01
Repeat stays
A QR card and your own link for the next visit.
Guide · Direct bookings
How to get direct bookings without a fight with the platforms
Direct bookings are built, not switched on. They come from guests who come back, people they tell, and a link that is easy to forward. These are the moves that fit one holiday let.
Free previewNo commission on bookingsKeeps platform rules
The ground rule
Do not move a booking that started on a platform. No phone numbers in messages, and no links during a stay. Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo forbid it, and it can cost you the listing.
Direct bookings come from what happens off the platform: the next visit, a recommendation, or being findable on Google and social.
1. Guests who already know you
Your strongest source is someone who has stayed and wants to come back.
A card by the Wi-Fi code, with a QR to your site, is enough: "Coming back? Book here." You can make that QR free at mystay.direct/booking-link-qr.
2. One link people can forward
When a friend asks where they stayed, your guest needs a link. A PDF or a phone number does not travel as well.
Your site, with photos, dates and WhatsApp, is that link.
3. A Google Business Profile
If your kind of property is allowed one, a Maps listing with photos and a link to your site puts you in front of local searches.
Read Google's lodging policies before you create it.
4. A light social presence
You do not need to be an influencer. A few photos a month, the view, the pool, the walk to the water, with the link in the bio, is a start.
A short Reel from the terrace is easier to keep posting than a campaign you never finish.
5. Local businesses
Restaurants, surf schools, golf clubs and language schools hear "where can we stay?". Offer them your card or your QR.
6. Groups, carefully
School parents, sports clubs, expat associations: only where that group's own rules allow a recommendation.
7. Quiet months and longer stays
People working remotely, and guests staying a month, often prefer to deal with you. Whether that stay is a holiday let or a different tenancy is a local rule. This is not legal advice: check it before you advertise the length.
8. Make payment obvious
Guests pay you directly by card, cash or bank transfer. Card checkout uses your own Stripe account.
With MyStay, cash and bank transfer stay pending until you confirm the money arrived.
9. A calendar that is actually free
Little puts a direct guest off faster than a night you just offered that is already taken. Sync iCal with the platforms you use.
10. See which channel works
Add utm tags for the QR card, Instagram and Google, so you can see which one brings enquiries. Platform fees can be sketched at mystay.direct/host-fee-calculator.
In short
What moves direct bookings when you have one place.
02
A referral
A link a guest can forward.
03
Being local
Google Maps, social, and businesses nearby.
FAQ
Can I hand my site to a guest who booked on Airbnb?
Not during an Airbnb booking, and not to move that booking. For a future stay, use something off the platform, such as a card in the house, and read the current platform rules.
Do I have to charge less on my own site?
No. Some platforms also have rate-parity terms. Guests book direct for the contact and the flexibility.
How long before it shows?
It depends how many guests come back and how visible you are locally. Start with the QR card and the link in your bio.
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Guide · Direct bookings
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