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Cloudbeds Booking Engine - Frequently Asked Questions

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Cloudbeds Booking Engine is our commission-free booking engine fully controlled by Cloudbeds PMS (Property Management System). This article answers the most frequently asked questions about this feature.

If you are having issues with the booking engine, see: Cloudbeds Booking Engine - Troubleshooting

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I insert the booking engine to my hotel's website?

There are two ways you can insert/link the booking engine to your website:

  1. Option 1: Booking Engine Widget - Copy the Booking Engine Website Widget code and paste it into your website.

This code will display a small block with Check-In / Check-Out selection windows and Go button (search). Clicking this button will redirect your guest to the booking engine  page that shows available accommodations for the dates selected.

  1. Option 2: Booking Engine iframe - Copy the Booking Engine iframe, and paste it to your website. This iframe is basically a booking engine window built into your website where the guest may complete a reservation.
Does Cloudbeds Booking Engine comply with Accessibility Standards?

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) defines requirements for designers and developers to improve accessibility for people with disabilities. It defines three levels of conformance: Level A, Level AA, and Level AAA.

We have tested our booking engine to ensure that we meet or exceed Level AA checkpoints of the WCAG 2.1 Standard. To learn more, visit the Cloudbeds Accessibility Policy.

Can I mask or change my Cloudbeds Booking Engine URL to my personal domain?

Unfortunately, URL masking is not currently supported, however we are working on implementing this functionality in the future.

The best solution for you would be to embed the booking engine as an iframe into your website. Learn more here: Customize Cloudbeds Booking Engine - How to Add it to Your Website Using an iframe

Can I promote special offers with the booking engine?

Yes, with Cloudbeds PMS controlling the booking engine you may create Rate Plans & Packages (with promo code if necessary) which can be displayed and sold on the booking engine page.

Is it possible to sell my rooms only with (promotional) rate plans on the booking engine?

Yes, you can configure the system to only display your promotional rate plans and packages (without the base rates) on the booking engine. Learn more: How to sell my rooms only with (promotional) rate plans and packages on the Booking Engine.

Do you offer booking engine customization?
  • Cloudbeds also offers Cloudbeds Websites (A professionally built websites that are fully integrated with the Cloudbeds booking engine, channel manager and PMS). Click here for further details.
Can I charge the guests directly on the booking engine?

Yes. If you have Payment Processing enabled in Cloudbeds PMS, you may setup a deposit amount to be charged immediately when making a reservation or certain days before guest's arrival.

You can also collect guests' credit card details to charge your guests later for their stay. Learn more: How to set up automatic/scheduled payment processing for OTAs and Cloudbeds Booking Engine

How do I know what payment method the guest used to make booking engine reservations?

The payment information from your booking engine reservation is visible in the reservation header.

On the reservation summary received via email, the payment method is also visible.

To receive this type of emails, setup the property email address under the System Notification Preferences

Can I customize the check-in & check-out window in the search tab?

Cloudbeds Booking Engine will display the check-in and check-out date based on the lowest Minimum Length of Stay (MinLOS) configured in the system. The system always takes the lowest MinLos within the base rate and also the rate plans.

Example:

  • The lowest MinLos in the system for July 14 2020 is 2 nights
  • By default, the booking engine will display the check-in date 14/07/2020 and the check-out date 16/07/2020 in the search tab (2 days gap)
I have different MinLOS/MaxLOS for my base rates and rate plans, why the Availability Calendar is only showing one and not the other?

For the moment, only a limited number of restrictions are available to view on the availability calendar. Learn more about restrictions display in the Availability Calendar here.

Offer more details about the length of stay restrictions by adding informational text or a banner to your Booking Engine:

Is it possible to configure the booking engine to load a minimum of 2 nights by default?

Currently, it is not possible for the Booking Engine to load two nights by default. As a workaround, you can add a notification under the search button to provide more details about your applicable restrictions.

Can I replace the room name with the rate plan name in the restriction window on the Availability Calendar?

No, it is not possible to replace the name of the room type with the rate plan name on the Availability Calendar.

The calendar shows the name of the room type along with the length of stay restrictions by default.

There is no lock icon next to the booking engine URL on the browser. Is it secure?

Scenario

When my guest clicks on Book Now, they are redirected to the booking engine but there is no lock icon next to the browser URL like shown below:

How could this happen and is it secure?

This could happen when using images from an unsafe server through the CSS code. It means that the CSS image URL that you are using is affecting/hiding the lock icon from your booking engine page (example: background image). Nevertheless, the booking engine continues to be secure.

If you add any URL on the customization page that is not HTTPS, it will hide the lock, but it doesn't mean that our booking engine became an unsecured site to your guests.

How does the booking engine calculate the number of people included in the rate?

Cloudbeds Booking Engine calculates the number of people included in the rate based on your accommodation setup on Cloudbeds PMS.

  1. Click the Manage (gear icon)
  2. Under Property Details, select Accommodation Types
  3. Click the accommodation name to verify your setup
  1. Check the Maximum Occupancy and Adults (or Children) included in rate

Refer to this article for the detailed instructions on How to add extra person fees

Example: Let's say in the room configuration you include 2 adults and 2 children in the rate and Maximum Occupancy is set as 5

This setup means the guests will be able to book 2 adults + 2 children with no extra charge:

How can I configure the accommodation so that only 2 adults or 2 children are included in the rate (not altogether)?

  1. Leave the field Children included in rate (Booking Engine only) as 0:
  1. Hide the children column in the booking engine using these instructions for the Gallery Design or List Design.
  2. Optional: Re-name the Adults column using this guide: Replace the text Adults to some other text

Result

On the booking engine page, this is how it will look like:

  1. Only the column Guests will be displayed (instead of 2 columns: Adults and Children)
  2. Only 2 guests are included in the rate (can be adult or child)
[Demo] Mountain Resort & SPA - Kyiv, Ukraine - Best Price Guarantee - Google Chrome
Is it possible to replace the Cloudbeds Booking Engine with a different booking engine?

Currently, it is not possible to connect any other booking engine to Cloudbeds PMS. For more information, reach out to the Support Team.

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