Short-term rentals5 min read
The booking calendar: what it is and how to manage occupancy with it
The booking calendar (known in Russia as the “shakhmatka”) is the main working screen in vacation rentals and hospitality. It shows which properties are occupied, where dates are free and when check-ins and check-outs happen. Here is how it is laid out, which features you really need and how to manage occupancy of apartments, hotels and guest houses with it.
What a booking calendar is
A booking calendar is a reservation grid laid out as a table. Rows are properties or rooms, columns are days, and each booking appears as a coloured bar on its dates. In Russia it is called a “shakhmatka” because the pattern of occupied and free cells looks like a chessboard.
Unlike a plain list of bookings, a booking calendar shows occupancy as a whole: free gaps, overlaps, check-ins and check-outs across all properties at once.
Why a booking calendar beats a spreadsheet or a booking list
- Free dates are visible at a glance. You do not have to search through bookings to tell a guest whether a property is free.
- Gaps between bookings stand out. Short one- or two-night gaps are easy to find and offer to guests.
- Overlaps are ruled out. The system will not let you save two bookings for the same dates in one property.
- You plan the day from one screen. Check-ins, check-outs and cleaning are visible on one date line.
- Occupancy in numbers. The summary shows occupancy, check-ins, check-outs and revenue for the period.
Booking statuses in the calendar
The colour and style of a bar show the booking’s status. Statuses differ between systems, but the main ones are:
- Tentative booking. The guest has confirmed the dates but not paid a prepayment yet. The dates are held, and the colour reminds you that payment has not been received.
- Prepaid booking. The guest has paid a prepayment, and the dates are taken in the calendar and on connected channels.
- Checked in. The guest is already staying at the property.
- Block. Dates closed without a guest: maintenance, personal use or servicing.
The status changes automatically: once a prepayment is made, a tentative booking becomes paid.
Which features a booking calendar needs
Rows for properties and rooms. Apartments and houses take one row each, while a hotel expands into individual rooms. Properties can be grouped by type or occupancy.
Quick booking preview. The guest’s name, dates, amount and booking source are visible without opening the booking card.
Filters. Find available properties, check-ins and check-outs for a chosen period.
Editing bookings in the grid. Extend a stay, move a booking to another property or change dates right in the calendar, with an automatic availability check.
Monthly summary. Occupancy, available properties, number of check-ins and check-outs, and revenue.
Channel sync. Channel bookings land in the calendar automatically, and occupied dates are blocked on your other sales channels.
Mobile version. Owners and managers need the calendar on their phones when away from the desk.
How to manage occupancy with the calendar
- Enter every booking in the calendar without exception: from channels, by phone and from your website. Only then does it reflect real occupancy.
- Regularly review the next two or three weeks and look for gaps between bookings. Short gaps are easier to fill with a special offer or a different minimum stay on the channel.
- Block dates for maintenance or personal use so they are not sold.
- Record the source of every booking. Over time you will see which sales channels bring the most guests and revenue.
- Compare occupancy and revenue month by month to see seasonality and plan prices ahead.
A booking calendar for hotels and apartments
In a hotel, a booking is made for a specific room, so each room needs its own row. If you manage a hotel as one row, you cannot accept bookings for different rooms on the same dates.
Owners with a mixed portfolio may have apartments, country houses and hotel rooms all at once. It is easier when they are all in one calendar, split into groups, rather than spread across different calendars.
The booking calendar and protection from double bookings
A booking calendar becomes the main source of occupancy data only together with channel sync. The causes of double bookings and how to avoid them are covered in the article “Double bookings in vacation rentals”.
How the booking calendar works in Glavbook
- Apartments, houses and hotel rooms in one calendar, grouped by type or occupancy.
- Tentative bookings (no prepayment), prepaid bookings, check-ins and blocks each have their own colour. A tentative booking holds the dates and is sent to the channels just like a paid one.
- Quick preview: the guest, phone, dates, amount and booking source right on the calendar bar.
- Filters for available properties, check-ins and check-outs, search by property name, and a monthly summary with occupancy and revenue.
- Change dates and move a booking to another property right in the calendar, keeping the guest, amount and notes.
- Bookings from connected channels arrive automatically, and the system flags overlapping periods as a conflict.
- The booking card has the nightly rate, total, deposit, payments and balance, a blacklist check and the change history.
- A mobile booking calendar in the browser and in the Android app.
More on the page “Booking calendar”.
FAQ
Why is the booking calendar called a “shakhmatka” in Russia?
Occupied and free cells alternate in the grid of properties and dates and look like a chessboard. The name stuck in Russian hospitality and vacation rentals.
Can I manage a hotel and apartments in one calendar?
Yes, if the system supports different property types. Hotel rooms appear as separate rows alongside apartments and country houses.
How is a tentative booking different from a regular one?
A tentative booking is a booking without a prepayment. The dates are still held in the calendar and on connected channels, and the colour shows that payment has not been received yet.