01Why focus on direct bookings?
When a guest books through a portal, the relationship goes through the portal: contact details, reviews and often even the cancellation rules are set by the platform. With a direct booking the guest is yours, so you can write to them before arrival and get back in touch for their next stay.
This is not about leaving the portals, which are still useful for being discovered. The goal is that people who already found you, returning guests and people searching for you by name can book on your site, without the portal's commission on that booking and without depending on a single channel.
02How the booking engine works
Guests enter arrival and departure dates, the number of adults and children and, if you have properties in several cities, the location. The system shows only the properties that are actually available, with the price of the stay already calculated, and the booking ends with online payment.
Behind it there is a single calendar synced with the portals: when a date is booked elsewhere it closes on the site too, and the other way round. This is the part that needs the most care, because a double booking in high season means a guest to relocate and a bad review.
03Property pages that get bookings
Each apartment or room has its own page with a photo gallery, size in square metres, number and type of beds, included amenities such as air conditioning, wifi, kitchen or parking, and the nightly price. People booking want to know straight away whether the place suits them, without having to send a message to ask.
Location matters a lot too: a map, distances from the station, the centre or the sea and a couple of lines about the neighbourhood answer the questions that would otherwise arrive by message. Photos should be taken in natural light and cover every room, bathroom included.
04Several languages for foreign guests
If you host foreign tourists, the site has to speak their language from the search to the payment. We prepare full versions in English and the other languages you need, with translated property pages, booking terms and confirmation emails.
Each language has its own pages that Google can index, so a tourist searching for a place to stay in your city in their own language can find you. We link the site to the property's Google Business Profile, so you also show up on maps when someone looks for somewhere to sleep nearby.
05You manage prices and dates
From the dashboard you set prices by period and by property: high season, long weekends, events in town, minimum stay. You open and close dates whenever you like, for example for maintenance or when you want to use the apartment yourself.
You see every booking, from the site and from the portals, in one calendar. We hand over a user manual and stay available after launch for changes, new properties or new languages.
06What to prepare before we start
We need photos of each property, descriptions or at least notes to start from, your pricing and cancellation rules and the list of portals you are on. If you don't have suitable photos, we can also take care of the photo shoot.
The site must also show the information the law asks you to display, such as the property's identification code and the terms of stay: check with your consultant what applies in your municipality, and we will put it on the right pages.
