An axe-throwing venue needs four things: a booking system that treats lanes and coach time as limited resources, a waiver tool that ties every signature to a booking, a way to take deposits on groups, and a rota. One activity-booking platform can cover the first three. AI helps with replies, waiver reminders and rota drafts, but never with waiver wording.
Some of what is sold as "axe throwing software" is projection scoring: AxeScorer and Champ Throw describe targets projected onto the lanes, and neither main page mentions bookings or waivers (checked October 2026). Scoring is a separate purchase. Start with the booking and waiver layer, because that is where lanes get double-booked and unsigned guests hold up the queue at the door.
Four jobs the software must do, and the question that tests each
Vendors will show you a calendar and a checkout. The harder questions are about how the system behaves when a venue's real rules collide. Put these to every vendor, and ask for a live demonstration rather than a feature list.
| Job | What it must do | The question to ask |
|---|---|---|
| Lane slots | Hold each lane as a resource, stop overbooking, build in the reset time between sessions | "Show a booking for 14 people taking three lanes, then show the next party being refused lane 3." |
| Group bookings | Take private parties and shared sessions, with minimum and maximum group sizes and a deposit | "Can a private group block whole lanes while strangers fill the others?" |
| Waivers | Link each guest's signature to the booking, show who has not signed, deal with guardians | "For a group of 12, how does each guest sign, and where do I see that 9 of 12 have?" |
| Coach rota | Show how many coaches each slot needs and export bookings for rostering | "Does it limit sessions by coach availability, or only by lanes?" |
A coach, here, is the person running the lanes: giving the safety briefing, resetting targets and watching throwers. Some venues use other titles, but the software needs to know how many are on the floor, because that number decides how many lanes you can open.
Lane slots: an eight-lane Saturday, worked through
Numbers make the requirements concrete, so here is a Saturday at an eight-lane venue (every figure is illustrative). House rules: sessions run 75 minutes with a 15-minute reset, so slots are 90 minutes apart; a lane holds at most 6 throwers; private groups take whole lanes and never share them; one coach covers up to 3 lanes in use, rounded up, with a minimum of 2 on the floor; a place costs $27.
| Slot | Booked as | Lanes | Throwers | Coaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12:00 | Private 8; shared 10 | 4 | 18 | 2 |
| 13:30 | Private 12; shared 18 | 5 | 30 | 2 |
| 15:00 | Private 12; private 10; shared 19 | 8 | 41 | 3 |
| 16:30 | Private 14; private 6; shared 24 | 8 | 44 | 3 |
| 18:00 | Private 18; private 12; shared 18 | 8 | 48 | 3 |
| 19:30 | Private 16; private 8; shared 12 | 7 | 36 | 3 |
The day uses 40 of 48 lane-slots, which is 83 per cent, and takes 217 throwers, or $5,859 at $27 a head. The sums show what the software has to do. At 18:00 the venue is full at 48, because 8 lanes times 6 throwers is the ceiling, so the 49th person must be refused even though the calendar shows a free time. At 13:30 three lanes are empty, so the system should offer them as shared places rather than leave them idle. Lane use and coach count move together: the tidy rule "one coach per 3 lanes" produces 16 coach-slots over the day, and a tool that only counts lanes will happily sell the 15:00 session without telling you a third coach is needed.
One realistic failure shows why lane-level allocation matters. Left to assign lanes automatically, a system can split a private group of 14 across lanes 1, 2 and 8, simply because those were the first free ones. Check whether your tool can keep a private group's lanes adjacent, or lets staff reassign them, before the first busy weekend. Bookeo's own axe-throwing page, for example, says lanes can be set up as resources and that customers can pick a lane or have one assigned automatically, which is the kind of setting to look for in any system (Bookeo's axe-throwing page).
Group bookings and deposits: rules to set before choosing a tool
Software enforces rules; it cannot invent them. Write yours on one page first, then see which system can hold them. A sample set, again illustrative, for a venue like the one above:
- Shared sessions: sold per place, up to 6 per lane, minimum of 2 booked places to run.
- Private groups: minimum 8, maximum 24 online (four lanes); larger groups by enquiry.
- Deposit: 30 per cent at booking. For a group of 10 at $27, that is $270 in total and an $81 deposit, with the balance on the day.
- Headcount: final numbers 48 hours before; changes of up to two people are free.
- Cancellation: deposit refundable up to 7 days before, none after; any partial refund is decided by the owner.
Take these to your solicitor or accountant, because refund and deposit terms touch consumer rules that differ from place to place. What you are checking with vendors is simpler: can the system take a deposit and the balance, refund part of it, and keep all of it inside the booking record rather than in someone's direct messages? Bookeo's axe-throwing page says it supports deposits, full payments and refunds through supported payment gateways, and Bookeo's pricing page says it charges no commission on payments, while the payment gateway charges its own fee. For comparison, a wider look at venue booking software for calendars and deposits covers tools built for hired rooms, and the group-party side is explored in paintball park software for group bookings, which shares most of the same problems.
Waivers: what the software does, and what it cannot decide
A waiver tool can collect and file signatures. It cannot tell you who has to sign, how often, or what the document should say. Three decisions come first, and each belongs to your solicitor and your insurer:
- Who signs. Every guest, or only the booker for their group? How are guardians recorded for anyone under the minimum age you set?
- How often. A new signature every visit, or one that stays valid for a set period?
- How long to keep them, and in what form. You will want to produce a specific guest's waiver for a specific date if you are ever asked.
AI can help you prepare for that conversation, which is a better use of it than drafting the document. Paste your venue's basic facts (lanes, session length, age rules you are considering, how guests book) and ask for a question list:
I run an axe-throwing venue. I need to brief my solicitor and insurer about our guest waiver.
Write the questions I should ask them, grouped under: who signs, how often, minors,
record-keeping, electronic signatures, and guests who refuse or cannot sign.
Do not draft any waiver wording and do not give legal advice. Venue facts: [paste]A good result opens with questions like these (illustrative): What minimum age do you accept, and may one adult sign for several minors? Does an electronic signature collected through our booking software meet your requirements? How long must signed waivers be kept? Must the waiver be signed before arrival, or is signing on a phone at the door acceptable? What do we record to show a guest received the safety briefing? That list turns a 20-minute meeting into a useful one. If you want the long version of what a solicitor looks for, see what a solicitor must check in an AI-drafted waiver and, for guests under the age limit, drafting a children's waiver with AI.
The software features to test are more mechanical. Bookeo's page says waivers can be linked to specific activities and completed after booking and before the session, that confirmation and reminder emails can include a "Sign waiver" link the booker can share with the rest of the group, and that staff can see which participants still need to sign. Whatever tool you choose, the demonstration to ask for is a group booking with some guests signed and some not, so you can see how it displays "9 of 12". Also ask what happens at the door: a QR code or tablet for unsigned guests, and whether you can stop a check-in until the waiver is done.
Three routes compared on one venue's numbers
Prices below are list prices in dollars as shown on each vendor's page in October 2026; check your own currency and plan. The venue is the Saturday example scaled up: about 3,000 guests a month in groups averaging about 7, which is roughly 430 bookings, assuming a fresh waiver for every visit.
| Route | What the page says | Monthly cost for this venue |
|---|---|---|
| Bookeo Tours & Activities plus its waiver add-on | Plans from $14.95 to $119.95; the Standard plan at $39.95 lists 20 staff logins and 1,000 bookings a month. Waiver plans run $9 for 200, $19 for 500, $35 for 1,000, $59 for 2,000, $85 for 3,000, $140 for 5,000 and $249 for 10,000. SMS credits are sold in bundles. No commission. | $39.95 + $85 = about $125, plus SMS credits and gateway fees |
| Resova | Lite $40, Pro $72, Premium $108 a month on annual billing ($50, $90, $135 month to month) for up to 100, 300 and 600 bookings. The plan cards list waivers from Premium. Extra bookings cost 20 cents each. | Premium: $108 annual, $135 monthly |
| A scheduler plus a separate waiver tool | WaiverForever lists plans of $19, $39 and $129 a month. Usage is charged on top each month: the first 50 submissions free, then $0.10, $0.08 and $0.064 a waiver in bands, falling to $0.05 at high volume. The scheduler is a second bill. | About $209 of usage plus the $19 to $129 plan, plus the scheduler |
Three points come out of the sums. First, waiver volume is the cost driver, because Bookeo's ladder jumps from $85 for 3,000 to $140 for 5,000, so a busy month can change your bill. If your solicitor and insurer allow a signature to last a year and four in ten visits are returning guests, you would collect about 1,800 signatures a month, which fits the $59 tier; that assumption deserves a line in your spreadsheet, not a guess. Second, a per-signature standalone tool looks cheap until you multiply by guests: at 3,000 signatures a month, WaiverForever's bands charge 250 at $0.10, 700 at $0.08 and 2,000 at $0.064, which is $25 + $56 + $128 = $209 before the plan fee. Third, none of these is a recommendation. Bookeo and Resova both say they take deposits (Resova's features page lists full payments, deposits, vouchers and gift cards), so the deciding tests are the ones in the trial script below: the 9-of-12 waiver view, a partial refund and a private group kept on neighbouring lanes.
Both advertise a free trial: 30 days with no card needed on Bookeo's pricing page, and 14 days on Resova's, with no card until the trial ends. Use it. The test script near the end of this tutorial tells you what to try.
Projection and scoring systems are a different purchase
If you have seen "axe throwing software" advertised, it may have been a projection system. AxeScorer's page describes cloud software that projects digital targets onto lanes, with each throw recorded by a tap on a tablet, IATF and WATL scoring and party games; Champ Throw describes an interactive projection target system with auto-scoring, more than 20 games and a companion app. Neither main page mentions bookings or waivers. They are venue equipment decisions, not replacements for the booking and waiver layer: AxeScorer says you bring your own projectors and tablets and pay a monthly subscription (prices sit on a separate pricing page), while Champ Throw sells plug-and-play cabinets and turnkey lane kits through a demo request, with no prices on its main page. Decide the booking layer first, then ask the scoring vendor whether it runs beside it.
Where AI helps: replies, waiver chasers and a rota draft
Group enquiries answered from your rate card
Group enquiries arrive as vague messages, and the reply decides whether the booking happens. Give the AI your rules and let it draft; you approve. The key instruction is that it never confirms a date.
You write replies for an axe-throwing venue. Use ONLY these facts: private groups from 8 to 24,
$27 per person per 75-minute session, 30% deposit, final numbers 48 hours before,
book at [link]. Never confirm a date or time; say availability shows on the booking page.
Never say anything is "safe" or promise results. Under 110 words. Sign as [venue name].
Enquiry: "Hi, looking at a team night for 14 people next month, maybe a Thursday evening.
What would it cost and how long do we get?"AI draft (illustrative): Hi [first name], thanks for getting in touch. A group of 14 would book a private session of 75 minutes, at $27 per person, which comes to $378. A 30% deposit of $113.40 holds the booking and the balance is due on the day, with final numbers confirmed 48 hours before. You can check Thursday availability and book at [link]. If you tell us roughly what time suits, we can point you to the best option. [Venue name]
This draft passed because the prompt closed the usual gaps. An earlier, looser prompt produced "Thursday at 7 pm is free" and "our coaches make it completely safe for beginners". The first is a promise the AI could not know; the second is a safety claim. Both need deleting, which is why the prompt now says so.
Waiver chasers that give the number outstanding
Unsigned waivers are the main cause of queues at the door. The software sends the reminder; AI helps with the wording, written once and approved. The useful version names the gap: "[number] of [total] people on your booking haven't signed yet." Send it to the booker 48 hours before, and again 3 hours before, only if anyone is still missing.
Template (illustrative): Hi [first name], [number] of the [total] people on your booking for [day] at [time] haven't signed their waiver yet. Everyone needs to sign before they can throw, and signing at the door means a wait for the whole group. Please forward this link to anyone still missing: [link]. Questions? Reply to this message. [Venue name]
A rota draft, and the check that finds its gap
Paste the coaches-needed column from the Saturday table, your availability list, and your rules (minimum two coaches on the floor, 30 minutes before and after for setup and closing, and your break rules if you have them). Ask for shifts as a table with the slots each coach covers. The AI's first answer here (illustrative):
| Coach | Shift | Covers |
|---|---|---|
| A | 11:30 to 16:30 | 12:00, 13:30, 15:00 |
| B | 11:30 to 16:30 | 12:00, 13:30, 15:00 |
| C | 14:30 to 21:30 | 15:00 to 19:30 |
| D | 16:00 to 21:30 | 16:30, 18:00, 19:30 |
| E | 17:30 to 21:30 | 18:00, 19:30 |
It looks right and it is not. Check it yourself, slot by slot. The 16:30 session needs three coaches, but A and B finish at 16:30 and E does not start until 17:30, which leaves only C and D for the first hour. The fix is to start E at 16:00 or keep A for an extra hour. The draft also gave Coach C seven hours straight, which your own break rules may not allow. AI is good at producing a plausible rota and poor at counting; you are the counter. A short coverage table like the one above, checked line by line, takes five minutes and prevents the version where the first hour of your busiest session runs a coach short.
A seven-day trial script before you commit
Use the free trial to break the system on purpose. Block out an hour each day for these tests, with a colleague playing the guests.
- Double-booking: try to book the same lane for the same slot twice, from two browsers.
- The 49th person: fill a slot to capacity and try to add one more.
- Private against shared: book a private group of 14, check that it lands on three neighbouring lanes, and confirm strangers cannot be placed in them.
- Group waivers: create a booking for 12, sign for 9, and look at what the dashboard and the reminder say.
- Deposit and refund: pay a deposit, cancel inside and outside your refund window, and check what is returned.
- Walk-in: add a booking at the desk, with a waiver on a phone, and time it.
- Export: download a day of bookings and see whether it feeds the rota table.
Score each as pass, workaround or fail, and weigh the fails against what you would pay to fix them. Fixes are often cheaper in process than in software: a printed lane chart for the desk, or a rule that groups book at least 48 hours ahead. If the tool you like fails two of the first four, move on. Where the venue also takes party enquiries by phone, go-kart track software for race bookings, waivers and AI enquiries covers the call-answering side of a similar business, and for follow-up messages after a party visit, see party follow-ups and waiver reminders at a trampoline park.
Questions venue owners ask before choosing software
Does every guest need a new waiver on every visit?
That is a decision for your solicitor and your insurer, not the software or an AI. Booking and waiver tools can handle either rule: a fresh waiver for each visit, or one that stays valid for a set period. The choice changes how many signatures you collect each month, which can move you into a different plan tier, so settle it before comparing prices.
Can AI write my waiver?
AI can prepare a list of questions for your solicitor and tidy a plain-English sheet explaining what a session involves. The waiver text, the age rules and the signature method need a qualified person and your insurer's agreement. The related tutorials on drafting waivers explain what a solicitor checks.
How should walk-ins be handled?
Treat a walk-in as a booking made in the building: the same lane check, the same waiver and the same payment, entered in the same system. Walk-ins kept on paper or in someone's head make your lane counts and your coach ratio wrong, and the unsigned waiver is the one that matters later.
Do I need a separate app for leagues and scoring?
Scoring and projection systems are a separate purchase from booking and waivers. The product pages for AxeScorer and Champ Throw describe scoring and projected targets and mention neither bookings nor waivers. Choose the booking and waiver layer first, then check that any scoring system can run alongside it.
Further reads
- Kayak Rental Software: Bookings, Waivers and Weather Calls With AI — Another activity business where waivers and bookings must link.
- Dive Shop Software: Courses, Gear Hire and Waivers Handled With AI — Waivers and course bookings handled with AI.
- Can AI Write a Gym Waiver Template? What a Solicitor Must Check — What a solicitor checks in an AI-drafted waiver.
- Pickleball Court Booking Software: Rules, Reminders and No-Show Fixes — Court slots and no-show rules, similar to lane slots.
- AI for Climbing Gyms: Induction Bookings and Membership Churn — Induction bookings and keeping members coming back.
- Bowling Alley Marketing: Eight League and Party Offers Written With AI — League and party offers for a similar venue.
- AI Tools and AI Development: The Complete 2026 Guide — the AI hub, including every tutorial in the AI-for-business series.
Sources: Bookeo pricing and axe-throwing pages; Resova pricing and features pages; WaiverForever pricing page; AxeScorer and Champ Throw product pages (all read in October 2026). Lane counts, prices per guest, rota times and booking figures in the examples are illustrative.