The Minimum Stays setting can be used to restrict one-night bookings and encourage longer stays.
To allow one-night bookings, make sure that you don't have any minimum stays for the dates you want to allow this.
Please note that a minimum stay restriction for one night cannot be created as this is already the minimum.
To start you will need to click on Step 5 'Minimum Stays'
Click on 'Add'
Select the start and end dates
Click on the Calendar to indicate when the minimum stay will start and when it will end.
This will indicate which date the minimum stay restriction will begin and when the minimum stay restriction will end.
Overlapping Minimum Stays:
Minimum stays can overlap in terms of the dates that apply. If there are two minimum stays restrictions that overlap, the restriction with the longest night-stay restriction will be applied.
For example, if a three-night minimum stay restriction overlaps with an existing two-night minimum stay restriction, the three-night minimum stay restriction will be applied on the overlapping dates).
Specify the Minimum Stay duration
Indicate the minimum number of nights required.
Setting up minimum stays for specific arrival days
This setting will apply the minimum stay restriction to specific arrival days of the week.
In the example depicted below, Friday, Saturday and Sunday are selected (ticked).
Result:
For the month of August 2024, the minimum stay restriction will be applied to all availability searches should the arrival day be Friday, Saturday or Sunday during August 2024.
Select the days of the week that you would like the minimum stay restriction applied to.
Note that regardless of the selected start and end dates, the minimum stay restriction will not be applied to the days of the week that have not been selected (ticked).
Select the room type(s) the minimum stay applies to
Select the room type(s) that this minimum stay will be applied to - tick the corresponding room type.
Alternatively, you cab select "All" for all rooms types.
Ignore rule
This setting will ignore the minimum stay restriction if the arrival date is within the specified number of days.
In the example depicted below, 1 day is indicated.
Result: Should a guest search for availability 1 day before their arrival date, the minimum stay restriction will be ignored and a one-night booking will be possible.
This is a way to have a minimum stay restriction in place, without losing any 'last-minute booker' business.
Should you want to allow bookings with a duration shorter than the minimum stay, and only for a certain number of days before arrival, type the number of days in this field.
Type '0' if you always want the minimum stay to apply to all the dates as selected, without an Ignore Rule.
The ignore rule does not update to the following channels:
- Booking.com
- Airbnb
- Followme2Africa
- HRS
- Agoda
- Hotelbeds
- Hostelworld
- Mr and Mrs Smith
- I-Escape
- Jumia
- Travelport
- Tourvest
Click on Save
You will be directed back to the Minimum Stays section
Click on 'Exit' to go back to Rates & Rules (Setup).
Click on 'Publish'
Once 'Publish' is clicked, all changes made within Rates & Rules (Setup) will go live and a confirmation message will display.
