How far in the future do you open your calendar?
11-01-2021
07:39 PM

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11-01-2021
07:39 PM
How far in the future do you open your calendar?
Curious.
Last year we opened a year in advance. With COVID cancellations it was a terrible idea because dates were booked and people waffled back and forth on whether they could come/cancelled at the last minute/wanted to rebook at an old rate etc. We are also steadily increasing our nightly rate so this year we are doing 6 months out with the hope of getting to a financial goal at year's end.
What do you see as a best practice? I have had a few people request dates that are not yet available (and will ultimately cost more per night...)
45 Replies 45
11-01-2021
10:38 PM

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11-01-2021
10:38 PM
I allways use a 3 months booking window, but i guess most hosts are using a larger booking window.
12-01-2021
12:24 AM

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12-01-2021
12:24 AM
The most successful/in demand listings that are similar to ours open up 3 months in advance. I would look at the listings in your area to get a sense of what might be appropriate. You can usually tell if you go to reserve a date and see what's available.
12-01-2021
01:17 AM

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12-01-2021
01:17 AM
@Laura2592 I open my calendar with the 'seasons.' Right now I'm focused on Now - Spring. In a couple of months, I will open the busy summer season in one fell swoop. Once summer starts booking and dates/events are set, I will start thinking about the fall. And so on . . .
12-01-2021
02:52 AM

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12-01-2021
02:52 AM
I've always done a 3 month window. For one thing, my guests seem to book a month or 3 weeks in advance, not much more than that. And I never wanted to be chained to having to be around for some booking 6 months or more down the road, in case I decided to go somewhere myself.
It also seems like more possibility of guests cancelling if they book way far ahead, because so many unforeseen things can happen in peoples' lives that change their plans.
I can see where it would make sense for hosts to have their calendars open a year out if they live somewhere there is a major event that guests tend to plan and book for far ahead so they are assured of finding accomodation at a reasonable price.
12-01-2021
03:25 AM

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12-01-2021
03:25 AM
I used to alternate between a 9 month window or 12 month window. Since I used to host a lot of exchange students, I would usually start to get inquiries about the spring semester (March~June) in September of the previous year (usually no more than 4~5) and have a confirmed booking no later than mid January, then for the fall semester (September~December) inquiries would start in April and I'd have a confirmed booking by mid-July. For gaps between the long-term stays, open dates within a 3 month window would have a min-stay of 3 nights, for anything further out I'd increase the nightly rate to discourage bookings and adjust to my normal rates at a later date. 😀
12-01-2021
03:36 AM

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12-01-2021
03:36 AM
For us in the UK, since the pandemic started there is a bigger problem than "will the guest still want to come". It's "will I still want to, or be in a position to, host". If I ever reactivate my listing, I am going to be extremely cautious, and start with a very short window, probably a month or 6 weeks.
12-01-2021
04:02 AM

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12-01-2021
04:02 AM
I have the booking window for my guesthouse set at three months. We get some early planners, but most bookings occur within 90 days of arrival. I was thinking about changing to six months as part of testing the new strict 30-day cancellation policy, but our pool of eligible guests is very small since currently we can host only guests who don't need to quarantine.
Don't just believe what I say, check the Airbnb Help Center
12-01-2021
04:06 AM

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12-01-2021
04:06 AM
6 months in the basement guest suite, 1 year in the vacation homes— bc people frequently want to book their next year’s vacation when checking out and that’s our preferred guest. (But 2021 will be our final year so now the window is shrinking.)
12-01-2021
01:26 PM

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12-01-2021
01:26 PM
12-01-2021
03:39 PM

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12-01-2021
06:04 PM

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12-01-2021
04:21 AM

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12-01-2021
04:21 AM
@Laura2592 A year out, always. I get very few bookings that are close to the travel date. July is mostly gone by the end of January. I raise my prices in September for the next season.
12-01-2021
03:19 PM

Anonymous
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12-01-2021
03:19 PM
@Laura2592 Pre-Corona, 6 to 10 weeks. Mostly just because I needed that much flexibility for my own schedule, to take up work projects that might leave me without the spare time to commit to hosting duties. But for people traveling within Europe, Berlin is not a destination that demands much advance planning, and I seldom get people coming for an important fixed-date event such as a wedding or Beyonce concert.
Whenever the pandemic starts truly winding down, if I were to resume hosting I think I'd start with an even shorter opening frame. Having any kind of plan for even a month out has come to feel hilariously futile now, and after all these cycles of lockdown/relax/lockdown it'll be hard to shake that mentality.
12-01-2021
04:31 PM

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12-01-2021
04:31 PM
@Anonymous,
Is there a systematic way to set the booking window to just a month? I thought 3 months was the shortest period.
Don't just believe what I say, check the Airbnb Help Center
12-01-2021
04:31 PM

