Managing changes to an Airbnb reservation

You can manage changes to Airbnb reservations in Airbnb or Guesty. Whenever a change to a reservation is needed, we recommend asking your guest to send an alteration request via Airbnb. You’ll then be able to approve or decline the request. Alternatively, you can initiate an alteration request, and send it to your guest for approval. Pro users can approve or decline guest requests or send a request to the guest from Guesty.

This article explains where to make changes to a reservation, how to initiate or respond to an alteration request, and how to make changes that will be reflected only in Guesty.

Reservation alteration types

When altering a reservation via Guesty, its total price is recalculated automatically, according to the relevant alteration type, as explained in the next sections.

You can’t request to change the reservation total price via Guesty. If needed, you can change the reservation’s total price directly in Airbnb. If changing the total price in Airbnb, the alteration will be considered a special offer. Pricing rules don’t apply to reservations booked with special offers, meaning that fees won’t automatically be added to the special offer’s price. We recommend including them in the adjusted price you set - but note that in this case, the fees won't appear as separate line items in the guest folio.

Changing the estimated time of arrival or departure (ETA/ETD) is not supported in Airbnb. If you adjust these values in Guesty, they will revert to the listing's default check-in/check-out times following the next update in Airbnb.

Learn how to cancel a reservation

In the next sections, learn about the possible alteration types for an Airbnb reservation.

Changes to the reservation dates 

Changes to the reservation’s number of nights affect the total price. Changing a reservation’s dates by applying length of stay requirements may make the reservation eligible for promotions.

Additionally, changing the number of nights for a reservation impacts added costs. Rates for the added nights are calculated according to the current price per night. However, the price per night for the original nights remains the same as when the booking was made.  Taxes are updated, if they are calculated per night, rather than per stay or guest. If you subtract nights from a reservation, the remaining nights stay at the same price.

For example:  A reservation was confirmed for two nights at a rate of $30 per night. After price optimization, the price per night is $32. If you add a night to the reservation, the price per night for the original two nights will remain $30. The price of the added night is $32.  Taxes charged per night are calculated according to the original price for the first two nights and the adjusted price for the added night. Fees and taxes charged per stay or guest are not affected.

Changes to the number of guests

Changing the number of guests for a reservation doesn’t affect the original reservation price. An extra person fee may apply if it is set. Taxes charged per guest are recalculated according to the updated number of guests. Fees and taxes applied per stay or night are not affected.

For example: A listing’s occupancy is four, and an extra person fee of $25 is applied for additional guests exceeding two. A reservation was confirmed for two guests for two nights at a rate of $30 per night. If you add a third guest to the reservation, the price per night remains $30, and an extra fee of $25 is applied. Other taxes calculated per guest are charged according to the updated number of guests.

Changes to the reservation listing assignment

Effect on the reservation price

Moving a confirmed reservation to another listing doesn’t affect the reservation price, even if the new listing is priced differently than the original listing. Fees and taxes also remain unchanged.

Available listings for reassignment 

  • You can only move a reservation to a listing under the same Airbnb account.
  • You can only move a reservation to a listing that is available on the relevant dates, or that has a "flexible" block.
  • You can only move a reservation to a listing with the same currency. Change the listing currency, if needed.

Use our troubleshooting if you’re unable to move a reservation to a different listing.

Relocate a reservation mid-stay

It’s not possible to relocate an ongoing reservation to another listing if that listing was occupied during any previous dates of the reservation. To address this, you can split the reservation by following these steps:

  1. Shorten the current reservation to end on the day of the split.
  2. Create a new manual reservation for the other listing, starting from the split date and continuing until the end of the stay.

Switch between sub-units of a multi-unit (Pro users)

When a multi-unit is booked, a reservation is automatically or manually assigned to a sub-unit. 

By default, reservations for a multi-unit are accepted even if no single sub-unit is available to accommodate the entire guest stay, helping to maximize occupancy.

For example, if the stay can be allotted between different sub-units, each available to host a segment of the reservation, the reservation can be booked. In case there is no sub-unit available to host the entire stay, the reservation is received but remains unassigned until assigned manually. You may also need to rearrange other reservations within the sub-units to accommodate the new reservation.  

To switch reservations between sub-units, start by unassigning a reservation from its sub-unit, to create availability on your calendar. You can then assign another reservation to the available sub-unit, and replace it with the unassigned reservation.

Approve or decline a guest alteration request

Guests can request to change their reservation by submitting an alteration request via Airbnb. Requests are received in the Guesty Inbox as part of the message thread with the guest.

Learn how to troubleshoot cases when you’re unable to approve, decline, or send an Airbnb reservation alteration request.

Pro users Lite users

Once you receive an email notification, refresh the page to pull the alteration request details. You’ll then be able to approve or decline the request via Guesty, following the steps below. Alternatively, use the “Click here” hyperlink in the notification to approve or decline the request in the Airbnb platform.

Step by step:

  1. Sign in to your Guesty account.
  2. In the top navigation bar, click the calendar icon.
  3. Locate the relevant conversation thread.
  4. In the right-side panel, click Approve or Decline. 
  5. To save and sync your response with Airbnb, refresh the page. It may take a few moments for the request to be updated.

Tip:

You can also approve or decline a guest’s request from the reservation page (under “Summary”), or the Multi-Calendar (under the reservation’s confirmation number).

The guest’s request and the approval or decline of the request will be recorded in the reservation log.

Send an alteration request to the guest (Pro users)

When creating an alteration request in Guesty, the request is sent to the guest and Airbnb for approval. The relevant listing must be activated.

Only the following alteration types can be requested:

  • Change the reservation dates
  • Change the number of guests
  • Move the reservation to another listing

The reservation price is recalculated automatically based on your changes (learn more in the above section). You can’t adjust the total reservation price via Guesty. 

Learn how to troubleshoot cases when you’re unable to approve, decline, or send an Airbnb reservation alteration request.

Create an alteration request

Follow the instructions below to create an alteration request.

Step by step:

  1. Sign in to your Guesty account.
  2. In the top navigation bar, click the mode selector and select Operations mode.
  3. Click Reservations.
  4. Click the relevant reservation.
  5. Click the vertical ellipsis at the top-right corner of the “Summary” section.
  6. Select Request edit.
  7. In the pop-up, change the desired fields and click Next.
  8. Review the updated price breakdown.
  9. Click Request edit from Airbnb.
  10. Refresh the page.

A summary of the alteration request will be displayed on the reservation page, under the “Summary” section. You will receive a notification in the Guesty Inbox only after the guest approves or rejects the request.

The alteration request is also recorded in the reservation log at the bottom of the reservation page. Use the log to check who created the request (the host or the guest).

Tip:

You can also create an alteration request via the Inbox or Multi-Calendar. Click the vertical ellipsis next to the reservation’s confirmation code, and select Request edit from Airbnb.

Cancel or change a pending alteration request (Pro users)

There can only be one active alteration request per reservation. Therefore, to change an existing alteration request, first cancel the existing request. Follow the steps below.

Step by step:

  1. Sign in to your Guesty account.
  2. In the top navigation bar, click the mode selector and select Operations mode.
  3. Click Reservations.
  4. Click the vertical ellipsis at the top-right corner of the “Summary” section.
  5. Click Cancel request to edit.
  6. In the pop-up, click Confirm.
  7. Create a new alteration request (if needed).

The cancellation is recorded in the reservation log.

Change a reservation only in Guesty (Pro users)

You can make changes to an Airbnb reservation that reflect only in Guesty and don’t sync to Airbnb. Use this type of alteration for internal operational purposes, such as tracking and documentation. Also, only apply internal changes if they don’t affect the guest's stay, for example updating the guest's details or switching the assigned room with another room of the same type and price. 

Changes made in Airbnb later will override internal changes made in Guesty.

To make an internal change, the listing must be activated. Changes to reservation dates can’t be made as internal changes. Instead, send an alteration request for the guest's approval.

If you move a reservation from one listing to another listing internally, the latter listing’s calendar will be blocked in all channels, including Airbnb. However, the former listing will remain blocked in Airbnb, since the update didn't sync from Guesty to Airbnb. This may cause disruptions in syncing updates to the reservation from Airbnb and in receiving future messages from the guest, including the guest’s payment details. Also, you can only move the reservation internally to a listing under the same Airbnb account.

Follow the steps to make an internal change to an Airbnb reservation.

Step by step:

  1. Sign in to your Guesty account.
  2. In the top navigation bar, click the mode selector and select Operations mode.
  3. Click Reservations.
  4. Click the relevant reservation.
  5. Click the vertical ellipsis next to "Summary" and select Edit Reservation.
  6. Apply the relevant changes to the reservation and click Save.
Was this article helpful?
0 out of 0 found this helpful