@Ilana85
We also rely on Tourist for most of our bookings we have always had it set to strict cancellation, If not you will lose out.
You could have a booking that has had your calendar blocked for a couple of months then they cancel at last minute, the chances of you getting another booking are pretty slim.
We have also decided not to accept direct bookings they are the ones who have let us down at the last minute, It happened recently with a previous guest 2 days before he was due to arrive, So no more we have no cover,
To be honest with you we have only had a couple of cancellations from airbnb and one no show but we were covered.
Dont forget we are not running a charity,