# Airflow answers

Canonical: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers
Source: Airflow (https://www.airflowhq.com)

> Direct answers to the questions short-term rental hosts ask about getting bookings into their accounts, taking direct bookings and running a small rental. Each answer says what Airflow does, what it does not do, and the other ways to solve the same problem.

## Bookings into your accounts

Getting Airbnb, Booking.com and direct bookings into Xero, QuickBooks, Sage or FreshBooks without retyping them.

### How do I get Airbnb bookings into Xero?

Airbnb does not connect to Xero itself, so a booking only reaches Xero if you or a tool put it there. With Airflow, you forward your Airbnb booking-confirmation emails (or let Airflow watch your Gmail or Outlook inbox) and each one becomes a structured booking and a draft invoice in Xero, with accommodation, cleaning fee, the Airbnb service fee and taxes on separate lines. You review the draft in Xero and approve it yourself.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/airbnb-bookings-into-xero (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/airbnb-bookings-into-xero.md)

### How do I automate Airbnb bookkeeping?

Automate the data entry and keep the approval. Airbnb bookkeeping is three repeated jobs: recording each booking, splitting it into accommodation, cleaning, platform fee and tax, and matching it to the payout. Airflow does the first two automatically: it reads each Airbnb booking-confirmation email and creates a draft invoice in Xero, QuickBooks Online, Sage or FreshBooks, already split and tagged by property. You check the draft, record the payout and approve.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/automate-airbnb-bookkeeping (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/automate-airbnb-bookkeeping.md)

### How do I create invoices from Airbnb bookings?

Airbnb gives the guest a receipt and gives you a VAT invoice for its own service fee, but it does not create a sales invoice from your business for the stay. If you need one per booking for your books, Airflow creates it automatically: it reads the Airbnb booking-confirmation email and drafts an itemised invoice in Xero, QuickBooks Online, Sage or FreshBooks, which you review and approve.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/invoices-from-airbnb-bookings (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/invoices-from-airbnb-bookings.md)

### How do I connect Airbnb to accounting software?

Airbnb has one built-in accounting connection, to QuickBooks, which syncs your Airbnb earnings monthly. For Xero, Sage or FreshBooks, or if you also take bookings on Booking.com, Vrbo or directly, you need a bridge. Airflow is one: it reads the booking-confirmation emails from every channel and creates a draft invoice per booking in Xero, QuickBooks Online, Sage or FreshBooks, without needing access to your Airbnb account.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/connect-airbnb-to-accounting-software (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/connect-airbnb-to-accounting-software.md)

### How do I get Booking.com bookings into Xero?

Booking.com does not connect to Xero. Each reservation has to be recorded as income, and Booking.com's commission recorded as a cost, because the commission is billed to you separately rather than deducted where you can see it. Airflow does this from the reservation email: it creates a draft Xero invoice for the stay, with room revenue and commission on separate lines, tagged to the right property, for you to review and approve.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/booking-com-bookings-into-xero (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/booking-com-bookings-into-xero.md)

### How do I automate holiday-rental accounting?

Make every booking reach your accounts the same way, whatever channel it came from. Airflow reads booking confirmations from Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, Expedia and your own direct bookings, and turns each into a draft invoice in Xero, QuickBooks Online, Sage or FreshBooks, with fees and commission separated, the property tagged and the currency converted. For managed properties it also produces a statement per owner. You review and approve.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/automate-holiday-rental-accounting (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/automate-holiday-rental-accounting.md)

## Direct bookings

Taking bookings and payment yourself, on your own page, widget or website.

### How do I create a direct-booking website for my Airbnb?

A direct-booking website needs four things: a page describing the property, a calendar that knows your real availability, a way to take payment, and your Airbnb dates blocked so you cannot be double-booked. Every Airflow listing gets a booking page with all four. The Website + Hosting add-on turns it into a full multi-page website on your own domain. Guests pay into your own Stripe or Paystack account, and each booking lands in the same calendar and accounts as your Airbnb bookings.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/direct-booking-website-for-airbnb (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/direct-booking-website-for-airbnb.md)

### How do I take direct bookings for my holiday rental?

You need a link a guest can book from, a way to be paid, written terms, and your dates blocked on the platforms you list on. You do not need a full website to start. In Airflow, each listing has a booking page and a shareable booking link: the guest picks dates, sees the price, pays a deposit or the full amount by card into your own Stripe or Paystack account, and gets a confirmation and a guest portal. The booking goes into your calendar and your accounts automatically.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/take-direct-bookings-holiday-rental (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/take-direct-bookings-holiday-rental.md)

### How do I get repeat Airbnb guests to book direct?

You cannot ask them to through Airbnb: its rules forbid using the platform's messages or the guest's contact details to move a booking elsewhere. What you can do is be easy to find when a returning guest looks for you. Use the same property name everywhere, have a page of your own where they can check dates and pay, and show your reviews on it. Airflow gives every listing that booking page, and once a guest has booked direct it keeps their details so you can stay in touch with their consent.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/get-repeat-airbnb-guests-to-book-direct (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/get-repeat-airbnb-guests-to-book-direct.md)

### How do I accept payments directly from holiday-rental guests?

Open a payment account in your own name, take a deposit when the guest books and the balance before they arrive, and record each payment against its booking. In Airflow you connect your own Stripe account, or Paystack for cards and M-Pesa in Kenya, and guests pay by card on your booking page. The deposit is taken at booking, the balance is paid later from the guest's portal or from a payment request you send, and bank transfer can be offered as well. The money goes to your account, not to Airflow.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/accept-payments-from-holiday-rental-guests (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/accept-payments-from-holiday-rental-guests.md)

### What is the best direct-booking software for Airbnb hosts?

It depends on what you need beyond a web page. A website builder with a booking plugin gives the most design freedom. An instant site generator is the fastest to launch. A property management system adds a channel manager and costs the most. Airflow is the fourth kind: a booking page, widget or full website where the guest pays into your own account, with each booking going into the same calendar as your Airbnb bookings, into a guest portal and into your accounts as a draft invoice. It suits hosts with one to a few properties who want those parts joined up.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/best-direct-booking-software-for-airbnb-hosts (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/best-direct-booking-software-for-airbnb-hosts.md)

### How do I sync Airbnb bookings with my own website?

Your website needs a booking calendar that reads your Airbnb calendar link, and Airbnb needs your website's calendar link in return. Each then blocks the dates the other has sold. With Airflow you paste your Airbnb link into your listing and Airflow reads it every hour, you paste Airflow's link into Airbnb, and you embed the Airflow booking widget on your site. The widget offers only free dates, and holds them while a guest is paying.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/sync-airbnb-bookings-with-my-website (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/sync-airbnb-bookings-with-my-website.md)

## Getting found by travellers

Where to list, how to depend less on one platform, and how Airflow Stay will put your place in front of people planning a trip.

### How do I get my holiday rental found by travellers without relying on Airbnb?

Travellers find a holiday rental in five ways: a booking platform, a search engine, a map, a recommendation, or a trip they are already planning. Relying less on Airbnb means being present in more than one of those. List on a second platform, have a page of your own that returning guests and searchers can book from, and list on Airflow Stay, which is launching soon and will show travellers places that book direct, on a map and as stops on published trip routes. Listing on Stay is free and uses the property record you already have in Airflow.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/get-holiday-rental-found-by-travellers (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/get-holiday-rental-found-by-travellers.md)

### Where can I list my holiday rental besides Airbnb?

The main places are Booking.com and Vrbo, Google through a Business Profile, regional and specialist sites, your own booking page, and marketplaces for places that book direct. Airflow Stay is one of the last kind: it is launching soon, listing is free, and it will show your place on a map and as a stop on published trip routes, with the guest's enquiry and details coming straight to you. Whichever you add, keep one calendar behind them all so the same night is not sold twice.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/where-to-list-holiday-rental-besides-airbnb (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/where-to-list-holiday-rental-besides-airbnb.md)

### How do I reduce Airbnb booking fees?

You cannot lower the fee Airbnb charges on an Airbnb booking. What you can change is how many of your bookings pay it. Price your Airbnb listing with the fee in mind, give returning guests a direct way to book, and add channels where more of the booking stays with you: your own booking page, and Airflow Stay, which is launching soon. Airflow gives each listing a booking page with payment into your own account, and records the Airbnb fee on every booking so you can see what it actually costs you.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/reduce-airbnb-fees (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/reduce-airbnb-fees.md)

## Running a small rental

One calendar and one list of bookings, and choosing software that fits a small operation.

### How do I manage Airbnb and direct bookings in one place?

Use one system as the calendar of record and feed everything into it. In Airflow, Airbnb and Booking.com bookings arrive from their confirmation emails, direct bookings are taken on your own Airflow booking page, and both sit in one calendar and one bookings list. Calendar links run both ways and are read every hour, so a date sold in one place is blocked in the others.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/airbnb-and-direct-bookings-in-one-place (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/airbnb-and-direct-bookings-in-one-place.md)

### What is the best software for managing a small holiday rental?

It depends on which job costs you the most time. If you change prices across several channels every week, you need a channel manager or a full property management system. If your only problem is the bookkeeping, an accounting sync tool is enough. If you have one to a few properties and want bookings from every channel in one calendar, direct bookings with payment, a guest portal and draft invoices in your accounts without running a full PMS, that is what Airflow is built for.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/software-for-small-holiday-rental (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/software-for-small-holiday-rental.md)

### How do I manage Airbnb and Booking.com together?

Two things have to be shared between them: the calendar, so neither platform sells a night the other has sold, and the bookings, so you have one list to work from. The free way is to link the two calendars to each other by iCal. Airflow adds the second part: it reads the confirmation emails from Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo and Expedia into one calendar and one bookings list, reads each platform's calendar link every hour, and publishes one calendar link for them all to read. A channel manager is the heavier alternative if you also need prices kept in step.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/manage-airbnb-and-booking-com-together (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/manage-airbnb-and-booking-com-together.md)

### How do I manage multiple Airbnb properties?

Standardise four things: one calendar across every property, one list of bookings, income and costs tracked per property, and a monthly statement for each owner if the properties are not all yours. In Airflow each property is a listing. Bookings from every channel land in one calendar that shows all of them, each invoice line is tagged to its property in your accounting package, team members get access to the properties they work on, and an owner statement is produced per property.

Full answer: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/manage-multiple-airbnb-properties (markdown: https://www.airflowhq.com/answers/manage-multiple-airbnb-properties.md)