Changelog
Not a dump of technical work. A record of what changed for Gondola customers—and why it matters to the businesses relying on us.
Shipped
5 improvements
We published our five-part AI Visibility Report, built from 530 tracked questions and 406,373 responses across five AI systems. It turns more than six months of research into practical guidance for getting found, recommended, and booked.
Why it matters: Operators now have original, industry-specific evidence for deciding what to change on their websites as AI reshapes travel research.
When an operator saves a tour with images inside the description, Gondola now brings those files into the same managed image system as the rest of the site.
Why it matters: Images added inside tour descriptions no longer depend on a temporary or third-party source that may disappear later.
We moved published customer sites onto a newer rendering system and shortened the critical font-loading path. The change keeps the same editable experience while reducing work in the browser.
Why it matters: Visitors get useful page content sooner, while Gondola gains a cleaner foundation for continuing to improve site speed.
We strengthened our support process with explicit site-health verification, bookability checks, and a mandatory final inbox review before a session is considered finished.
Why it matters: Customers are less likely to receive a confident but incomplete diagnosis—or have a still-open issue missed at the end of a support session.
Gondola now measures representative published sites over time and compares proposed platform changes against production performance before those changes roll out broadly.
Why it matters: Performance regressions can be caught during development instead of being discovered after they have affected customer sites.
Shipped
12 improvements
The AI Start Here page now has independent controls for whether it is published and whether customers see a link to it on the website.
Why it matters: Operators can make an AI Start Here page available to search and AI systems without being forced to add it to their visible site navigation.
We completed the move to the latest generation of Gondola analytics, including first-party tracking, customer-facing reporting, heatmaps, and carefully limited session replay.
Why it matters: Operators keep a consistent view of traffic and visitor behavior while Gondola moves analytics onto a more maintainable foundation.
Every standard section on a product page now receives a stable, readable anchor that survives normal content changes.
Why it matters: Operators and marketers can link directly to the exact details a guest needs, such as highlights, FAQs, or what to bring.
Published sites now cap generated image sizes to the actual source and screen needs instead of upscaling files or offering unnecessarily large versions.
Why it matters: Guests use less bandwidth and avoid waiting for image sizes their screen cannot display.
Operators can edit a tour’s primary booking action in place and use a normal booking URL, a phone number, or an email address. Published pages now honor that selection consistently.
Why it matters: Each experience can send a guest to the booking path that actually fits the business instead of falling back to the wrong action.
We added verified audience checks, delivery deduplication, bounce recovery, and coordinated email and text reminders for customers moving onto the current platform.
Why it matters: Customers approaching a time-sensitive cutover are less likely to miss the message because one email address bounced or one channel failed.
Tours, categories, and blog posts now share the same “View on site” behavior from the Gondola dashboard.
Why it matters: Operators can move from editing to the customer-facing version without hunting for the correct URL.
Published sites now reuse safely cached content by tag, then invalidate only the affected pieces when an operator publishes a change.
Why it matters: Frequently requested content can load faster while publishing still clears the right cached pages.
Gondola’s migration process now creates a complete, reviewable DNS handoff before nameservers change, with explicit checks for records that must survive the move.
Why it matters: Moving a customer’s domain is less likely to disrupt email, booking tools, verification records, or other services that share the domain.
Contact forms now format common inputs and validate them before submission, with clearer feedback when something needs attention.
Why it matters: Guests get a chance to fix malformed contact details before sending, improving the odds that an operator can respond.
The editor now supports self-service slug changes for tours, blog posts, and categories, with the redirect system protecting the previous address.
Why it matters: Tours, blog posts, and categories can use cleaner URLs without requiring a support request or sacrificing existing links.
Image descriptions can now be adjusted from the editor and are honored across sections and published pages.
Why it matters: Operators can describe images for people using assistive technology and give search systems better context.
Shipped
13 improvements
The 404 report now opens a prefilled redirect form directly from the missing URL that needs attention.
Why it matters: Operators can repair a path guests are actually trying to visit without copying it into a separate screen.
Tour pages can now show how many people viewed an experience during the week, using recent site activity instead of a static marketing claim.
Why it matters: Guests can see that real people are actively considering an experience, adding timely confidence near the booking decision.
Gondola’s migration process now follows the same gated checklist from source-site inventory through content reconciliation, redirect and booking checks, preview, publishing, and live-site verification.
Why it matters: Operators get a more faithful migration with fewer missed redirects, booking links, publishing mistakes, or stale pages at handoff.
New and migrated sites now include Gondola’s AI Start Here page by default rather than requiring a separate setup request.
Why it matters: Operators receive a structured page that helps AI systems understand the business, its experiences, and the questions travelers ask.
The publishing flow now distinguishes DNS propagation from certificate readiness, keeps checking slow changes, and offers a clear retry path when a domain stalls.
Why it matters: A site is less likely to be marked live while its secure connection is still unavailable or DNS is only partially configured.
The migration system now recognizes common booking-provider scripts and carries the required integration into the new site automatically.
Why it matters: Guests can keep using the operator’s existing FareHarbor, Xola, or Peek booking flow when a site moves onto Gondola.
Gondola sites gained a reusable link gallery with editable labels, destinations, and supporting imagery.
Why it matters: Operators can present useful next steps, partner resources, locations, or related offerings in a visual, scannable section.
FAQ answers now support useful links and imagery instead of being limited to plain text.
Why it matters: Operators can answer practical questions with the same supporting detail a guest would otherwise need to hunt down elsewhere.
Gondola’s migration tools can now read existing Ninja Forms definitions and recreate them as editable contact forms on the destination site.
Why it matters: Important inquiry forms are less likely to be lost or rebuilt incorrectly during a WordPress migration.
Gondola now retries review sources that became stuck, while rejecting duplicate or malformed sources before they create lasting problems.
Why it matters: A temporary provider or subscription error is less likely to leave a customer’s review feed permanently stale.
Every visitor-controlled field is now safely escaped before Gondola places it into a lead notification.
Why it matters: A visitor cannot use contact-form fields to inject unintended markup into the email an operator receives.
Video fields across Gondola now accept Vimeo links alongside YouTube links.
Why it matters: Operators can use the video host that already fits their workflow without giving up the site’s video layouts.
Gondola can now draft a meta description from the actual page content and show how it will read before the operator saves it.
Why it matters: Operators can start from a page-specific description and review it in context instead of facing an empty SEO field.
Shipped
3 improvements
Every standard page now has a noindex control, and hidden pages are also removed from the site’s sitemap.
Why it matters: Operators can work on a page without inviting search engines to index it before it is ready.
We expanded protections for malicious search URLs and improved the way suspicious contact messages are identified for operators.
Why it matters: Customer sites are less likely to host junk search pages or flood operators with messages that hide legitimate inquiries.
We introduced a repeatable WordPress migration system that carries over content, media, SEO fields, and existing redirects, then compares the source and destination before go-live.
Why it matters: Customers can move onto Gondola with fewer missing images, changed URLs, lost metadata, or surprises discovered after launch.
Shipped
8 improvements
Gondola’s WordPress sites now connect the consent banner to Google’s current consent controls instead of loading analytics independently of the visitor’s choice.
Why it matters: Customer sites can measure activity while honoring the visitor’s analytics choice.
The Gondola website now links to a browsable archive of customer emails from the support section.
Why it matters: Customers can recover a useful announcement or guide even when the original email is buried or missing.
Product-page settings now include editable “Why book with us” content, sensible defaults, and the option to hide the section when it does not add value.
Why it matters: Operators can tailor the booking panel and trust-building reasons to the way their own business sells.
After a successful form submission, legacy Gondola sites now redirect to a clean confirmation state instead of leaving the browser on a resubmittable request.
Why it matters: Operators receive fewer accidental duplicate inquiries, and guests do not wonder whether they submitted twice.
Migration checks now verify blog destinations, detect URL drift, and stop redirect rules that would hide missing content behind a generic homepage response.
Why it matters: Existing search traffic and saved links are less likely to fall into a silent redirect to the homepage.
The theme editor now includes separate controls for the navigation button’s background and text colors.
Why it matters: Operators can keep the most important navigation action readable and on-brand without changing the rest of the site palette.
When an operator changes the settings for an automatically generated page, Gondola now preserves that page-specific version and publishes it normally.
Why it matters: Operators can adjust page titles and settings even when Gondola created the page automatically from their tours, categories, or blog.
Website-generation emails now distinguish success from failure, explain the next step, and include direct support links when the process needs attention.
Why it matters: Customers know what happened, what to do next, and where to get help without decoding a generic build notice.
Shipped
16 improvements
We published a dedicated multi-day tour website guide with real operator examples and a page structure designed for complex itineraries.
Why it matters: Multi-day operators can see how Gondola handles itineraries, logistics, booking decisions, and the extra trust required for a larger purchase.
We completed an accessibility pass across the Gondola website and brought its Lighthouse accessibility score to 100.
Why it matters: Prospects and customers can navigate Gondola’s own site with stronger contrast, labels, and assistive-technology support.
We reduced image work, delayed editor-only code, and moved nonessential scripts out of the critical loading path for customer sites.
Why it matters: Guests see the first useful content sooner and download less code and imagery before they can act.
The editor gained a visible save indicator, a serialized save queue, and safeguards around closing panels, switching pages, or leaving the browser mid-save.
Why it matters: Operators can see whether a change is saved and are warned before leaving while work is still pending.
We added eleven in-depth guides and rebuilt the supporting author and editorial structure so advice is easier to evaluate and trust.
Why it matters: Operators have more plain-language guidance for search, advertising, marketing, and starting or expanding an experience business.
We published dedicated website guides for businesses including fishing charters, kayak tours, food tours, wine tours, surf schools, ATV tours, and more.
Why it matters: Operators can evaluate Gondola against the actual sales and content needs of their activity instead of a generic small-business template.
The Gondola homepage gained an interactive map of customer websites across markets and activity types.
Why it matters: Prospects can inspect the breadth of businesses already using Gondola rather than relying only on a marketing claim.
Gondola can now turn a new-business questionnaire into a branded draft with initial tours, imagery, navigation, and the core pages an operator needs.
Why it matters: A new operator can start from the business they are planning, not from a website they do not have yet.
The free-draft experience now supports two distinct flows, with plain-language milestones and real progress for migrations and new business concepts.
Why it matters: Customers see progress and expectations that match whether Gondola is migrating a current site or creating the first one.
We rebuilt gondola.travel around the current platform, clearer positioning, transparent pricing context, and real operator proof.
Why it matters: Prospects can understand the platform, pricing, add-ons, and customer evidence without working through an outdated marketing site.
We rebuilt the editor shell around the tasks an operator actually performs, with persistent page navigation, preview controls, publishing status, and account access.
Why it matters: Pages, device previews, settings, publishing, and the live-site link stay within one understandable editing frame.
The onboarding flow now uses one-click account creation and a clear draft preview instead of routing a new customer through a generic payment link.
Why it matters: A prospect can move from reviewing a draft into their Gondola account with fewer steps and no confusion about paying before they have claimed it.
Gondola can generate missing site imagery and choose a curated font pairing based on the business, destination, activity, and desired feel.
Why it matters: Operators spend less time undoing generic imagery and typography before a draft feels recognizably theirs.
The editor gained an AI assistant that can change section content and settings or create a new page through a conversation.
Why it matters: Operators can describe the result they want instead of finding every individual setting themselves.
Gondola now includes a media library with upload, search, paging, thumbnails, captions, and visual tagging that helps retrieve images by what they contain.
Why it matters: Operators can reuse the right image without uploading it again or scrolling through an unorganized pile of files.
We improved migration research and generation so Gondola can understand the existing site’s content, extract its visual palette, and build a more faithful first draft.
Why it matters: A migrated draft starts with more relevant tours, richer content, and a palette grounded in the operator’s existing brand.
Shipped
10 improvements
The onboarding experience now receives real milestones from the website pipeline and displays work that can happen in parallel.
Why it matters: Customers can see which parts of the website process are active or complete instead of waiting behind a generic loading message.
The editor gained an end-to-end go-live flow covering the domain, DNS checks, secure hosting, analytics setup, and consent behavior for the finished site.
Why it matters: Operators can connect a domain, verify it, and understand the site’s state without coordinating several disconnected support steps.
Gondola now records important page addresses and creates the matching redirect automatically when one changes.
Why it matters: Guests and search engines are sent to the new page instead of meeting a 404 after an operator renames a URL.
The editor now includes a redirect workspace with CSV import, deduplicated 404 activity, and controls for fixing or clearing old paths.
Why it matters: Operators can preserve valuable old links, import redirect lists, and see which missing addresses guests actually request.
The tour-highlights section gained an optional image carousel that appears only when the content supports it.
Why it matters: Operators can make the strongest moments of an experience easier to scan without turning the page into a wall of text.
We tightened both the stored relationships and the dashboard’s immediate feedback when operators attach reviews to products.
Why it matters: Selecting or refreshing reviews is less likely to detach valid customer proof from the tours where it belongs.
Section settings now separate content from appearance, while navigation editing uses a simpler primary-and-footer model with a compact overview.
Why it matters: Operators spend less time scrolling through one long settings panel to find the kind of change they want to make.
Gondola now adds the appropriate noindex instruction when a product is not active, across both current and legacy customer sites.
Why it matters: A delisted experience is less likely to keep attracting search traffic to something the operator no longer sells.
Product pages gained a “More experiences” carousel that recommends related tours from the same business.
Why it matters: A guest who decides one tour is not right can keep exploring relevant options instead of leaving the website.
Tour pages now keep a compact “Check availability” action visible at the bottom of small screens.
Why it matters: A guest can move toward booking from anywhere on a long tour page without scrolling back to the top.
Shipped
4 improvements
Gondola added recognizable support for Yelp, Trustpilot, and Airbnb reviews alongside existing sources.
Why it matters: Operators can present relevant proof from more of the platforms their guests already trust.
The editor gained a general-purpose rich-text section and human-readable section anchors with a copy action.
Why it matters: Operators can add a focused block of formatted information and share a direct link to it when the detail matters.
We added per-site sitemaps and a broad structured-data foundation for the content experience operators publish through Gondola.
Why it matters: Search engines receive clearer information about the business, tours, reviews, FAQs, videos, people, and blog content.
The editor now offers a preview mode that shows fresh published content directly after a publish completes.
Why it matters: Operators can confirm a change in its real page context without waiting for a separate public-site visit.
Shipped
6 improvements
The editor toolbar now adapts into a deliberate two-row layout on mobile instead of squeezing every control into one line.
Why it matters: Operators can reach page and preview controls on a narrow device without buttons colliding or disappearing.
Page settings now include titles, descriptions, social-sharing images, and favicon controls rather than relying only on site-wide defaults.
Why it matters: Operators can shape how an individual page appears in search results, browser tabs, and social shares.
We replaced the detached editing toolbar with a responsive preview frame and direct section selection inside the page.
Why it matters: Operators can switch between phone and desktop views, click the section they want, and stay oriented while making a change.
Embedded booking widgets now adapt to their contents while running through tighter controls around what the embedded code can do.
Why it matters: Guests are less likely to face a cramped, double-scrolling, or unsafe embedded checkout.
The footer gained individual controls for common credit-card and payment icons.
Why it matters: Operators can show the payment methods that actually apply instead of presenting a generic or inaccurate row of logos.
Review settings now include source filters and a minimum-rating threshold.
Why it matters: Operators can focus the public review feed on the sources and minimum rating that fit their trust strategy.
Shipped
7 improvements
The theme editor gained ready-made typography combinations designed to work as a system across the website.
Why it matters: Operators can change the personality of the site while keeping headings and body text intentionally matched.
New editor users now receive a short guided tour through adjusting the first section on their site.
Why it matters: A first-time customer can learn the editing model by making a real change instead of reading a disconnected tutorial.
Gondola introduced a structured theme system for backgrounds, content, overlays, buttons, and reusable section styles rather than exposing a pile of unrelated color pickers.
Why it matters: Operators can tune the look of the whole site while starting from assignments designed to keep text and calls to action readable.
Site sections gained optional transition treatments that connect contrasting backgrounds more intentionally.
Why it matters: Operators can create more visual rhythm between sections without custom development.
The rich-text editor now supports uploading and placing images inside the content itself.
Why it matters: Operators can explain a story, location, or important detail with supporting imagery exactly where it is discussed.
The Gondola dashboard gained tour filtering based on the experience’s public visibility.
Why it matters: Operators can find active, hidden, or draft experiences more quickly when the tour list grows.
Gondola introduced shared sections that can appear across multiple pages while preserving a safe separation between draft and published versions.
Why it matters: Site-wide content can stay consistent without repeating the same tweak on every page.
Shipped
9 improvements
Gondola sites gained editable category pages and category sections that organize related tours around the way guests browse.
Why it matters: Operators with several experience types can give each category a useful destination instead of sending every guest to one undifferentiated list.
Tour pages gained a review summary near the title, a full review section, and a clearer way to open the complete photo gallery.
Why it matters: Guests can evaluate an experience with visual proof and review context close to the booking decision.
Gondola added multiple editable menus with location assignments and kept existing site navigation compatible during the change.
Why it matters: Operators can keep the primary booking path focused while using the footer for the broader sitemap and supporting links.
Gondola introduced blog posts, a blog listing page, reusable blog sections, and direct navigation into blog editing.
Why it matters: Operators can publish useful, search-friendly content inside the same website system as their tours and core pages.
Gondola sites gained a reusable video-embed section that can be placed and adjusted like other page content.
Why it matters: Operators can show the movement and atmosphere of an experience using a standard editable section.
Gondola sites gained an editable newsletter section with built-in protections around the signup form.
Why it matters: Operators can collect interest from visitors who are not ready to book without inviting a flood of automated submissions.
Tour blocks and category pages now respect a deliberate, editable product order.
Why it matters: Operators can lead with the experiences they most want guests to see instead of accepting a fixed database order.
Gondola introduced an editable contact-form section, including a customizable success message shown after submission.
Why it matters: Operators can collect inquiries through the site and confirm the next step in their own words.
The visual editor expanded from individual content blocks into the shared elements and tour-specific pages that make up an experience operator’s site.
Why it matters: Operators can tune links, calls to action, footer content, widths, and product-page presentation without waiting on a developer.
Shipped
1 improvement
Legacy Gondola contact forms gained an additional validation step designed to stop automated submissions before they reach the operator.
Why it matters: Operators spend less time separating automated junk from genuine guest questions.
Shipped
1 improvement
The Gondola dashboard now refreshes review queries at the moments when stale data would otherwise be most misleading.
Why it matters: Operators are less likely to make a choice from an outdated review list after a source or attachment changes.
Gondola customers benefit from the platform improvements we ship without having to commission another rebuild.