Sync calendars with iCal

iCal is the simplest way to share availability between calendars. Almost every booking platform can produce an iCal link, and Stayblox can both read and publish them.

What iCal does

An iCal feed is a list of busy dates. Stayblox supports it in both directions:

• Import. Paste an iCal link from another platform and those bookings block dates in your Stayblox calendar.
• Export. Stayblox gives you an iCal link per unit that other platforms can read, so your direct bookings block dates there too.

Set up both directions for each unit you list elsewhere. One-way sync is how double bookings sneak in.

Where it falls short

iCal only carries dates. No rates, no guest details, no booking amounts. And feeds refresh on a schedule rather than instantly, so there is always a window where two platforms disagree. For a single listing with modest booking volume that window is usually acceptable. For busy properties on several channels it is not.

iCal or the channel manager?

Use iCal when you list on one or two platforms, bookings are occasional, and you are fine updating prices on each platform by hand.

Use the channel manager when you want rates pushed automatically, reservations with full guest details in one calendar, and availability that updates in near real time across Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, Expedia and other channels.

Plenty of hosts start with iCal and install the channel manager app when volume grows. Your units, rates and calendar stay exactly as they are, so upgrading the connection later does not mean starting over.