Why Travel and Tourism Are Considered “High-Risk”

Travel is high-value, seasonal, and often booked months in advance — which introduces more risk for payment processors.

Here’s why many traditional providers shy away:

• High chargeback potential: Customers can cancel last-minute or dispute transactions if travel plans change.

• Long fulfilment windows: Unlike digital goods, the service (e.g., a safari) might be delivered months after payment, making processors wary.

• Cross-border complexity: Payments often involve multiple currencies and international card networks.

• Limited local infrastructure: Many tourism operators are based in regions like Africa, Southeast Asia, or South America, where banking access is limited.

As a result, many providers flag these transactions as high-risk, freezing accounts, delaying payouts, or outright rejecting applications.

Key Players in High-Risk and Emerging Market Payments

Fortunately, a growing set of payment platforms specialise in serving businesses that operate in these challenging sectors. Here are a few to know:

1. Tab

Tab is designed specifically for the travel and tourism industry. It enables tour operators, hotels, and experience providers to accept card payments from international travelers — without the usual friction.

What makes Tab different:

• Works seamlessly in over 40 currencies

• Handles compliance and FX automatically

• Low prices with no setup, monthly or hidden fees

• Free payouts in local currencies, directly to your bank

• Designed for high-risk industries (so your account doesn’t get frozen mid-season)

For safari lodges, dive centers, or eco-retreats that rely heavily on international guests, Tab is a simple, tourism-first alternative to general-purpose payment gateways.

Visit business.tab.travel to learn more.

2. KosiPay

KosiPay provides a digital payments network focused on African and Middle Eastern merchants. Its core strength lies in cross-border settlement — helping local businesses accept global card payments while receiving funds in regional currencies like KES, NGN, or ZAR.

While not limited to tourism, KosiPay’s infrastructure supports many of the same “high-risk” business models that mainstream providers avoid. It’s often used by local agents, travel consolidators, and online booking platforms.

3. Rapyd

Rapyd offers global payment infrastructure that supports both collections and payouts across 100+ countries. For larger or more tech-enabled travel platforms, it can be a good fit — though its enterprise focus may not suit smaller operators.

Key strength: deep integration with local payment methods like M-Pesa, bank transfers, and wallets.

4. Worldpay and Adyen (for enterprise operators)

Enterprise-grade travel companies — airlines, OTAs, and large hotel groups — often rely on Worldpay or Adyen. These providers offer powerful risk management and multi-currency capabilities, but onboarding is rigorous and minimum volumes are high.

For small to medium tourism businesses, these options are often out of reach due to contract thresholds and complexity.

Why General Providers (like Stripe or PayPal) Don’t Work for Travel

Even though these platforms are widely known, travel businesses often encounter problems such as:

• Sudden account freezes due to “high-risk” flags

• Delayed or held payouts after chargebacks

• Currency mismatches when receiving international payments

• Limited local currency support in developing markets

That’s why a purpose-built platform like Tab can be transformative - it’s designed for the realities of the global travel economy.

What to Look For in a Payment Provider for Travel Businesses

When evaluating options, consider these key factors:

1. Industry understanding: Does the provider actively support travel and tourism businesses?

2. Multi-currency support: Can you charge customers in their home currency and get paid in yours?

3. Chargeback handling: Are there fair policies for cancellations or disputes?

4. FX transparency: How much are you really paying for currency conversion?

5. Ease of integration: Does it work with your booking flow or POS?