Is there a Smoobu alternative for hosts in Switzerland?

What is Smoobu good for?

Smoobu, based in Berlin, is a channel manager with a booking calendar and direct bookings. These are its main strengths for Swiss hosts:

• Integrations with Airbnb and Booking.com, plus Expedia and over 100 portals, according to Smoobu. You manage prices and availability in one place.
• feratel integration: In feratel destinations, online check-in sends the guest registration form to feratel, and in some regions includes a guest card.
• atraveo by Interhome: An integration is generally possible, according to atraveo. Set-up is available on request.
• HomeToGo: directly integrated, according to HomeToGo.
• Interface in German, French and Italian, with a 14-day trial and no credit card required.

How much does Smoobu cost?

At an assumed exchange rate of 1 EUR = CHF 0.93, the annual plan for one property costs around CHF 352 per year. Ten properties on the two-year plan cost around CHF 1'277 per year. With Flex and turnover of CHF 23'100, you pay around CHF 324 for the subscription plus CHF 208 in booking fees, or around CHF 532 in total. Smoobu only shows VAT at checkout.

How is Stovita different for Swiss hosts?

The key difference: Smoobu syncs prices and listings via an integration. Stovita connects calendars via calendar links. Booked dates are shared in both directions, but you manage prices on Airbnb and Booking.com yourself. In return, Stovita takes care of Swiss requirements that Smoobu only covers in feratel destinations.

How much difference does it make per year?

For one apartment, Smoobu costs around CHF 352 per year on the annual plan, while Stovita costs nothing. Neither charges commission on direct bookings on its Pre-paid plan. Airbnb and Booking.com fees stay the same with both, because they come from the platforms, not the software. So the difference comes down to the subscription and the work the software takes off your hands: setting prices centrally with Smoobu, or tourist tax and guest registration forms with Stovita.

Who should stick with Smoobu?

• You change prices often and want to set them for all channels in one place.
• Your apartment is in a feratel destination, where guest registration forms and tourist tax are already handled through feratel.
• You want guests to pay online by card straight away when they book directly.
• You use atraveo or HomeToGo and want to manage prices there directly.

Who is Stovita better suited to?

• You rent out one to three apartments with fixed seasonal prices and don't want a monthly fee.
• Your apartment is in Bern, Valais or Graubünden, for example, where Airbnb doesn't collect tourist tax. Stovita calculates it according to your municipality's rules.
• You want your own booking website in four languages, with QR bills, on your own domain or at stays.swissactivities.com.
• You need to count nights because your municipality has a limit.

How can you try Stovita without giving up Smoobu?

1. Sign up for Stovita for free and import your Airbnb listing using a link.
2. Add the calendar links from Airbnb, Booking.com and your other channels.
3. Check your municipality's tourist tax rules and activate your booking website.
4. Run both in parallel for a season, then decide. Cancel Smoobu at the end of your subscription period.