Channel Integration Requirements and Limitations

This article covers the key requirements and limitations of each channel integration with Hostaway. Understanding these before connecting will help you avoid the most common setup issues and sync problems.

Important: Once any channel is connected, Hostaway becomes the master calendar for that listing. All changes to availability and rates must be made in Hostaway, not directly on the channel.

Airbnb

Before connecting

• Your listing must be active (listed) in Airbnb before importing
• You must be the owner of the Airbnb account — co-host accounts cannot import listings
• One Airbnb listing can only be connected to one Hostaway account
• If your listing uses external calendar import (iCal), it will be removed on connection
• Turn off Airbnb Smart Pricing for all listings before importing — it will conflict with Hostaway pricing
• Remove the Booking Window setting in Airbnb before connecting — you can set it up in Hostaway afterwards
• Ensure your listings have valid license information for your region
• Cross-listing is not supported by Airbnb — set it up directly in Hostaway instead

After connecting — what resets

• Connecting will reset length-of-stay discounts (except weekly and monthly), early bird discounts, last-minute discounts, and guest notes — reconfigure these in Hostaway after connecting
• Calendar rules in Airbnb will also reset — you can set Airbnb rule sets directly in Hostaway
• Guest requirement settings will be reset. Only Airbnb standard requirements and profile photo requirements are preserved. To restore ID verification and recommendation requirements, go to Hostaway → Listings → Edit → Channel Specific → Guest Requirements

Ongoing limitations

• Airbnb custom promotions are not supported — they interfere with the base rate Hostaway sends. Only seasonal rules, special offers, and standard discounts are supported
• Preparation time (blocked nights before/after reservations) can be set in Hostaway under Listings → Channel Specific, but those blocked nights will not appear on the Hostaway calendar and will not sync to other channels
• The extra guest fee is included in the base rate for Airbnb reservations — it will not appear as a separate line in the financial breakdown
• Guest email addresses are not shared by Airbnb. If professional hosting tools are enabled, a proxy email (not the real address) may be received. The best way to collect guest emails is via the Hostaway Online Check-in Form
• Guest address information (country, postal code) is not shared by Airbnb
• For reservations created before the API connection, guest details may not appear — Airbnb does not share historical guest data
• When messaging through Hostaway Inbox for Airbnb reservations that are not confirmed (inquiries included), any contact information or external URLs in the message may cause it to fail
• Maximum of 100 photo deletions per listing per week due to Airbnb API limits
• Airbnb manages reservation payments — Hostaway cannot assist with payout bank account changes. Contact Airbnb support directly for payment issues

Booking.com

Before connecting

• Each room category must have a maximum of one room to sell on Booking.com (unless using the Hostaway multi-unit feature)
• Each room category must have a complete rate plan configured. If using multiple rate plans (Standard, Non-Refundable), all must be standalone — not derived or linked to another plan
• If you have several rooms in one Booking.com property, you must map all listings
• Make sure your calendar is not fully blocked on the Booking.com side before connecting
• One Booking.com listing can only be connected to one Hostaway account

After connecting

• Hostaway imports ongoing and future reservations only — past check-ins cannot be imported
• Only confirmed reservations are imported. Booking.com does not provide credit card details for reservations imported after their initial creation
• Only messages for future reservations are imported — historical messages are not
• Contact details (phone and email) will not be imported due to GDPR rules. Booking.com provides a proxy email, not the guest's real address
• After mapping, Hostaway settings (photos, bed types, fees, content) will not sync automatically — any content changes must be made manually on Booking.com Extranet
• Always check your rates in both calendars (Hostaway and Booking.com Extranet) after connecting

Ongoing limitations

• Restrictions, discounts, and promotions cannot be managed from Hostaway — these must be set directly in Booking.com Extranet
• Self-service requests (guest requests to change check-in/check-out time, bed preferences, extra beds, parking, airport shuttle) are not currently supported by Hostaway. Guests making these requests will need to be handled manually
• Lead time (Minimum Advance Reservation) is only exported once from Hostaway on initial connection. All subsequent changes must be made directly in Booking.com Extranet, per rate plan
• Rate plans that show as "Non-XML" or "Not Mapped" in Booking.com Extranet are not connected to Hostaway. They must be deleted and recreated as standalone rate plans
• Any errors or discrepancies on the Booking.com side should be reported directly to Booking.com support

Vrbo

Before connecting

• No direct property import — unlike Airbnb, Vrbo does not support automatic transfer of listings. Listings must first be created manually in Hostaway, then exported to Vrbo
• Each Vrbo account requires a unique Hostaway Advertiser ID — one Vrbo account per Advertiser ID
• A payment processor (e.g. Stripe) must be configured in Hostaway before connecting, as Vrbo no longer handles guest payments after integration
• The integration process is managed by Vrbo and typically takes several days to a week to complete
• During setup, carefully select which listings to integrate — any listings not matched during integration will be permanently archived in Vrbo and cannot be recovered

After connecting

• Pre-integration reservations (made on Vrbo before connecting Hostaway) do not sync automatically. These must either be managed entirely in Vrbo, or manually recreated as direct reservations in Hostaway
• Once connected, do not use Vrbo's Inbox, Calendar, Reservations, or Rates tools for integrated listings — Hostaway is the master system
• All guest payments post-integration are handled by your Hostaway-connected payment processor

Ongoing limitations

• Room changes or cancellation requests with penalty fees are not compatible with the channel manager
• If a listing is not matched during integration, it will be automatically archived in Vrbo — careful review during setup is essential
• Disconnecting Hostaway from Vrbo stops synchronization but does not affect your Vrbo account or its data

Expedia

Before connecting

• Your inventory must consist of one listing per room type — units cannot be individually mapped
• Only standalone ("parent") rate plans can be synced. Derived or package rate plans cannot be synced from Hostaway due to Expedia's limitations
• No listing content is exported to Expedia — fees, taxes, and content must be updated manually in Expedia Partner Central and must match the settings in Hostaway
• On initial connection, only reservations made within the last 30 days with future check-ins are imported. Any missing reservations must be added as direct bookings in Hostaway to avoid double bookings
• Room changes or cancellation requests with penalty fees are not compatible with the channel manager

Ongoing limitations

• The maximum Length of Stay is 27 nights — Hostaway will always push 27 nights as the cap, regardless of what is set in your calendar
• Minimum stay is defined at the rate plan level in Expedia — depending on what is configured there, minimum stay updates from Hostaway may not apply
• Expedia does not sync individual financial fields (taxes, base rate, additional fees) — only the total guest payment is synced. Use custom financial formulas in Hostaway to calculate non-reported fields
• If you change your room mapping in Expedia after connecting, you will need to remap the listing in Hostaway
• Booking notifications must be set to Expedia QuickConnect System (e-notification) as primary in your Expedia account — if not configured correctly, bookings may not flow into Hostaway

Google Vacation Rentals

Requirements

• Google Vacation Rentals only works if connected to a published Hostaway Booking Engine — it cannot be connected without one
• Each listing must have at least 8 images, with a minimum resolution of 1024 x 683 pixels
• DNS settings must point to the Booking Engine domain or subdomain

Logo and company name requirements

• Logo must be square, PNG format, minimum 72 x 72 pixels, with a transparent or non-white background, and no more than three letters
• Company name must be user-friendly and mostly text (e.g. "Blue Lake Cabins", not "shortTermRentalzHouston"), no more than one capital letter per word (LLC and LTD are invalid; Llc and Ltd are valid)
• Google must approve your brand name and logo — this can take up to 2 weeks

Ongoing limitations

• Listing content (photos, descriptions) can take up to 2 weeks to update on Google — pricing and availability sync immediately
• Google does not respect the photo order set in Hostaway
• Google does not accept the following property types: Guesthouse, Boutique hotel, Hostel, Heritage hotel (India), Hotel
• Guests find listings on Google and are redirected to your Booking Engine to complete the reservation — Google Vacation Rentals is a discovery channel, not a direct booking platform