The odds are that if you are reading this it's because your vacation rental is listed on multiple platforms such as Airbnb, VRBO, and Booking.com and you are looking for a way to sync your calendars and bookings from all platforms. Search no more, you've come to the right place!
Syncing your calendars helps you prevent double bookings and the painful experience of having to inform a guest who has booked he can't stay in the end as your place has already been booked. Since most platforms use the sam iCal calendar format, they can easily be synced with each other. Follow the simple steps below to get your vacation rental in sync!
Part 1: Airbnb <> Booking.com calendar sync
1️⃣ Copy your Airbnb calendar URL
1. Log into your Airbnb account and select Manage listing from your profile (top right)
2. From your Dashboard go to Listings > select the listing you want to sync
3. Go to Pricing and availability > Scroll all the way down to Calendar sync
4. Click Export calendar > copy the calendar URL
2️⃣ Import your Airbnb calendar into Booking.com
1. Log into your Booking.com Dashboard
2. Go to Rates & Availability > Sync calendars
3. Click on the Add calendar connection button
4. In the Copy and paste your calendar link below text box paste your Airbnb calendar URL
5. Give your calendar a name like Airbnb calendar
6. Click Next step
3️⃣ Copy your Booking.com calendar URL
1. Now that you have clicked Next step Booking.com enables you to copy your calendar > click the Copy link button
2. Now go back to your Airbnb Dashboard
4️⃣ Import your Booking.com calendar into Airbnb
1. From your Airbnb Listing go back to Calendar sync and hit Import Calendar
2. Paste your Booking.com calendar URL in the Calendar Address (URL) text box
3. Give your calendar a name like Booking.com calendar
4. Click Import Calendar
From now on, in your Booking.com account, under the Calendar & Pricing > Sync calendar section you should see your Airbnb calendar. The status will show as Activating and once that is completed, the status will change to Okay.
From then on you're sorted out! Your Airbnb and calendar will now sync in bookings from Booking.com and vice versa.
Part 2: Airbnb <> VRBO calendar sync
1️⃣ Copy your Airbnb calendar URL
Repeat the steps as detailed above (part 1, step 1).
2️⃣ Import your Airbnb calendar into VRBO
1. Log into your VRBO Owner Dashboard
2. Go to Calendars > Reservations
3. Click on the Import/Export dropdown button
4. Click Import calendar
5. Give your calendar a name like Airbnb calendar
6. Paste your Airbnb calendar in the Calendar URL text box
7. Make sure you select the Block dates option
8. Click Import calendar
3️⃣ Copy your VRBO calendar URL
1. Click on the Import/Export dropdown button once again
2. Click Export calendar
3. Copy the VRBO calendar URL
4. Now go back to your Airbnb Dashboard
4️⃣ Import your VRBO calendar into Airbnb
Repeat the steps as detailed above (part 1, step 4).
One last step > using manual refresh
iCal calendars do not update immediately. Airbnb, VRBO, and Booking.com calendars usually update each other every few hours. Depending on the frequency at which you receive bookings this may leave room for double bookings. The best way to avoid this from happening is to hit the Update/Refresh button on your Booking.com, Airbnb, VRBO account every time you get a new booking. With this final step, you should be able to avoid double bookings altogether!
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