How do you sync your Airbnb calendar via iCal?

What do you need?

• Your Airbnb host account and the listing you want to connect.
• A Stovita account with the same property. Registration is free.
• A computer. These steps follow Airbnb’s help guide for the website.

Step 1: How do you add the Airbnb link to Stovita?

1. On Airbnb, open «Calendar» and select the listing’s calendar.
2. Click «Availability».
3. Under «Link calendars», click «Connect to another website».
4. Copy the Airbnb calendar link. It ends in .ics.
5. In Stovita, open «Properties», then «Platforms», and click «Connect calendar».
6. Select the property, paste the link into the «Platform calendar link» field and save. Stovita recognises Airbnb from the link.

Step 2: How do you add the Stovita link to Airbnb?

1. After saving, Stovita displays «Almost done: add the link on the platform». Click «Copy calendar link».
2. On Airbnb, go back to «Link calendars» and «Connect to another website».
3. Paste the Stovita link into the calendar address field.
4. Give the calendar a name, for example «Stovita», and click «Add calendar».

How often does Airbnb sync?

According to Airbnb, your calendar is updated automatically every three hours. If you don’t want to wait, click «Refresh calendar» next to the linked calendar. Airbnb limits these requests. If you reach the limit, wait for the next automatic update. Airbnb shows when each calendar was last updated and imports data up to two years ahead.

Stovita reads the Airbnb calendar every 15 minutes. So an Airbnb booking appears in Stovita quickly. In the other direction, it can take up to three hours for Airbnb to see a direct booking. If you get a direct booking at short notice, click «Refresh calendar» on Airbnb.

What does the link transfer?

Airbnb blocks nights booked on Airbnb in linked calendars. According to its help pages, Airbnb doesn’t always block nights that you block in another calendar. Nights on Airbnb are also blocked by settings such as preparation time, advance notice and minimum stay. If you see Airbnb blocks in Stovita that you didn’t set, check these settings.

A calendar link doesn’t transfer prices, email addresses or payments. If Airbnb provides a name in the entry, Stovita uses it; otherwise, it shows «Guest via Airbnb». Your Stovita link reports occupied nights as «Reserved», without guest details.

Which mistakes are common?

• Wrong link: Airbnb only accepts links that end in .ics. Your listing address won’t work.
• Wrong listing: If you have several listings, each one has its own link. If Stovita can no longer find a single known booking in the calendar, it pauses the sync and asks whether the link points to a different listing.
• One-way sync only: If the connection in Stovita says «Never fetched», Airbnb doesn’t have the Stovita link. That means Airbnb can’t see your direct bookings.
• The same link twice: You can only connect an Airbnb link once per property. Otherwise, every booking would conflict with itself, so Stovita won’t allow it.
• Stay is one night too short: In Stovita, under «Edit», set «How the platform records the end» to «Last night». Stovita will alert you if the calendar looks like this afterwards.
• Restarting the sync: You can’t pause an imported calendar on Airbnb. Disconnect it using «Edit» and «Disconnect», then connect it again.

And what about tourist tax?

In some cantons, Airbnb collects the tourist tax itself; in others, it doesn’t. Stovita knows which cantons Airbnb collects it in. Details: Airbnb in Switzerland and tourist tax.