Cloudbeds Booking Engine Plus Filters Logic and Guest Steppers

Overview

This article explains how Guest Filters (total guests vs. adults & children), No Filter, and the guest steppers (adults/children selectors) work together in the Cloudbeds Booking Engine Plus. It also clarifies default behaviors and how URL parameters can still drive filtering regardless of your Cloudbeds PMS configuration.

How do guest filters and steppers work in the Booking Engine Plus?

1) What’s the default guest selection in searches?

• The Booking Engine defaults searches to 1 guest.
• Rationale:
  • Many properties are dorm-style. Defaulting to 2 guests would exclude those rooms from
    results.
  • Many properties use occupancy-based pricing, where the base rate covers only 1 person
    and additional charges apply for more guests. Defaulting to 2 guests inflates rates and
    makes properties look uncompetitive to solo travelers.

2) What are the filter options (Guest, Adults & Children, or No Filter)?

1. Guest Filter:
   • Validates whether a room can accommodate the total number of guests requested.
   • Example: If the guest filter is set to 6 and there’s a room with a maximum occupancy of 8, that room will be included in the search results.
   • Note: Guest filter does not split adults vs. children. It only checks overall occupancy.
2. Adults & Children Filters:
   • Validate maximum adults and maximum children independently for each room.
   • Example: A room allows max 4 adults and max 2 children. A search for 2 adults + 2 children will return that room.
3. No Filter:
   • No restrictions are applied — all available rooms are shown in the search results, but the stepper will still follow its usual default values. Learn more about guest steppers below.

3) How does the stepper behave for each filter type?

• Guest (total) filter applied: The steppers are not pre-filled by composition. The default shows 2 adults or the number of adults included in the base rate—whichever is less. Guests can adjust the steppers; any occupancy-based pricing will update accordingly.

• Adults & Children filter applied: The steppers are pre-filled to match the search (e.g., 2 adults + 2 children shows by default).

• No Filter: Uses the same default rule as the Guest (total) filter: default is 2 adults unless the base rate includes fewer.

Can filters still apply if the Booking Engine is set to ‘No Filter’?

Which filter should I use, and why do some links still filter results?

• Use Adults & Children when you need results to reflect the exact party composition immediately.
• Use Guest (total) for broader discovery; guests can fine-tune steppers on the results page and see pricing changes tied to occupancy.
• Be mindful of third-party links that include guest parameters; they may filter results even if the selector is hidden in the User Interface (UI).

FAQs