Online booking for dance studios
A dance studio is two businesses sharing a floor: classes on a timetable, and empty hours you would rather sell than leave empty.
An event type per class, capped by floor space, and a separate hourly studio-hire event type for the hours between them. Both paid online, both on the same page.
The empty hours are the margin#
Classes pay the rent and studio hire is profit, but only if someone can book Tuesday at 14:00 without messaging you and waiting for a reply. By the time you answer, they have booked somewhere else.
Meanwhile classes suffer the opposite problem: a beginners’ class that is meant to hold twelve has eighteen reservations and nine people, because nothing was paid and nobody was counted.
The setup to start from#
Two businesses in one diary: classes by level on a weekly timetable, and studio hire by the hour when no class is running.
| Duration | 60 or 90 minutes for a class, hourly for studio hire |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 2 hours |
| Buffer | 15 minutes between bookings |
| Location | In person |
| Payment | Paid online for both |
| Cancellation policy | Full refund 24 hours before for hire, 12 for a class |
Worth asking on the booking form: Which level? · Have you danced this style before? · Shoe size, if you need to borrow
Business Box books one party per time slot, so several customers cannot sign up for the same class individually — the first booking takes the session. It fits private sessions, trials and one-to-one teaching today. See what that means for group classes. One booking, one slot
Classes and hire, side by side#
Studio hire is the part that fits well: one hourly event type per room, wide hours and a short minimum notice, so somebody can book on their way over.
Business Box books one party per time slot, so a dozen dancers cannot each book the same class — the first booking takes it. Private lessons, auditions and studio hire work; a drop-in timetable does not. One booking, one slot
Both appear on your public page, and someone arriving from Instagram sees the whole offer at once.
Put the level in the name#
"Beginner hip hop" and "Intermediate hip hop" as separate event types saves the conversation where someone turns up to the wrong class. It also gives each one its own description, where you can say what to wear and whether shoes can be borrowed.
More than one room#
One event type per room, so each can be booked independently and a booking in Studio A never blocks Studio B. Name them as the customer would: "Studio A (mirrors, 40m²)".
Getting started#
- Sign in at app.marubox.jp with Google or Microsoft. There is no card and no trial clock.
- Create an event type with the settings above. Event types explained
- Connect your calendar so your studio floor never gets double booked. Google · Outlook
- Set your real hours, and close Japanese public holidays in one tick. Availability
- Put the link in your bio, or the widget on your site. Adding it to your website
Common questions
Can I take drop-in class bookings?
Not as several people booking the same class — one booking takes the slot. Studio hire, private lessons and one-to-one coaching work well; a drop-in timetable does not.
How do I handle two or three studios?
One event type per room. Each is booked independently, so a booking in one never blocks another, and each can carry its own price.
Can I close for Obon and New Year without deleting everything?
Yes — add date overrides for those dates in your availability schedule and leave them with no hours. Japanese public holidays can be closed automatically with a single tick.
Set this up in about ten minutes
Business Box is free for as long as you like, with no card required — booking pages, Google and Outlook calendar sync, availability, Japanese public holidays and the website widget. Taking card payment for bookings is ¥1,200 a month, tax included, with no commission on what you sell.
Last reviewed 28 September 2026.