Easy way to get notifications if you have a guest checking in or out?

[Gina1369]

Does anyone know if there is a way to have AirBnB notify you if you have a guest checking in or out?  That'd be really helpful - if I have a guest checking out that day, the notification would help me remember to schedule the cleaner.  If I have a guest checking in that day, the notification would remind me to message them the door code entry info.

I have multiple properties - let me know if you have any methods for this!

I know AirBnB messages the host and tells them a few days before a check in, but that doesn't help me at all.  I can't send the renter the door code that early. 

Thank you for any ideas or help,

Gina

[Anonymous]

If you have the Airbnb calendars synched to your Calendar app, you can customize the push notifications in the calendar app. That allows you to control the timing of your notifications.

[Gina1369]

I do have this (I have the ICS calendars in my Outlook), but it's a real pain to have to go in and set notifications on each booking.  I was looking for a more automatic way to do it without a manual component.  I find it strange that the AirBnB app doesn't offer the option to be notified on the day you have a guest checking in - most hosts would probably find that reminder useful.

-Gina

[Anonymous]

@Gina1369 That's a very easy fix, just set the Default Notification for the entire subcalendar instead of the individual bookings. 

[Gina1369]

@Anonymous  - that is a fantastic idea - but in Outlook, where are those options?  I right clicked on the calendar and don't see anything there.  I also looked through the FILE > OPTIONS > CALENDARS area and don't see anything there either on a default notification.

[STADT--LAND--BAD--GmbH0]

I'd love to know if you ever figured this one out. I'm experiencing the exact same challenges. 

Thanks!

[Lorna170]

Outlook calendar -- right click any date -- Outlook Options -- Calendar -- Calendar options -- Default reminders checkbox -- then dropdown list of reminder times which includes hours or days.  Select the number of hours before the booking that you want to be reminded (ex. for a 4 pm check in and an 8 am reminder it would be 8 hours) and remember to hit the OK or save button.

[Gina1369]

Actually, I see the FILE > OPTIONS > DEFAULT REMINDERS area but it doesn't seem to add new reminders on calendar entries that do not have reminders in the first place.  Since I never have to "accept" new entries to the ICS internet-linked calendars from AirBnB, I don't think this would work.  I already had default reminders on (15 minutes) for my calendar and it never added a reminder to any of the entries.

[STADT--LAND--BAD--GmbH0]

Hi Gina, 

I'm having the exact same problem with my AirBnB and Booking.com calendars, which I've imported to my Outlook calendar. They're there, and they even seem to update once or twice a day. But all the bookings come with no notifications, despite the default being set to 15min prior.

You didn't happen to figure out how to set default notifications for imported internet calendars in the last three years, did you?

Thanks. 

[Helen350]

@Gina1369 Just read your multi-calendar daily! (Why do we need to be pinged??)

[Anonymous]

@Helen350  Also my preference. I can understand the need for extra reminders when you're juggling multiple jobs, but ultimately I find being constantly tethered to my phone to be a big waste of time. When I really need to get things done, that thing is silenced or turned off anyway, so the ping is pointless.

[Ellen1067]

Did you find an answer to this? I'd like to get a notification on the day guests are checking in too. 

[Kevin3126]

In case this is still helpful to anyone, I found a way to do it. I synced my AirBnB calendar with my google calendar. Then I wrote a google app script that runs each morning, checks if an AirBnB event is ending or starting that day, and then texts me with the info. 

It took a bit of coding, but it works and is completely tailored to the notification content and timing that I want.

[Mountain-Meadows0]

Hi Kevin, could you please share how you did that?  Thanks!

[Bojan116]

Hi Gina, would it help if you had a small device with a button you could put next to the door and then as part of check-out instructions ask your guest to press that button on their way out, when they do this, you and your cleaning staff could get email and text. Let me know if you are interested