📌 This article answers the following questions:
- How do I switch my bookings to ‘deferred confirmation’ mode (pending approval)?
- How do I set the response time limit for accepting or rejecting a pre-booking?
- What happens if I don’t confirm a pre-booking within the time limit?
- Is deferred confirmation synchronised with Airbnb and Booking.com?
Why is this important?
Opting for deferred confirmation is a winning strategy for hosts who wish to:
Build a relationship: Chat with your future guests before their stay to better prepare for their arrival.
Avoid scheduling errors: Maintain full control over your availability, especially when managing complex bookings.
Verify guests’ profiles: Ensure the booking request fully complies with your property’s house rules.
What your guests will see
Follow the step-by-step guide
Step 1: Access your accommodation
To manage your listing settings, follow these steps:
In the side menu, click on My Business.
Select the ‘My offers’ tab.
You will then be taken to the interface for managing your offers.
Step 2: Access your listing’s Expert Mode
Click on the offer you wish to switch to deferred confirmation.
Go to the ‘Expert Mode’ tab to access the advanced booking settings.
Step 3: Enable deferred confirmation and set the response time
To manage your booking requests manually rather than accepting them automatically:
Disable the ‘Immediate Booking’ option to switch to deferred confirmation mode.
Set the timeframe within which you can accept or decline the request.
💡 Tip: A short response time (less than 24 hours) is strongly recommended to reassure your guests and prevent them from booking elsewhere in the meantime.
Step 4: Manage your pre-bookings
View and process all your booking requests directly from your elloha dashboard.
Go to the ‘Bookings’ tab, then ‘Pending’ to view the list of requests received.
Select the relevant booking to view the details of the stay.
Choose to Accept or Decline the enquiry based on your availability in your calendar or your communications with the guest.
For more information on this topic, see our detailed article on managing bookings.
Key points to note regarding deferred confirmation
Here is the essential information for managing your bookings with deferred confirmation:
OTA synchronisation: sales channels (Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia, etc.) do not retrieve this specific setting from your elloha account.
Payment methods: the ‘Partial prepayment’ and ‘Full prepayment’ options are disabled for these services; payment must be processed manually after accepting the booking. See our detailed article on payment methods.
⚠️ Pleasenote: If you do not confirm a pre-booking within the specified timeframe, it will be automatically cancelled and your guest will be notified. To reactivate it, you will need to manually add a new service to the booking file.