Overview

Test Mode lets you book your own trip and walk through the full checkout exactly as a traveler would — without any real charges. SquadTrip swaps in Stripe test keys so you can pay with a test card, see the confirmation, and check your payment plan setup before going live. Test Mode auto-disables after 24 hours, and every test booking is cancelled and refunded when it ends.

Getting to Test Mode

From your Dashboard, open the trip in the Trip Builder
Go to the final step, Preview & Publish
Find the "Test Your Trip's Checkout" card and click "Enable Test Mode"

Preview and Publish page showing the Test Your Trip's Checkout card with an Enable Test Mode button

Turning On Test Mode

Clicking "Enable Test Mode" opens a confirmation showing exactly what will happen:

We'll switch to Stripe test keys — no real money moves
You book your own trip with a test card
Disable when done — we clean up everything

The panel also spells out what to expect: your trip accepts test payments only, real travelers cannot book while Test Mode is active, it auto-disables after 24 hours, and all test bookings are cancelled and refunded when Test Mode ends. Click "Enable Test Mode" to confirm.

Enable Test Mode confirmation showing how it works, what happens, and the Stripe test card 4111 1111 1111 1111

Testing Your Checkout

With Test Mode on, open your trip page and book it like a traveler. At payment, use Stripe's test card:

Field	Value
Card number	`4111 1111 1111 1111`
Expiry	Any future date
CVC	Any 3 digits
ZIP	Any 5 digits

Complete checkout to confirm your packages, add-ons, payment plan, and confirmation emails all work the way you expect.

What's Paused While Test Mode Is Active

While Test Mode is on, a red banner stays at the top of your dashboard: "TEST MODE ACTIVE — Real bookings are paused." It shows a live countdown ("Auto-disables in Xh Ym") and buttons to "View Guide" or "Disable Test Mode".

Red TEST MODE ACTIVE banner reading Real bookings are paused with an auto-disable countdown and Disable Test Mode button

During Test Mode:

Real travelers can't book — your trip is using test keys, so the checkout only accepts test payments
Refunds and cancellations on real bookings are blocked — you'll be asked to disable Test Mode first
Test bookings are tracked separately so they can be cleaned up automatically

Turning Off Test Mode

Click "Disable Test Mode" any time. SquadTrip then restores your real payment settings, cancels and refunds every test booking, and unpublishes the trip so you can do a final review. When you're ready for real travelers, hit Publish again on the Preview & Publish page.

If you forget, Test Mode auto-disables after 24 hours and runs the same cleanup automatically.

Important Notes

Test Mode lasts 24 hours, then auto-reverts — you don't have to remember to turn it off
Disabling Test Mode (manually or automatically) unpublishes your trip; re-publish when you're ready to accept real bookings
All test bookings are cancelled and refunded when Test Mode ends — they won't appear in your real numbers
Travelers never see Test Mode; to them the trip simply isn't accepting bookings while it's active
Your auto-billing keeps using your real Stripe keys behind the scenes, so existing real payment plans are never charged on test keys

Troubleshooting

Problem	Solution
Real travelers say they can't book	Test Mode is probably still active (real bookings are paused). Disable Test Mode, then re-publish the trip.
"Please disable test mode before processing refunds or cancellations on real bookings"	You tried to refund or cancel a real booking while Test Mode is on. Disable Test Mode first, then process the refund or cancellation.
My trip got unpublished	Disabling Test Mode (or the 24-hour auto-revert) unpublishes the trip by design. Click Publish on the Preview & Publish page to go live again.
My test booking is still showing	Test bookings are cancelled and refunded when Test Mode ends. Give the cleanup a moment, then refresh your Trip Data.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Will Test Mode charge a real card or affect my payouts? A: No. Test Mode swaps in Stripe test keys, so no real money moves. Use the test card 4111 1111 1111 1111 with any future expiry, any CVC, and any ZIP. Every test booking is cancelled and refunded automatically when Test Mode ends.

Q: How long does Test Mode stay on? A: Test Mode lasts 24 hours and then auto-disables, running the same cleanup as a manual disable. You can also turn it off any time from the red banner or the Preview & Publish page by clicking "Disable Test Mode."

Q: Can travelers still book while I'm testing? A: No. While Test Mode is active your trip uses test keys, so real travelers can't book — a red "TEST MODE ACTIVE — Real bookings are paused" banner reminds you. Disable Test Mode and re-publish when you're ready for real bookings.

Q: Why can't I refund or cancel a booking during Test Mode? A: Refunds and cancellations on real bookings are blocked while Test Mode is active to protect real customer data. Disable Test Mode first, then process the refund or cancellation as usual. Test bookings can always be cleaned up — that happens automatically when Test Mode ends.

Q: Do I need to re-publish my trip after testing? A: Yes. Disabling Test Mode (or the 24-hour auto-revert) unpublishes your trip so you can do a final review. When everything looks right, click Publish on the Preview & Publish page to start accepting real bookings.