Direct booking website for a B&B or guesthouse

For many small properties, Booking.com and Airbnb bring in most reservations, and their commission is one of the biggest costs. A website of your own doesn't replace the platforms, but it can turn returning guests and people who search for you on Google into direct bookings. Here's what the site needs, how it connects to the platforms' calendars, and what the rules now allow.

What a platform booking costs you

• Airbnb is moving all home hosts to a host-only fee. Most hosts pay 15.5% of the booking, and the fee is mandatory for traditional hospitality listings and hosts who use property management software. Under the old split-fee model, the host paid 3% and the guest paid the rest.
• Booking.com doesn't publish a single rate. The percentage is set in each property's contract; industry guides put it between 10% and 25%, averaging around 15%. Visibility programmes and Genius discounts add to that.

On a $150 room, 15% is $22.50 a night. Over a full season, the difference between platform and direct bookings can pay for the website.

Can you charge less on your site than on Booking.com?

In the European Union, yes. For years, Booking.com required "parity": a property couldn't offer a lower price on its own website than on Booking.com.

Two decisions changed that:

• The Digital Markets Act. On 13 May 2024, the European Commission designated Booking.com a gatekeeper, with six months to comply. Article 5(3) of the act bars gatekeepers from preventing businesses from offering the same services at different prices or conditions through their own sales channels.
• The EU Court of Justice. On 19 September 2024, in Case C-264/23, the Court found that neither wide nor narrow parity clauses are objectively necessary for Booking.com's service.

In the EU, then, you can offer a lower rate, breakfast included or more flexible cancellation on your own site, as a concrete reason to book direct. Outside the EU, check your contract: rate parity clauses may still apply.

What a guesthouse website needs

• A page for each room, with real photos, how many guests it sleeps, beds, bathroom and amenities.
• Rates by season, including what's in the price (breakfast, taxes) and any minimum stay.
• Availability, in a calendar or in the booking form, so guests don't wait for a reply to find out whether you have space.
• Booking in a few steps, with a deposit paid on the spot or clear next steps.
• The cancellation and refund policy, shown before payment.
• Location and directions: a map, distances to nearby sights, parking, winter access.
• Things to do nearby, on their own pages. This is where people searching for a place to stay near something specific find you.
• Reviews, linked to your Google profile.
• A phone number and messaging, easy to tap on a phone, for guests who want to ask first.

Request form, booking engine or channel manager?

How to avoid double bookings

Calendars can be linked with iCal, a format Airbnb and many other platforms and booking engines accept. Each calendar exports a link, and the others import it.

The limit is speed: Airbnb refreshes imported calendars every three hours. Between two refreshes, the same room can be booked on two channels. With one or two units the risk is small; with several rooms, a channel manager connected directly to the platforms is the safe option.

How guests find your website

• Your Google Business Profile. For a guesthouse, most visits start here. A link to your site and recent reviews matter more than anything else; the full guide is in the Google Business Profile guide.
• Google's free booking links. Google shows free links to booking on your own site next to the platforms' prices in its hotel results, through Hotel Center. Many booking engines and channel managers set this up for you.
• Returning guests. A card in the room, or a message after the stay sent with the guest's consent, telling them they can book direct next time.
• Pages about the area. Trails, wineries, ski slopes, events: things people search for before they search for a place to stay.

Payments, taxes and accessibility

Deposits can be taken by card through a payment processor, which handles the card data, or by bank transfer, with the booking confirmed once the money arrives. Lodging taxes are set by states and cities in the US and by local authorities elsewhere, so check what you have to collect on direct bookings, which the platforms may have collected for you until now. In the US, the Department of Justice's guidance says the ADA applies to the websites of businesses open to the public, so the booking flow should work with a keyboard and a screen reader.

We build business websites for local businesses, guesthouses included, and when a booking form or engine with payments is needed, we build it as a web app.