Learn how reservation cancellations work for Vrbo bookings, where cancellations must be managed, and what to review before canceling a reservation.
⚠️ Important Note on Imported and Pre-Integration Reservations
- Reservations created before connecting your Vrbo integration (imported reservations) cannot be cancelled or modified through the Hostaway dashboard (unless the reservation was previously connected to another PMS). If a cancellation is required for these bookings, you must process it directly within the Vrbo extranet.
- Only reservations created after the API integration is fully active can be successfully cancelled and synchronised automatically from Hostaway to Vrbo
When to cancel a Vrbo Reservation?
When you are connected to Vrbo by API, you might occasionally need to cancel a guest reservation. While this is not recommended to be used often in your Hostaway account, you can find this function under the reservations detailed page in the top right corner.
When you click on the cancellation button, a pop-up will be displayed to provide a reason for being cancelled:
Once the cancellation has been confirmed in your Hostaway dashboard, it will automatically be translated as canceled in Vrbo. This process can take a few hours until the next Vrbo sync takes place.
The most common reasons are
- Owner - The property is unavailable and can not be rebooked in another unit. Often due to last-moment maintenance or in some cases a booking mistake
- Owner - The rate was incorrect. Only to use when the day rates by accident were set too low or financial details were missing
- Traveler - not able to make travel arrangements. Often used when the Guest doesn't comply with house rules or can not accommodate other needs requested for the booking
- Traveler - minimum age rule. When the Guest is underage or under the age you have set as a minimum to allow for booking
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Traveler - no payment received. Guests where the payment for the reservations repeatedly failed or could not be completed
Guest Initiated Cancellation Process
Guest requests cancellation via the Vrbo Dashboard
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The Host receives a notification/message about the request
- There is no "Approve" button or direct action in the message
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The Host must manually cancel the reservation in the Hostaway Dashboard
Go to the reservation details in Hostaway
In the upper right corner, click on the red button "Cancel reservation"
Select "Traveler" as the reason for cancellation (this is crucial to avoid Vrbo penalties)
- Confirm the cancellation
Select the reservation > Scroll down > Payments > Invoices & charges > Refund
We send an update to Vrbo, or Vrbo fetches it via the API
The guest receives an email confirming the cancellation
Understanding Imported vs. Post-Integration Reservations
When managing cancellations, it is crucial to identify how and when the reservation was created in Hostaway, as this determines whether the cancellation will synchronize back to Vrbo:
1. API-Connected Reservations (Post-Integration)
- What they are: Bookings made by guests after your Hostaway Vrbo API connection was fully established and active.
- Cancellation Process: Can be processed directly within Hostaway. The status change will automatically sync to Vrbo via the API within a few hours.
2. Imported Reservations (Pre-Integration / CSV)
- What they are: Older reservations created in Vrbo before completing your Hostaway integration that were brought into the system via CSV import or automatic initial sync.
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Cancellation Process: Must be cancelled directly on Vrbo.
- Why? These bookings remain fully managed by Vrbo's system. Attempting to cancel them in Hostaway will change the status in Hostaway but will not push the update to Vrbo, leaving the booking active on the channel.
- Recommendation: If you need to manually remove an imported reservation block from your Hostaway calendar after cancelling it on Vrbo, please contact the Hostaway Support Team for assistance (do not attempt to delete active API listings in Godmode).
3. Basic iCal Connections (Non-API)
- What they are: Listings synchronized via a basic iCal link instead of the full API connection.
- Cancellation Process: iCal feeds do not support automatic cancellation sync. You must cancel the booking directly on Vrbo. Once cancelled on Vrbo, you will need to manually remove the booking block in Hostaway to reopen your calendar dates.
- To avoid manual calendar management and sync delays, we highly recommend upgrading to the official Vrbo API integration.
Avoiding Penalties for Cancellations
- When canceling a reservation, be sure to select 'Traveler' as the reason to avoid any repercussions or penalties from Vrbo
- Canceling reservations may impact your Vrbo property rating and could potentially cause "penalties" on your account. When you are not sure if you can cancel the reservation from your end, please contact your Vrbo Account Manager to ask for advice