Booking.com and Bookster Connectivity Partners

As part of Bookster services to manage bookings and manage guests' needs, Bookster also focuses on attracting bookings for your holiday home. 

Part of this includes using the Bookster Channel Manager, which incorporates the global giant Booking.com.

Booking.com and Bookster holiday rental software

In 2017, we announced that Bookster PMS had achieved the status of Premier Partner of Booking.com.

This channel manager partnership reflects the commitment that Bookster has shown within the industry and the importance we place on the growth of profitable revenue for our clients. 

In 2019 we developed the connection further to automatically synchronise even more of the Property Listing information. 

The same year we developed Booking.com Guest Reviews, providing the opportunity to view and write reviews in the Bookster software, without the need to log back into Booking.com.

In 2023 we also added Booking.com Guest Messaging, making it easier for property owners to read and reply to guests' messages without leaving Bookster.

What is Booking.com

Starting in 1996 in the Netherlands, it has grown enormously over the years to be one of the largest accommodation websites on the planet.

Booking.com's reputation is excellent, which is why more than 1 million people recently said they'd recommend Booking.com to their family and friends.

Importantly, this strength and reputation in the market mean it drives a significant amount of revenue for holiday rentals across the world. 

Booking.com attract both leisure travellers and business travellers which opens the opportunities for holiday rental agencies looking to attract different markets during the year.

It is particularly strong at filling gaps in the shoulder periods, with an extensive number of tools available to help achieve that and to increase the bookings receive.  

Booking.com connectivity in the Bookster Channel Manager

With any paid Bookster account, you can easily synchronise your properties with Booking.com or any of our other great Channels within Bookster.

Your support team is on hand to answer any questions on each Channel and will help you through this process. 

Save time with Bookster PMS and Booking.com

Using the Channel Manager to connect to Booking.com provides a number of time-saving features for your vacation property business: 

• Price synchronising:
  Automatic updates! Bookster will automatically update the rates on Booking.com whenever you make rate changes in the Bookster holiday rentals software.
  This is done immediately and covers all Channels in the Bookster Channel Manager in addition to your own website.
• Availability synchronising:
  No more double bookings!
  Whenever you receive any bookings or cancellations from any Channel, or you make a booking directly in the property management software, your availability will be instantly updated on all Channels, including your own website and Booking.com.
• Bookings details:
  No more copy and paste!
  Bookster will pull all the booking details into Bookster PMS so you can view all the booking and guest information in one place. 
• Payments:
  As part of your settings with Booking.com, you can choose if you would like Booking.com to take payments on your behalf, or if you would like to make the payments through Bookster with your Payment Gateway.
  Each has its own benefits, so this decision is down to your own business needs. 

Booking.com Guest Messages

You can read and reply to Booking.com Guest Messages about their bookings in your Bookster account.

• Easy-to-use! View guests images, messages, and reply without leaving Bookster
• Provide a great guest experience: Quickly reply to guest messages
• Rank higher: Booking.com rewards responsive Property Managers.

When Booking.com notify you of a new message, go to your guest's booking, and you'll find their messages there.

Booking.com Reviews update

All clients can see and respond to reviews left on Booking.com directly through the Bookster property management system.

Simply enter into the property listing dashboard, to view the review dashboard:

• View all Booking.com reviews
• View the property review score
• Filter by with or without a reply 
• Add your replies directly in Bookster.

How will your self-catering business benefit?

Using this improved automation will spare up valuable time that your team can spend on what's important to you, like increasing your summer revenue or attracting business travellers.

The enhanced connection means that you don't need to update your property data in both Bookster and Booking.com as we will automatically synchronise even more of your self-catering property data.  

Property data synchronised with Booking.com

As a result of this change, your property data which will now be synchronised is:

• Availability
• Rates
• Photos
• Photo tags
• Bookings
• Payment cards accepted
• Facilities section in Property listing details (All checkboxes)
• Things to do nearby
• Parking
• Views
• Capacity
• Floor space
• Children allowance
• Crib (cots)
• Review responses

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Important Booking.com sync information

• You can turn on your full property syncronisation in two clicks, which will update the data held in Booking.com with the data from Bookster.
  
  
• Enabling it will automatically turn it on for all your properties - no need for individually managing each property.
  
  
• For even better results, there are new fields held in Property Listing Details (Facilities, Suitability) and Location (Views, Parking, Things to do nearby) which can also be completed for your properties before turning on the property synchronisation. 

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Not all Channel Managers are the same

The quality of Channel Manager connections can vary greatly, and the data which is synchronised with a channel depends on the skills and resources of the company. 

Bookster has been building a strong connection with Booking.com since 2017, and continuously works to develop this 2-way XML connection.

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Bookster has created a strong partnership with Booking.com, and continues to build enhancements to the connection for the best results for your self-catering business.