Connect to Vrbo API - Exporting new listings

The Hostaway software allows you to create new listings on Vrbo by automatic export. Vrbo will connect your current listings to these newly created listings if you have them. This way you can have your new properties listed on Vrbo quicker than when you do this manually.

Watch the video below to learn how to set up and connect your Vrbo account with Hostaway.

Synchronization with Vrbo allows you to manage your listings, reservations, and availability seamlessly across platforms. We'll guide you step by step to make sure your connection is smooth and efficient.

Important

• Since you are using Hostaway, you can connect to Vrbo API no matter your location or the number of listings you have. You can apply for API integration
• API integration allows you to sync every content detail, amenities, fees, and taxes
• If you need to adjust any content information you can do it manually on Hostaway
• Vrbo booking lead time under Listings > Additional Info. In Hostaway you can select how many days in advance you require to receive a booking from Vrbo. However, please note that Vrbo does not accept same-day bookings, so even if you select ‘0’ in Hostaway, the lead time will be 1 day
• Complete the below steps from 1 to 4
• Once you complete the steps, have a signed content API contract with Vrbo and get in touch with a Vrbo pre-implementation specialist. Do not contact Vrbo before Hostaway validates your setup and you have exported the listings
• Currency. Vrbo supports 6 different currencies such as USD, CAD, EUR, GBP, AUD and NZD. When choosing the currency in which you want to publish your listings on Vrbo, you must take into account that the currency must match the location of your Vrbo account, in particular the Vrbo brand. For example, Vrbo US only supports USD and CAD. If you want to use EUR, you would need to use a European brand such as Vrbo UK, IT or ES (in Europe a VAT ID is required).
• Multiple Vrbo Accounts
• If you used a channel manager and would like to import Vrbo reservations

Note

It is important to review and complete the steps below, inform us that you have done it so we can enable the connection for Vrbo, otherwise Vrbo implementation specialist will not be able to start the integration project. Find more information from Vrbo on How to integrate with property management software.

Enroll Listings In Vrbo's 20% New Listing Promotion

When adding a new listing to Vrbo, Vrbo recommends setting a 20% discount for the first 3 reservations to drive demand and get some reviews on the board.

You can do this all directly in the Hostaway Dashboard by following the next steps:

1. Go to the Channel Manager module in the Hostaway Dashboard
2. Select the Channels tab at the top right
3. Beside Vrbo, select Configure
4. Beside the Vrbo listing click on Export Listings
5. In the pop-up (shown below), check the box Add this listing to the New listing promotion
6. Confirm, and you're done!

Step 1. Set up the Payment Provider

Make sure that you have a Stripe or Braintree account connected with Hostaway before the integration. Once the integration is completed you will be able to charge your guest directly via Stripe/Braintree on Hostaway. Vrbo will not take payments for you. For more information on Payment Providers.

Step 2. Set up Auto Payments for Vrbo

Use Auto payments to set up the payment automatically, so you will not have to process it manually. Once set up, it will only apply to new reservations.

Step 3. Get ready for Content Export

In your Hostaway Dashboard, update all the listings by menu Listings > Edit button per listing and provide as much information as possible. Specifically:

• Basic information tab
• Correct and full address details of the listing
• Make sure bed settings are correct
• Financial Settings (update taxes for the listing)
• Prices & fees - refundable damage deposit
• Under "Additional info" the Check-out, check-in start, check-in end time, and square meters
• The Channel-specific: title, headline, description and upload a Vrbo rentals agreement PDF
• The listing language field and description must match the property locale language used in Vrbo, if you're exporting listing data to Abritel, for example, the language setting must be French and the content description must be in French so Vrbo/Abritel can approve the content.
• In Channel specific the Property Name must be between 20 and 30 characters, Headline should be between 20 and 00 characters and the Property Description must be 400 characters or more.
  • The total character count and content consists of Property description + House rules from the 'Additional Info' tab since these two fields are exported together in one listing description to Vrbo
  • Vrbo Property description plus House rules should not exceed a maximum of 10.000 characters combined.
• Handle Payment By Invoice Or At Location > Select if you process the payments by credit card or send an invoice manually to guests with payment instructions. When you select Handle Payment By Invoice Or At Location "Yes", you will need to manually send invoices to the guest to pay by bank or cash on arrival. When you select "No", Vrbo will send CC details by Hostaway to your Stripe account to charge the guest
• Add the contact person's information
• Add all the amenities that exist in the Amenities tab
• In Financial Settings > Vrbo host channel fee > Add the percentage Vrbo charges per reservation. This can then be used in Financial Reporting with the field HostChannelFee. Please note that it will only calculate for newly received reservations after this value has been updated (read Step 7)
• Add in the Minimum Age Rule by going to Channel Manager > Channels > Configure Vrbo > Settings. Add in the minimum age of the renter and click on Save
  
  

Important

• Set up taxes for Vrbo before the integration is completed
• Avoid any duplicate photos in the listing
• Vrbo supports an unlimited number of photos for each listing, which means you can upload as many photos as you want in the Hostaway Dashboard and they will be displayed accordingly in the channel.

Vrbo Listing Export and Photo Guidelines

When exporting your listing to Vrbo, it's important to follow Vrbo's listing photos-specific guidelines to ensure everything syncs correctly. Here’s what you need to know:

Vrbo Photo Guidelines

• You should always refer to Vrbo's Photo Guidelines when exporting your listing photos. You can find these guidelines here: Vrbo Photo Guidelines
• If any of your photos do not meet Vrbo’s standards, the entire export will be rejected
• It is essential to review the guidelines and ensure your photos comply with attempting an export.

Vrbo Export Errors & Audit Report

• If there is an issue with your listing export, Vrbo will generate an audit report. This report will help identify what went wrong during the export process
• If you notice that your photos or listing details are not syncing properly, always check for an audit report. If you haven’t received one, or if you're unsure whether one exists, please contact Vrbo directly to confirm
• The Hostaway support team may request the audit report from you to identify any errors detected by Vrbo. This step is crucial for diagnosing issues and confirming whether any changes are required to complete the export process

Step 4. Set your listing export ready for Vrbo

Once you completed steps one to three please submit a request with your Hostaway email address to enable the Vrbo Export option and validate your setup. Once the feature is enabled please follow the next steps to export the listings to Vrbo:

1. Go to your Hostaway Dashboard > Channel manager
2. Under the Channels tab > Vrbo > Configure
3. Export your listings

Do not contact Vrbo before Hostaway validates your setup and you have exported the listings.

Step 5. Sign the Onboarding Contract Form from Vrbo

Vrbo Contract

Once you export the listings from Hostaway, the listings will be enabled for Vrbo and the implementation specialist will be able to access these during the signup process.

Notes

• You need to have a signed content API contract with Vrbo and be in touch with a Vrbo pre-implementation specialist
• During the signup process, you will need a Hostaway Account ID (known as advertiser ID) - you can find it in Hostaway Dashboard > Settings > Account ID
• Make sure you mention the channel management software Hostaway
• During Vrbo SSO, be sure to select the country (or region) before you start. It can be misleading because it may seem that you are selecting the language, when in fact you are also selecting the local Vrbo office that will handle the account.
  
  

Step 6. Connect your Hostaway > Vrbo Proxy email address

Once your account has been created in Vrbo:

• Copy Vrbo inquiry email: It can be found in Channel Manager > Channels > Configure Vrbo > Settings. Copy it and add it as a secondary email address in your Vrbo account
• After this, it may take up to 24 hours before the listing is showing on Vrbo

Attention

When you export your listing to Vrbo, it creates an XML connection between Hostaway and Vrbo software. From this moment forward, the changes you need for your property details, rates, and communication need to be handled by your Hostaway software.

The Hostaway software supports the very well-working basic configurations for Vrbo however when you are looking for advanced pricing or discount rate plan options to set up in Vrbo it is possible the software does not support this yet. When you need an adjustment that is not supported, let us know.

We evaluate if and if so when it is expected to be possible to support this new setting. If you were using the iCal connection and switched to the XML/API connection, please remove the iCal link to avoid getting reservations via iCal.

Time & Settings review

Hostaway aims to have you exporting the highest quality listings to Vrbo in the fastest way possible. However, you as the manager, remain fully responsible for verifying your listings and settings on Vrbo after export at all times.

So, in this case, either the listing is still being exported to Vrbo or it was set as OFF there. The action to set this to ON needs to be done on the Vrbo side. Once it is active you should be able to see the active date as well.

Additional note

If you require registration information for your listings, please make sure to add it in Vrbo once the listing is exported from Hostaway to Vrbo (otherwise the listing will be off in Vrbo).