Summer Camp Registration Software: What Actually Matters

Registration Season Reality

If you've run a summer camp, you know the feeling. Registration opens. Your phone starts ringing. Your inbox floods. Parents have questions. Something's not working. Someone paid but didn't complete the medical form. Someone completed the form but payment failed. Someone wants to know why their sibling discount didn't apply.

Meanwhile, you're trying to figure out who's actually registered, who's on the waitlist, and whether you have enough counselors for Week 3.

This chaos isn't inevitable. But it requires software that actually solves your problems, not just software that looks good in a demo.

What Actually Matters in Registration Software

Parents Can Complete Registration Without Calling You

This is the whole point. A parent should be able to:

1. See what sessions are available (and which are full)
2. Register their kid(s)
3. Fill out required forms (medical, emergency contact, waivers)
4. Pay
5. Get a confirmation

...without ever picking up the phone or sending an email.

Every time a parent has to call with a question, that's a sign your registration process is broken. The software should answer their questions before they think to ask.

The System Holds Together Under Pressure

Registration often happens in a rush. Everyone wants the same popular sessions. Multiple parents are clicking "submit" at the same time.

Cheap or poorly-built software fails here. Sessions get overbooked. Payments process but registrations don't save. Parents get error messages and call you in a panic.

Ask potential vendors: what happens when 100 people try to register simultaneously? How do you prevent overselling limited spots? What's your uptime during peak registration periods?

Forms Are Part of the Flow (Not an Afterthought)

You need information from parents: medical history, allergies, emergency contacts, authorized pickup people, waivers, and maybe photos or t-shirt sizes.

Some registration software treats forms as separate from registration. Parents register, then get a separate email asking them to complete forms, then maybe another reminder, and you're chasing people for missing information the week before camp.

Better: forms are part of registration. Parents can't complete checkout until required information is submitted. You don't have to chase anyone.

Payments and Registrations Are Connected

It sounds obvious, but many camps use separate systems for registration and payment. Someone fills out a Google Form, then pays via PayPal or writes a check.

This creates reconciliation nightmares:

• "Did the Smiths pay?" (Let me check PayPal... their name isn't obvious here...)
• "That payment says Johnson but there's no Johnson in registrations" (Different last name? Grandparent paid?)
• "We got $250 from someone but I can't figure out who"

Integrated payment means when someone pays, you know exactly which registration it's for. Automatically. No reconciliation spreadsheets.

Waitlists That Actually Work

Good waitlist management means:

• When a session fills, parents can join the waitlist (not just get rejected)
• When a spot opens, the next person is automatically notified
• They have a limited window to claim the spot
• If they don't, it goes to the next person
• You're not managing any of this manually

This matters more than you think. Popular sessions fill fast. Without automated waitlists, you're either turning away interested families or manually playing phone tag when spots open.

Sibling and Multi-Session Discounts That Apply Automatically

Most camps offer discounts: register early, sign up for multiple sessions, have multiple kids. These discounts should apply automatically based on rules you set, not require manual calculation or parent requests.

If parents have to email you asking "did my sibling discount apply?" or you're manually adjusting invoices for multi-session registrations, the software isn't doing its job.

What's Usually Marketing Fluff

"AI-Powered" Anything

Registration software doesn't need artificial intelligence. It needs to collect information, process payments, and organize data. When a vendor emphasizes AI, ask what problem it actually solves.

Hundreds of Integrations

You probably need 2-3 integrations: payment processing, maybe your email marketing tool, maybe your accounting software. "500+ integrations" is meaningless if the ones you need don't work well.

Complex Analytics Dashboards

You need to know: how many campers, what sessions, who paid, who's on waitlists. That's basic reporting. If a vendor is selling you on "advanced analytics" and "actionable insights," they're probably distracting from core functionality.

Mobile Apps for Parents

Nice to have, but not essential. A well-designed mobile-responsive website works fine. A dedicated app is often more complexity than value.

The Parent Experience Test

Before choosing software, test the registration flow yourself. Better yet, have someone unfamiliar with your camp test it. Ask:

• Can they figure out which session to register for without calling you?
• Is pricing clear before they start?
• Can they complete registration in one sitting, or do they have to come back?
• What happens if they make a mistake halfway through?
• Is the mobile experience usable?

If you're frustrated during the test, parents will be frustrated in real life. And they'll call you about it.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Choosing Based on the Demo

Every software looks great in a demo. The sales rep knows exactly which buttons to click. They're showing you ideal conditions with perfect data.

Ask for a trial period where you set up your actual camp. Add your real sessions, pricing, and forms. Try to break it. That's when you'll see how the software handles edge cases.

Underestimating the Migration

If you're switching from another system (or from spreadsheets), moving existing data is work. Ask:

• Can you import past camper information?
• How does historical data transfer?
• What happens to returning families? Do they have to re-enter everything?

Going Live Too Close to Registration

Don't launch new software the week registration opens. Give yourself at least 4-6 weeks to:

• Set up sessions and pricing
• Configure forms and waivers
• Test the payment flow
• Train anyone else who needs to use it
• Run a few test registrations

The worst time to discover software problems is when parents are trying to give you money.

What Good Registration Looks Like

When your software is working well:

• Registration opens and you watch enrollments come in, not fires to put out
• Parents complete registration without calling you
• Payments match registrations automatically
• Waitlists manage themselves
• You know exactly who's registered for what, with complete forms, at any moment

You stop dreading registration season and start focusing on running a great camp.

The Bottom Line

Camp registration software should make your life easier, not add complexity in exchange for features you'll never use. Focus on the basics: reliable registration, integrated payments, form collection that doesn't require chasing, and waitlists that work.

Don't be impressed by feature lists. Be impressed by software that handles the reality of 150 parents trying to register their kids for your most popular session at the same time.

Test it yourself. Trust your frustrations. And give yourself time to implement properly.