Support / Tutorials / Updates

Support / Queries

If you have any questions or if a problem occurs while using the booking tool, please send an email to –> kontakt@urlaubsarchitektur.de

News, updates etc.

When news and updates are available, we will inform you by e-mail via our –> mailing list. We will also inform you by e-mail if the system will not be available due to maintenance work.

Tutorial videos

There are some videos that include tutorials on how to work with the booking tool. The videos are especially intended for new users who want to learn the basic functions.

Booking procedure

How does the booking procedure for a HOLIDAYARCHITECTURE accommodation work? Of course, you can design and define it yourself. Here is an example (in German) for orientation.

Terms of use / General terms and conditions

Our -> Terms of use apply to the use of the booking tool.

Functional scope of test account

A test account offers the full, unrestricted range of functions of the booking tool. Test accounts are free as long as they are not used productively.

Data privacy

Booking data are personal data and therefore subject to the applicable data protection regulations. Please inform yourself about what you have to consider in your individual case.

For landlords/hosts in the EU, requirements according to General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) apply:

As a landlord/host, you must, within the scope of your information obligations, clarify that you will pass on data from booking requests and bookings to URLAUBSARCHITEKTUR GmbH when using the booking tool. As a rule, this requires a corresponding note in the data protection declaration on your website.

Furthermore, in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), you must conclude a data processing agreement with us. To do this, download the agreement, fill it in and sign it. Please then send us the scanned version of the agreement by e-mail to kontakt@urlaubsarchitektur.de.

Browser

In order to work with the booking tool, we recommend the use of the latest versions of Chrome or Firefox.

Use on mobile devices

The booing tool is optimized for PC desktop use. It is possible to use it with mobile devices, but this is limited due to the screen size. We recommend:
- min. 11'' screen
- Keyboard and trackpad
- Chrome or Firefox browser
e.g. a Chromebook tablet

Menus and links

You can call up the individual function areas (bookings, tasks, guests, settings, etc.) from the side menu.

On the individual pages, all links are highlighted in blue letters.

Adjusting the display and zoom

The menu icon (in the top left corner of the browser window) can be used to reduce or enlarge the width of the side menu.

The zoom function of the browser can be used to enlarge or reduce the overall display. With most browsers this is possible with the following key combinations:

– Mac: cmd and “+” (zoom in) / cmd and “-” (zoom out)

– Windows: CTRL and “+” (zoom in) / CTRL and “-” (zoom out)

The display automatically adapts to the new setting after reloading the page.

Entering dates

The booking tool displays a small calendar for entries in date fields (e.g. date of arrival / departure etc.). In the calendar you can switch to the previous or following months by clicking on “<” or “>”.
By clicking on the name of the month or year in the header of the calendar you can open a window where you can directly select the required month / year.

Language

The booking tool is available in two languages, German and English. The currently used language can be changed via the selector button in the side menu.

Invoices are always issued or sent in the currently selected language of an account.

Export of data

All tables in the booking tool (bookings, guests, tasks) can be downloaded as PDF or Excel files by clicking on the buttons at the bottom of each table. The data can also be copied to the clipboard via Copy and thus transferred to other programs. The data is transferred or downloaded in the way the tables are currently filtered.

Availability requests on urlaubsarchitektur.de

The search function on urlaubsarchitektur.de allows availability requests using the booking tool’s booking data. Please let us know whether you would like us to include your accommodation in the availability requests or not.

The home page of the booking tool is also accessible via the menu item Bookings. On this page you will find the booking overview with the graphic calendar display of the occupancy of your accommodation. Below this is the table of bookings.

Calendar of the booking overview

The booking overview shows the status of a booking in colour:
– green: booking
– light grey: requested
– red: overlapping requested booking
– dark grey: blocked period

In an external booking calendar on your website and on the UA portal only booked and blocked periods are displayed.

Print calendar or arrival/departure list

The calendar overview can be saved or printed as .pdf. Also a list of arrivals and departures can be saved or printed as .pdf. Different filters can be used (e.g. periods / accommodations / arrivals or departures only).

Creating a new booking / event / blocked period in the calendar

You can create a new booking / event or block a time period by using the corresponding buttons, but also directly in the calendar of the booking overview. To do this, click on the arrival day of the respective accommodation.

Before creating a new booking, the guest data needs to be entered or is already available.

Table of the booking overview

The table shows the current and upcoming bookings when accessed. Various filters and a search function can be used to select which bookings are displayed

If a Period from & Period to is defined, the turnover, occupancy rate and occupancy figures (number of overnight stays, number of booked nights, number of arrivals) are determined for this period and displayed below the table. The data can be filtered by accommodation, groups of accommodation, etc.
Number of overnight stays and arrivals are statistical data that must be reported regularly by many partners in Germany.

Creating a new booking

Before creating a new booking, the respective guest must be created or already exist in the system. A booking can include one or several flats / houses.

There are the following ways to create a booking manually:
– on the page Bookings via the button -> New bookings
– go to the booking overview on the Bookings page, click on the arrival date in the line of the respective accommodation. The arrival date and accommodation are now preset for the new booking.
– Go to the guest’s data and click on -> New booking. The guest is now preset for the new booking.
– In the guest’s data, the booking overview is also displayed at the top. Click on the date of arrival in the line of the respective accommodation. For the new booking, arrival date, accommodation and guest are now preset.

Bookings can also be accepted via booking forms; the data is then transferred directly into the booking tool.

Status of a booking

Each booking can have one of the following statuses:
– requested : the booking is not yet binding, it is shown in the booking overview (light grey bar), but not in the booking calendar on your website
– booked: the booking has been confirmed, it is displayed in the booking overview (green bar) and in the external booking calendar on your website
– cancelled : the booking was cancelled, it is not displayed in the booking overview or in the external booking calendar on your website

If Allow overlapping requested bookings function is activated in the settings, multiple bookings with the status requested can be entered for a period. Overlapping requested periods are displayed in the booking overview with a red bar. As soon as a booking is confirmed for a period and gains the status booked, the remaining overlapping bookings are automatically cancelled and are assigned the status cancelled.

Check routines

When a new or changed booking is saved, the system checks:
A) whether the booking is possible for the respective period (whether the accommodation is still available)
B) whether the prescribed minimum stay is complied with
C) whether the maximum number of guests is respected
D) whether the restrictions regarding the day of arrival/departure have been complied with (if this is defined in the pricing scheme)
E) whether a pricing scheme is stored for the selected booking period and whether the price calculation is possible (only with automatic price calculation)

In Settings, you can specify whether check routines B, C and D are to be omitted when bookings are created manually. Then it is easy to also allow bookings with exceptions.

On the details page, the data of a booking can be changed:

– Date of arrival / departure
– Number of people
– Assignment to one or more accommodation(s)
– Status of the booking (requested / booked / cancelled)

If changes to the guest data are necessary, the guest can be called up from the booking, or the booking can be assigned to another existing guest.
If the Automatic mailing function is not enabled for a booking, no automatic mails are sent for this booking.

Additional functions on the booking details page

Billing settings

For the generation of invoices, details can be modified if required:
– Invoice date, invoice number, Invoice address/recipient and invoice description
– Text of the invoice, which is issued below the service overview
– Selection of the footer if, for example, different footers with different company and account details are used. Footers can be created, edited and saved in the Settings.
These customisations of the invoice are optional. If nothing is entered here, the default values are used.

If you do not want the price to be calculated automatically, this can be set individually for each booking. This option can be activated, for example, if a special or all-inclusive price has been agreed.
For an already existing booking, it is still possible to specify that the price is no longer calculated automatically. Then the last calculated prices remain and can be adjusted manually, no new automatic calculation is performed.

Deposit and down payment are calculated automatically if a default is defined in the settings. However, the totals can always be adjusted manually in the booking. A recalculation of deposit and down payment is made if the booking is changed (change of date, change of accommodation) or if Recalculate deposit / down payment is called up.

Services

With automatic price calculation, the rental price and obligatory services (e.g. visitor’s tax or final cleaning) are calculated automatically and included as service items. This is done based on the pricing scheme that is stored for the accommodation. When the booking is changed, these services are adjusted accordingly. You will find further information on price calculation under Pricings below.

The services of a booking can be sorted by order. A position number can optionally be specified for each service. The item number does not necessarily have to be specified for each service; the numbers do not have to be consecutive. Numbering such as 10, 20, 25 ... is possible. Sorting is done according to the assigned position numbers.
On the invoice (PDF), the items are sorted accordingly and automatically numbered 1, 2, 3 ...

If the pricing scheme has been changed, the rental price and obligatory services can be updated by calling Recalculate services.

All service items can be subsequently edited and adjusted. Optional services can be added from the pricing scheme or created individually.

When services are changed, the down payment and deposit are not automatically adjusted. This can be done by using Recalculate deposit / down payment under Billing settings.

Payments

Payments received can be added manually.

Tasks of a booking

Tasks are created automatically according to the Settings or can be added manually to the booking.
Under Tasks in the side menu, you can reach the complete overview of all outstanding tasks.

Messages / E-mails to guests

For new messages, one of the templates can be used, the text of a mail can be customized before it is sent.
Documents or the invoice can be attached to each mail.
The overview of the messages shows the sent mails and the scheduled automated mails that have not been sent yet.
The system sends mails every 15 minutes. New mails are therefore initially still briefly displayed as scheduled.
No messages are sent for cancelled bookings; except when the cancellation triggers an automated message.
Messages can only be sent if the Settings for sending mails have been set up and activated.

Organize the page

The order of the blocks on the page can be changed. This can be done using the arrows in the headline of each block, and the order is saved for the account. This feature allows each user to arrange the blocks according to his needs.

Events can be used to manage workshops, meetings or similar activities that are not allowed as a bookings, e.g.:

- Events without an overnight stay
- Events during a booking (e.g. catering during a booking)
- Multiple events in an accommodation with separate billing

The available features correspond to those of a booking, but with the following special features:

- An event can overlap with a booking or another event. There is no check whether the accommodation is available !
- Automatic price calculation is not available for events. Services can be created manually.
- Automatic messages or tasks are not available for events. Messages and tasks can be created manually.

Events, like bookings, are linked to a guest and to one or more accommodations. Services and invoices can be created for an event.

If an accommodation is not available for rent (due to renovation, owner occupation, etc.) the corresponding period can be blocked. Blocked periods are shown in the booking overview with a dark grey bar; in the booking calendar on your website the period is shown as “not available”. It is also possible to block just one day, so that a departure is still possible in the morning and the arrival of new guests in the evening.

A blocked period can be converted into a booking.

By clicking on Guests in the side menu, you can access the complete overview of all guests. Using the full text search, you can search for names and all contact data (e.g. place of residence, company name, e-mail address, notes). By clicking on a guest, you get to the detailed overview with the list of all bookings of this guest.

For each guest, at least the name and a e-mail address must always be entered, all other details are optional.

In the guest overview, duplicate contacts can be found using Filter duplicates. The filter considers duplicates in names and e-mail addresses. If you find duplicates via the filter, simply open the duplicate contact and use the function Merge guest data to transfer the bookings and delete the duplicate contact.

Under Tasks in the side menu, you can access the complete overview of all outstanding tasks. The overview can be filtered, for example, by service providers or accommodation. Lists for service providers such as cleaning services, caretakers etc. can thus be created and then printed out.

Tasks that have been completed can be marked as done.

If Automatic completion is activated for a task, it is marked as done on the due date. The task does not then have to be manually marked as done.

Under Properties in the side menu you can access the overview of the apartments/houses. Via Position you can define at which position an accommodation is displayed in the booking overview.

Each accommodation can be assigned to a pricing scheme. If a pricing scheme is specified, the rental price for a booking is calculated automatically. Details can be found in the chapter on Pricings.

If NO pricing scheme has been assigned to an accommodation, the rental price can be entered manually in the booking.

Accommodations can be combined into groups. Each accommodation can belong to several groups. For example, accommodations at different locations can be bundled and filtered and evaluated in the overviews more easily.

If an accommodation is no longer available for rent, it can be marked as Property deactivated. This accommodation then no longer appears in the calendar of the booking overview and no new bookings can be created. All past bookings of this accommodation are still displayed in the table of the booking overview and the overview of each guest.

With the configurator you can generate calendars to be inserted into the website of your accommodation. You will find the Configurator for availability calendar under the menu item Properties.

There are several types of calendars to choose from. One or more accommodations can be selected per calendar. The colours for the NOT available / available / partially available periods can be defined as HTML colour code (6 characters without preceding “#”).

You can configure and use any number of different calendars, even simultaneously. The configurator has no effect on calendars you already use. To make changes, you must configure a new calendar and update the code on your website.

The code is available in 2 variants: script (Javascript) and HTML (iframe). We recommend using the script variant. If you are using a web builder for your website, Javascript is not permitted with some systems or leads to conflicts with the CSS of the website, in which case the iframe variant can be used.

The availability calendar is designed for use with current browsers. If your website is used with outdated browsers (e.g. Internet Explorer), display problems may occur when displaying the inserted availability calendar.

Please make sure that caching in the browser is prevented for websites in which availability calendars are integrated, so that the availability calendar is always reloaded in the latest version. For this purpose, the cache control or Pragma HTML function can be used on the web page.

You will find further information on the integration and adaptation of the availability calendar under Tips & Tricks below.

iCal is the standard data format for calendar data. You can find the iCal link on the page of each accommodation (menu item Properties -> then open details page of the accommodation)

You can use the link to integrate the booking data into calendars (e.g. Outlook or Apple Calendar) or other booking systems:
– the public link only transfers the occupied days without detailed information
– the private link contains additional data about the booking: booking number, notes, name and contact details of the guest – but NO price information about the booking. When passing on the private link, the valid data protection regulations must be observed!

If you integrate the data into your calendar, make sure to add the data as “Subscription” or “iCal Subscription”. With a subscription, the data is updated regularly. How often this is done depends on the settings of your calendar program. Various calendar programs also offer the option to import data via iCal. However, this usually means that the data is only added to the calendar once and is not automatically updated.

Via Pricings in the side menu, you can access the overview of pricing schemes. It is possible to create various pricing schemes, and each accommodation can be assigned its own pricing scheme.

Rental prices: Basic prices / seasonal prices

Basic prices and seasonal prices can be specified within each pricing scheme. A typical system is one basic price for each calendar year and different seasonal prices for periods with higher prices. When creating a pricing scheme, make sure that the periods of the basic prices respectively the periods of the seasonal prices do not overlap.

Price calculation day / night: Rental prices can be calculated for days or nights. When calculating by days, the day of arrival is also included.

Weekend prices: If prices are calculated per night, select the starting day, e.g. Friday for the night Friday/Saturday. If no day is selected, no weekend prices are used in the price calculation.

Days of arrival/departure: You can optionally specify the days on which arrivals and departures are possible.

Other services

Here you can define additional services such as final cleaning, visitor’s tax etc., which are either obligatory or optional.
Rental prices are calculated according to the number of nights, days or once only as a lump sum
Unit: Prices are calculated according to the number of children, adults, total number of guests (children + adults) or as a flat rate. It is possible to adjust the number automatically by a correction value: for example, the total number of guests (children + adults) can be defined as -2, if an additional charge is billed from the 3rd person onwards.

Discounts / Surcharges

Percentage discounts or surcharges can be defined here. These can optionally be used obligatorily when calculating the prices or added manually to a booking. Discounts must be entered with a negative sign (-5%). Surcharges can be used, to calculate local taxes. Several surcharges / discounts can be used in one booking.

By default, the surcharge / discount are included in the gross prices. They are not visible to the guest on the invoice.

As a special case, the calculation based on net prices and without tax can be selected. This corresponds to the calculation that must often be used for local taxes. The surcharge / discount is then shown separately on the invoice.

Price model check

When checking the price model, it is tested for each day whether a valid price has been set. Days without a price or days for which multiple applicable prices are listed as errors. The result of the check is downloaded as a .pdf file.

Effects of changes in the pricing scheme

Changes in the pricing scheme: Changes only have an effect on future or modified bookings; existing bookings remain unchanged as long as they are not modified (change of arrival / departure date or change of accommodation) and saved anew.

Multiple price models per accommodation

It is also possible to store several price models for one accommodation, e.g. one price model for 2021 and a separate price model for 2022. The price models may not overlap in time and will then be used for the price calculation depending on the date of the booking. Other services are calculated according to the price model that applies on the day of arrival.

Click on Statistics in the side menu to access the graphical analysis of occupancy rate and revenues. The display can be filtered by accommodations and time periods. The analysis can be switched between a representation in months and years. If you select one of the data points in the chart with the cursor, the respective values are displayed.

The following reports are available:

- Received payments: The received payments can be filtered and exported. The list is used for accounting purposes.

- Upcoming payments: The evaluation shows the expected, outstanding payments in the coming months and is used for the cash flow planning. For the assignment to months it is assumed that outstanding payments are received at the latest by the departure date of a booking.

- Tax included: The report lists the bookings with the included taxes.

Invoice export

Bookings can be filtered and selected. Invoices are created for the selected bookings and can then be downloaded in bulk.

Optionally, the invoice date can be defined during export, A) as the date of departure or B) as any selected date. The set invoice date will also be saved in the booking. If an invoice date was already stored in the entry before, it will be overwritten.

If no invoice date is defined for export
- the invoice date from the booking will be used
- if there is no invoice date defined in the booking, the current date will be used

The basic settings of the account can be accessed under Settings in the side menu. The following adjustments are possible here:

– Account settings

– Account data (name, address etc.)
– E-mail addresses, which are to receive a copy of messages to guests; several e-mail addresses are to be separated by “,”.
– Determination whether overlapping requested bookings are allowed in the account or not
– Determination whether a check of minimum stay, arrival/departure day and maximum number of persons should be skipped when creating bookings manually

– Login details

– Change of password, e-mail address and user name

– Settings for sending mails

In order for messages to be sent as e-mail, the settings for your SMTP server must be stored and checked/verified with a test e-mail. You receive the information from your provider, they correspond to the settings that you also store in your mail program.

The email address used to send messages as e-mail, can be set to be different from the email address of the account. Example:

- Account email address: max.meier@mail.de // Use this email address to log in and receive emails from the booking tool, e.g. when new booking requests are received.
- Mail address for messages: info@yourplace.de // Messages are sent to guests with this mail address as the sender. If no separate email address is stored, the email address of the account will continue to be used.

– Billing settings

– Currency used
– Standard tax rate
– Default for the automatic calculation of deposit and down payment as % amount or fixed amount. If nothing is defined here, or 0% is specified, no automatic calculation of deposit / down payment is performed.
– Determination of whether to use consecutive invoice numbers; for this, the next invoice number to be used has to be entered. If this function is not enabled, the booking number is used as invoice number.
– Modification of data and settings for invoices to guests
– Option to upload a logo that is used in the header of the invoice and can also be used in e-mails. On the invoice (pdf), the logo is limited to a width of 175 px. Possible file formats are .jpg and .png.
– Definition of footers for invoices. For example, if different bank accounts or company details are used

– Creating and managing templates for messages to guests

– Managing attachments for messages

– Creating and managing templates for tasks

– Managing the service providers for tasks

– Managing booking forms

– Managing tags for marking individual bookings or guests

You can create any templates for mails. Placeholders of the data fields (e.g. for booking number, guest name and address, booking details etc.) can be selected via a drop-down menu and inserted into the message.

Each template is only valid for the assigned accommodations. For example, an individual message can be defined for each accommodation to confirm the booking, which can only be used for bookings of this accommodation.

Each template can optionally be sent automatically, the trigger must then be defined accordingly, e.g.:
– Trigger: Arrival – after -5 days –> e-mail is automatically sent 5 days before arrival
– Trigger: Departure – after 3 days –> e-mail is automatically sent 3 days after departure
– Trigger: cancelled – after 0 days –> e-mail is automatically sent when the booking is cancelled
– Trigger: Requested via booking form – after 0 days –> e-mail is sent automatically as soon as a booking request is received via a form

Additional conditions can be defined for the dispatch of automatic messages:

- The recipient of the message is the guest by default. The mail address stored in the guest's contact data is then used for sending. Alternatively, one of the configured service providers can be defined as the recipient. This can be used, for example, to automatically send the housekeeper a mail such as "Guest arrives tomorrow ...".

– Send automatic mail only if booking status is “booked”: This prevents automatic messages from being sent if a booking is only requested and not binding. If this function is enabled, automatic messages of the template are sent only if the booking has the status “booked”.
– Send automatic mail only if booking status is “requested”: This condition can be used, for example, to send automatic reminders for the booking confirmation. If this function is activated, automatic messages of the template are only sent if the booking still has the status “requested”.
– Send automatic mail only if booking is not yet fully paid: This condition can be used, for example, to send automatic reminders for payments. If this function is enabled, automatic messages of the template are only sent if the booking has not been paid for in full.

If a booking is created or confirmed at such short notice that the defined sending time of an automatic message has already passed, the system will not send the message. The e-mail must then be sent manually. Example: An automatic message has the trigger Arrival – after -10 days, but the booking is created 8 days before arrival. Then the automatic message is not sent anymore, because the dispatch time has already been exceeded.

Attachments can be added to the message templates. This function is intended to send standard documents such as contract conditions, forms, route maps etc. to guests. Attachments for messages can also be managed in the settings.

Modifying message templates: The changes take effect immediately for all current and upcoming bookings. Newly created automatic messages are also effective for existing bookings, provided the defined dispatch time has not yet been exceeded.

Placeholders

Placeholders of data fields can be selected from the menu and inserted into the message. Most placeholders are self-explanatory.

Some explanation on the difference between the placeholders "Remaining payment" and "Final payment":
- Remaining payment refers to the payments received (remaining payment = total gross - payments received).
- Final payment refers to the defined down payment (final payment = total gross - down payment).
Both placeholders are also available incl. deposit.

Some explanation on the on the placeholders "Rent from pricing (gross)" and "Other services (gross)":
The placeholders can only be used if a pricing model is used for the calculation. It is then possible to specify what proportion of the total price is accounted for by the rent or by the additional services.
- Rent from pricing (gross) = the amount that was calculated from basic price / seasonal price using the pricing model.
- Other services (gross) = the amount that was NOT calculated using the price model from basic price / seasonal price.

Templates can be defined for tasks that are automatically created when a new booking is made as soon as the booking is given the status “booked”. The template defines for which service provider and for which date the task shall be created. The date is defined via the trigger, e.g.
– Trigger: Arrival – after -10 days –> Tasks from this template are created for the date 10 days prior to arrival
– Trigger: Departure – after 0 days -> Tasks from this template are created for the date of departure
If Automatic completion is activated, tasks from the template are automatically marked as completed on the due date. The tasks do not have to be marked as completed manually.

Changing templates for tasks: Existing tasks are not changed when templates are modified. For bookings that are newly assigned the status “booked”, automatic tasks are created according to the changed settings.

A service provider is a person or company to whom tasks can be assigned in the booking tool.

A provider can optionally be given access to the booking tool. Then he can log into the booking tool ans see his tasks and the associated bookings in the overview - he can mark his tasks as completed.

In the settings, it can also be enabled that a provider can see all bookings for selected accommodations in the booking overview

A provider cannot change data of bookings and does not get insight into financial details.

The access for a provider can be deactivated or adjusted at any time.

Booking forms can be embedded on the website of your accommodation.

It is possible to create various booking forms, each of which allows bookings for one or more accommodations. It is thus possible, for example, to use a separate booking form for each accommodation and at the same time booking forms for a group of apartments.

Booking forms can be used both for booking requests and for binding bookings with credit card payment:

Using forms for booking requests

Requests sent through the form are stored in the booking tool as a requested booking.

Using the booking form, the availability of the accommodation at the specified time is checked first.

If overlapping requested bookings are allowed (this can be defined in the settings), further requests can be sent via the booking form for these periods.

You will receive a mail about the received request, and you can edit it individually in the system.

Using messages templates, you can set up an automatic message to the requesting guest confirming receipt of the request.

Using forms for binding bookings with credit card payment

To use this function, "credit card payment" must be enabled in the respective booking form.
To set up and use credit card payment, please refer to the instructions in the relevant section of the manual.

Using the booking form, the availability of the accommodation at the specified time is checked first.

If the booking is possible, the calculated price will be indicated. Then the remaining data can be entered, and the full fee can be paid by credit card. The booking is then added to the booking tool as booked, the payment is recorded in the booking. You will receive a mail about the new booking.

In case the credit card payment is not successful, the booking is added to the booking tool as requested and can then be processed manually.

Using templates messages, you can set up an automatic message to the requesting guest to confirm the booking.

In the booking form, the contact details (name, address, e-mail, phone number) and the number of persons (adults & children) are requested by default. Up to 5 individual query fields can be defined per booking form, e.g. for additional comments, information on the age of the guests, etc. The following options are available for custom fields:
– A field can be defined as mandatory.
– A text as placeholder can be used to explain which specification is expected.
– If values for selection fields are defined, only one of these values can be selected.

Optionally, a web page can be defined which is opened as a “Thank you page” after the request has been sent. If no web page is defined, the specified message text will be displayed after the inquiry has been sent.

The form can optionally be preset to two columns for larger screens. For mobile devices, the form is displayed in one column.

Code of the booking form to be inserted on the website of your accommodation. The code is available in 2 variants: script (Javascript) and HTML (iframe). We recommend using the script variant. If you use a web builder for your website, Javascript is not allowed in some systems or leads to conflicts with the CSS of the website, in which case the iframe variant can be used.

The following adaptation is possible in the code:
– Display of the form in German or English

Please note: Booking forms serve to facilitate work, as only requests for free periods are accepted. Booking forms always have the effect that fewer requests are received. In the case of accommodation with low occupancy rates, a booking form is sometimes not expedient. In such cases, a general contact form or enquiries by e-mail will result in more bookings from guests who, for example, ask for several possible booking periods or who first want to get a clearer impression of the accommodation from their communication with the host.

Booking forms are designed for use with current browsers. When using your website with outdated browsers (such as Internet Explorer), display problems may occur when viewing the integrated booking form.

Bookings with credit card payment are possible using the booking forms.
Explanations of booking forms can be found in the respective section of this manual.

Credit card payments are processed via the provider Stripe (www.stripe.com). You need a Stripe account to use this Feature. URLAUBSARCHITEKTUR is not involved in the payment processing and does not receive any data on transactions etc. You can manage all incoming payments / payouts / refunds etc. in your Stripe Account.

To connect your Stripe account to the booking tool, you need your Public and Secret Key. Both details can be found at stripe in the section Developer / API-keys. Enter both keys in the settings of the booking tool and start the verification.

In order for bookings with credit card payment to be possible, it must be possible to calculate the price of the booking. Therefore, there must be a pricing model for the time of the booking.
Please check that the pricing model does not contain any errors that lead to a miscalculation of the rent.

At booking / payment it must be clearly indicated to the guest which terms apply.

Selection of elements in lists

Lines can be selected in a list box at various points in the booking tool, e.g.:
– when selecting accommodations in a booking or in the preferences
– when selecting weekdays in the pricing scheme
To deactivate a single line or activate an additional line, select with:
– Mac: cmd + click
– Windows: STRG + click

Adapting the iCal links of the availability calendars

The iCal links of the booking calendars generated by the booking tool contain by default all bookings with the status booked and all blocked time periods. In some cases, it may be useful or necessary to also transfer cancelled bookings and requested bookings. An application case is, for example, if a receiving system only processes a cancelled booking correctly if the booking is transferred as a cancelled calendar entry.

The iCal links can be extended and configured with the following additions so that cancelled bookings / requested bookings and arrival/departure times are also included; also the language of the detail information in bookings can be set:

- requested bookings: &includeInquired=true
- cancelled bookings: &includeCancelled=true
- German used for Details: &locale=de
- English used for Details: &locale=en
- arrival/departure time: &includeArrvialtime=16&includeDeparturetime=10 The time can be adjusted accordingly. The addition of arrival and departure times improves the presentation of bookings in some external calendar systems.

Examples:

iCal link (example): https://urlaubsarchitektur.biz/assets/ical/property-calendar.ics?propertyId=123456789

iCal link (example) with additions:
– https://urlaubsarchitektur.biz/assets/ical/property-calendar.ics?propertyId=123456789&includeCancelled=true&includeInquired=true
– https://urlaubsarchitektur.biz/assets/ical/property-calendar.ics?propertyId=123456789&includeArrvialtime=16&includeDeparturetime=10

Adapting the booking form / booking calendar

The appearance of the booking form and booking calendar, e.g. the colour of occupied periods, font or font size, can be customised to a very large extent with the script variant via HTML or CSS of your website. Please discuss this with your webmaster.

The customisation of the iframe variant is technically limited. Here are some examples of possible modifications:

– Display without border: style=“border:none“ or frameborder=“0? , e.g.: <iframe src="IHR LINK" width="500px" height="450px" style="border:none" ></iframe>
– Transparency: allowtransparency=”true”
– Window width / height: adjustment of width / height with specification in px or %, e.g.: width="500px" oder width="80%"
For WIX we recommend the following modification: <iframe src="IHR LINK" width="100%" height="100%" style="border:none" ></iframe>

Booking form for general enquiries

Booking forms work in 2 steps: First, the availability of the accommodation at the given date is checked. If the booking is possible, further data can be entered and sent.

However, you can also use the form to receive requests for any period of time and without selecting an accommodation:

– Create an additional accommodation, e.g. with the name “all flats”, “general enquiry” etc.
– Create a separate booking form for this new accommodation or add the accommodation to an existing form.
– As this new accommodation is never booked, requests are always possible for it. You can then process the incoming enquiries in the system.

Show holiday periods etc. in the booking overview

Would you like to display in the booking overview not only bookings, but also things such as holidays of employees, holiday times or public holidays? To do this, you can create additional accommodations, e.g. with the name “Holiday Team” and “Public Holidays”. You can then block the corresponding periods for these accommodations and have all the periods displayed in the booking overview.