| Purpose | Understand how Cloudbeds Booking Engine supports direct bookings and which guest-facing features, management tools, and connected capabilities are available. |
| Best for | Property owners, managers, and admins evaluating or managing their direct-booking experience. |
| Use this when | You want an overview of how the Booking Engine works, what guests can do, and where its main features are configured. |
| Requirements | A property using Cloudbeds Booking Engine. |
| Expected result | You can identify the Booking Engine capabilities relevant to your property and open the appropriate setup guide when configuration is needed. |
Introduction
The Cloudbeds Booking Engine is a commission-free direct booking solution managed through Cloudbeds PMS. Guests can use it to search availability, compare accommodations and rates, enter booking details, and complete a reservation directly with your property.
The Booking Engine can operate as a standalone booking page or connect guests to the booking flow from your property website, social media profiles, supported widgets, or Premium Embeds. Use this article as a gateway to the main guest-facing capabilities and the Cloudbeds settings and resources used to manage them.
Cloudbeds believes every lodging business is unique. We offer tools for different property sizes and budgets to help you establish and grow your business. Contact our dedicated team for more information about available packages.
Not yet a Cloudbeds customer? Review our Pricing Guide and schedule a demo.
Table of contents
- How Cloudbeds Booking Engine works
- Guest booking experience
- Manage your direct-booking experience
- Increase direct bookings and revenue
- Connect marketing, payments, and guest communication
- Add Cloudbeds Booking Engine to your website and other channels
How Cloudbeds Booking Engine works
Cloudbeds Booking Engine and Cloudbeds PMS work together throughout the direct-booking cycle. Your property manages rates and availability in Cloudbeds PMS, the Booking Engine displays the current options to guests, and when a guest completes a reservation, Cloudbeds PMS receives the booking and updates availability.
The diagram below shows how rates, availability, and direct reservations move through this cycle.
Guest booking experience
Cloudbeds Booking Engine provides a responsive booking flow designed for desktop and mobile devices. Guests can search by stay dates and occupancy, use promo codes when available, review accommodations and rates, and continue through the reservation process from the same booking experience.
The main search experience keeps date, guest, promo-code, and search controls prominent so guests can quickly adjust their stay criteria.
Expand the sections below to see how the search controls adapt on desktop and mobile devices.
Desktop design
On desktop, the search controls appear in a horizontal layout so guests can view stay dates, promo-code access, and filters together while browsing available accommodations.
Mobile design
On mobile, the booking flow uses a vertical layout. The promo-code control remains available as guests move between the initial search view, accommodation results, and the reservation summary.
Amenity icons on accommodation cards
Accommodation cards can display icons for key room amenities, helping guests compare available options without opening every accommodation's details.
- Standardized amenities marked as Most popular with guests are prioritized in the icon row.
- Guests can hover over an icon on desktop or tap it on mobile to view the amenity name in the active Booking Engine language.
- When additional amenities are available, the card displays a +X more indicator. Guests can select View details to see the full amenity list.
The amenity icon row does not require a separate Booking Engine setting. Custom amenities are not displayed in this row, and the +X more indicator cannot be selected or expanded.
To review or manage the amenities assigned to your accommodations, see Create and manage your accommodation types.
Manage your direct-booking experience
Cloudbeds PMS controls the property and reservation details guests see throughout the direct-booking journey. Use the dedicated Booking Engine and property settings when you need to adjust how accommodations are displayed, which guest information is collected, or which property content appears during booking.
Booking Engine settings
The Booking Engine Settings page overview explains where to configure guest filters, accommodation display, required guest fields, marketing consent, confirmation behavior, and advanced display options.
Property and accommodation content
Property descriptions, contact information, accommodation details, amenities, and photos managed in Cloudbeds PMS support the content guests use to evaluate their stay options. For room-level setup, see Create and manage your accommodation types.
Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions
Properties can manage Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions content in Cloudbeds PMS. When applicable content is saved, the Booking Engine can present that legal information to guests during the direct-booking journey. See Policies overview for configuration details.
Increase direct bookings and revenue
Cloudbeds Booking Engine can support direct-booking strategies with rate merchandising, additional products and services, and rate-comparison tools. Use the resources below when you want to configure one of these capabilities.
Rate Plans, Packages, and Add-Ons
- Rate Plans and Packages can be created for sale on the Booking Engine, including offers that use promo codes when configured.
- Add-Ons (services and products) let properties offer additional products and services during the booking experience.
Rate Checker
The Rate Checker helps guests compare your direct rate with rates available through supported distribution sites while they use the Booking Engine.
The Rate Checker is included with all Cloudbeds Booking Engine packages except Legacy plans. Properties on active packages can enable it at no additional cost.
Connect marketing, payments, and guest communication
The direct-booking journey can connect with analytics, payment processing, guest communication, and supported apps. These capabilities are managed through their dedicated Cloudbeds or partner workflows rather than from one Booking Engine feature page.
Expand a section below for the capability you want to configure.
Google Analytics
Google Analytics can help properties understand Booking Engine traffic and conversion activity as part of their online marketing analysis. See Connect Google Analytics with Cloudbeds Booking Engine for setup instructions.
Payment options
When supported payment processing is configured in Cloudbeds PMS, properties can authorize or charge guest credit cards as part of Booking Engine reservations, or collect payment details for later processing according to their setup.
See How to set up automatic/scheduled payment processing for OTAs and Booking Engine for configuration details.
Guest communication after direct booking
Booking Engine reservations can use the email templates and scheduling tools managed in Cloudbeds PMS. Use Email Templates to create or edit guest messages, and Scheduling Emails to configure when they are sent.
Supported apps
Cloudbeds PMS can connect with supported apps that extend website optimization, marketing, and other property workflows. Review Apps integrated with Cloudbeds PMS for the current directory instead of relying on a fixed vendor list in this overview.
Add Cloudbeds Booking Engine to your website and other channels
Properties can direct guests to Cloudbeds Booking Engine in several ways. Choose the option that matches how much of the booking experience you want to place directly on your website.
Standalone Booking Engine link
You can share the property's Booking Engine URL directly from your website or other guest-facing channels. The same direct link can also be added to supported social media profiles.
- Add your Booking Engine link to X
- Add your Booking Engine link to Instagram
- Add your Booking Engine link to Facebook
Website widgets and embeds
Website widgets can provide a search bar, date picker, booking button, or another entry point that sends guests into the Booking Engine. Review the Website Widgets section for available options and setup guides.
Premium Embeds provide more integrated web-based booking experiences. For the technical setup of the premium full-page and pop-up experience, see Set up and customize Cloudbeds Booking Engine Immersive Experience 2.0.
Related articles
Now that you understand the main Cloudbeds Booking Engine capabilities and where they fit in the direct-booking journey, use these resources for broader configuration guidance and scenario-specific questions:
Comments
Please sign in to leave a comment.