Canceling a confirmed reservation may become necessary in some situations, such as when you have maintenance issues, an overbooking, or other unforeseen circumstances. Reservations can be canceled by the guest or the host.
Cancellations are done via Guesty or the booking channel. To sync the cancellation between Guesty and the channel, the listing must have a “Connected” status in the booking channel’s integration page in Guesty. If the listing in not connected, cancel the reservation on Guesty and the booking channel.
Reservations can't be deleted and canceled reservations can't be restored or edited. If needed, create it again manually. Once cancelled, the dates become available on all booking channels and any associated automated messages are automatically canceled.
Understanding Guesty's auto-decline feature
Guesty's auto-decline feature helps protect your response rate, a key factor for maintaining your status, for example Airbnb’s Superhost, or Vrbo’s Premium Host status.
Quote and Hold/Request to Book reservations are assigned a "Reserved" status, which must be approved or decline within 24 hours. If no action is taken, Guesty will automatically decline the reservation, changing its status to "Expired" and the guest is notified that the request was not accepted.
Learn more about reservation statuses.
Note:
Guesty is currently rolling out the capability to customize the time frame for Quote and Hold/Request to Book reservations. Contact us to test this feature.
Guest-initiated cancellations
Guests are allowed to cancel their reservation even after check-in as long as the check-out date is in the future. When a guest cancels a reservation, expect the following implications:
- Automatic sync: The cancellation syncs automatically to Guesty, within 1 to 24 hours.
- Notification sent: You’ll receive a cancellation notification in your Guesty Inbox.
- Reservation status change: The reservation status in Guesty will change from "Reserved" to "Canceled."
- Refund processing: You're responsible for processing any refunds according to your cancellation policy.
- Ranking metrics: Guest-initiated cancellations don't impact your search ranking on the booking channel.
Host-initiated cancellations
If you as the host cancel a reservation, expect the following implications:
- Recorded in the booking channel: A manual cancellation in Guesty is recorded as "canceled by host" in the booking channel.
For host-initiated Booking.com cancellations, see more below.
- Impact on host status: A host-initiated cancellation may negatively affect your status on the booking channel.
- Cancellation rate: This cancellation will impact your cancellation rate.
- Listing suspension: Some booking channels suspend listings with a high cancellation rate.
Group cancellations
When a group reservation is created, several sub-reservations are generated, displayed as a separate events in the calendar. Sub-reservations must be canceled separately.
Refunds and charges
When you cancel a reservation, additional fees manually added to the reservation remain as non-canceled invoice items. A guest’s cancellation fee can be added to the invoice, according to the cancellation policy or the rate plan. A refund isn't automatically issued to the guest, and must be made manually. You can also choose to waive a guest’s cancellation fee.
Requests to Book or inquiries don't result in any charges to the guest or host if they’re not approved, however you may be charged a cancellation fee by the channel and/or by Guesty.
If the listing has an active rate plan(s), and you marked that the reservation is canceled by the guest, the cancellation fee is calculated and displayed automatically in the invoice as an added line item. You can view it in the "Guest invoice" section of the "Balance due / Payout" page.
Accounting users: When a reservation is canceled, reservation-related charges or expenses are canceled automatically. Payment-related or recurring/periodic charges and expenses are not affected. Learn how canceled reservations affect the accounting folio and owner statements (Pro users).
Which reservations can I cancel?
Only confirmed reservations can be canceled. If a guest used an invalid payment method, the reservation won't be canceled automatically. You can set a notification for failed payments, and handle the issue by trying to charge the guest again, collecting a new payment method, or manually canceling the reservation.
Where should I cancel a reservation?
Check the reservation's source and proceed according to the channel of origin. When canceling a reservation via the channel, the status update syncs to Guesty unless stated otherwise. Follow the instructions below to cancel the reservation via Guesty.
Reservations with check-ins in the next 24 hours
Contact Airbnb to cancel the reservation. Learn more about Airbnb’s cancellation penalties in the Airbnb Host Cancellation Policy.
Reservations with check-ins in more than 24 hours
When canceling an Airbnb reservation via Guesty, the request is subject to Airbnb’s approval. As this may take a few days, you can contact us to remove the block in your calendar sooner. However, this can create discrepancies between your Guesty and Airbnb availability.
If a cancellation doesn't sync to Guesty after 24 hours, check if the listing is disconnected or suspended.
Cancel a reservation via Guesty, and then report it to Amplify by StaySense. The channel will deduct the cancellation fee from your monthly commission bill.
It is recommended to ask the guest to cancel the reservation using a link from their confirmation email or via their Booking.com account. Learn more below if you, as the host, must initiate a cancellation.
- Cancel via Guesty: You can initiate a cancellation via Guesty if Guesty is the listing's connectivity provider, and the guest is a no-show or used an invalid credit card.
- Cancel via Booking.com: For all other cases initiate a cancellation request through Booking.com's Extranet. Cancellation requests can be submitted to Booking.com up to 48 hours before check-in via the Extranet or the Pulse app. If the guest asks you to cancel their reservation less than 48 hours before check-in, advise them to contact Booking.com's customer service. Once the guest receives and accepts the cancellation request, the reservation will be canceled.
- If Guesty isn't the listing’s connectivity provider, cancel the reservation in Guesty and Booking.com.
Fraudulent bookings must be handled directly via Booking.com.
Cancel in Expedia. Changes in Expedia reservations sync with Guesty based on who initiates the change or cancellation.
Cancel in Guesty.
Direct integrations include:
- Guesty Booking Engine API (Pro users)
- Guesty Booking Engine (Booking Website for Lite users), Guesty Websites (Pro users) and Google Vacation Rentals (Pro users).
Contact us to cancel a direct/manual reservation made for a multi-unit listing.
Cancel via the channel.
Pilot users: Cancel a reservation via Guesty to free up space in your calendar, and then report it to HomeToGo to avoid being charged a commission for the cancellation.
All other users: Cancel a reservation via the channel.
Cancel an owner reservation in Guesty.
Cancel in Rentals United or the connected booking channel through which the reservation was made (with the exception of Vrbo). For a Vrbo via Rentals United reservation, cancel in Guesty.
Cancel in Guesty and then report it to Rentalz. The channel will deduct the cancellation fee from your monthly commission bill.
Cancel the reservation in the booking channel from which the reservation originated. This will be updated in SiteMinder and Guesty.
Important:
This information is relevant only for the Vrbo full sync connection type. If you have a limited sync connection type, cancel reservations via Vrbo.
Guest-initiated cancellations
Guests can cancel a reservation in Vrbo which syncs to Guesty. If a guest cancellation on Vrbo does not sync with Guesty, verify that the reservation was imported correctly. If the sync did not occur due to an import issue, cancel it in Guesty manually.
Host-initiated cancellations
If you need to initiate a manual cancellation, such as an owner/host reservation, or due to payment-related issues or unexpected circumstances, follow the steps below to cancel in Guesty.
When canceling a pre-existing reservation, the cancellation is recorded as "canceled by host," which could impact your Premier Host status on Vrbo and may result listing suspension. To avoid this, request the guest to cancel the reservation themselves on Vrbo, or contact Vrbo directly to handle the cancellation.
To maintain a good standing with the Vrbo and avoid cancellation penalties, submit a waiver request to Vrbo. For more details, refer to the Vrbo Partner Cancellation Fee Policy.
Reservations from all other channels
For all channels not listed above, cancel the reservation in the relevant channel. The cancellation will then sync to Guesty.
Canceling a reservation via Guesty
Follow the instructions below to cancel a reservation via the reservation page in Guesty.
Step by step:
- Sign in to your Guesty account.
- In the top navigation bar, click the mode selector and select Operations mode.
- Click Reservations.
- Click the relevant reservation.
- Click
.
Airbnb: Click
and select Edit reservation. - Under "Status," change the menu selection to Canceled.
Airbnb: Clickand select Request cancellation. - Enter the cancellation details in the pop-up.
- For manual reservations, select who canceled the reservation, the cancellation reason, and any relevant notes. Once selected, the cancellation reason can't be changed. Click Cancel reservation.
- Airbnb: Select the cancellation reason, then click Confirm to send a cancellation request to Airbnb.
- Vrbo: Select who canceled the reservation, then click Yes, cancel it.
The reservation status will change to "Canceled".
Step by step:
- Sign in to your Guesty account.
- In the top navigation bar, click More, then select Reservations.
- Click the relevant reservation.
- Click .
Airbnb: Clickand select Edit reservation. - Under "Status," change the menu selection to Canceled.
Airbnb: Clickand select Request cancellation. - Enter the cancellation details in the pop-up.
- For manual reservations, select who canceled the reservation, the cancellation reason, and any relevant notes. Once selected, the cancellation reason can't be changed. Click Cancel reservation.
- For Airbnb reservations, select the cancellation reason, then click Confirm to send a cancellation request to Airbnb.
- For Vrbo reservations, select who canceled the reservation, then click Yes, cancel it.
The reservation status will change to "Canceled".
Tip:
You can also cancel a reservation via the calendar or the Inbox. Locate the relevant reservation, then click 
in the right side pannel.
