process on the ClaimsAgent case page. This isn’t legal advice, so talk with an attorney about your specific agreements.

How long does SEO take to work for a retreat business?

Most retreat leaders start seeing movement in three to six months, and it keeps compounding after that. That’s why the best time to start was last year and the second best time is today. Unlike ads or marketplace listings, the work you put in keeps paying off long after you publish it.

Build It With Us in January

This is exactly what we teach at the Profit with Purpose Retreat Leader Mastermind. We roll up our sleeves and build your AI + SEO system together – your keywords, your retreat pages, your AI visibility plan, your email follow-up and your tech stack – so you’re never one bankruptcy away from an empty retreat.

If you’re an entrepreneur who wants to host retreats profitably and actually own the business you’re building, I’d love to have you in the room. Join us at the Profit with Purpose Retreat Leader Mastermind in January: https://mindbodycomplete.com/profit-with-purpose-mastermind/

Stop renting your retreat business. Let’s build one you own.