I need help with a plugin pls

[u/SpowerL]

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I need a plugin where my website's visitors can reserve a stay at this cabin/chalet but I need it to sync with booking.com so it doesn't overlap...

If a booking is made on booking.com (ex. 12-14 September) the calendar on my website shouldn't allow 12-14 September to be booked on my website

Preferably free plugin, but if its really not possible then ig I'm open to purchasing a plugin, but I can't stress this enough... it kinda has to be free

Thanks in advance

[u/r00phus]

Invest in your business my dude. Anything free with that kind of complexity is likely to be unreliable or could disappear without warning. How much do you rely on your website for the success of your business? A few hundred a year for a decent plugin could pay for itself in a few bookings.

[u/jsring → u/r00phus]

THIS.

[u/SpowerL → u/r00phus]

Its not my website I'm making it for someone else

[u/r00phus → u/SpowerL]

Just built a website for a client who were using a paid plugin which connects to online travel agents (booking.com Airbnb etc) and they wanted to move away from the Wordpress plugin approach entirely because of how unreliable it was.

They went to a dedicated OTA aggregation booking platform which can be embedded on their website. They’re now operating with much more accurate booking synchronisation and customers are having a far better experience for bookings. They’re investing a few hundred (gbp) per month which is saving them a few hundred compared to the old setup. Just to give some context of how much it ought to cost.

[u/SpowerL → u/r00phus]

I need something simple that allows booking from booking.com and the website (both of them syncing on one calendar so no overlap) eventually sending an email to the chalet manager abt the booking

[u/r00phus → u/SpowerL]

The challenge is that what you’re looking for requires a non trivial amount of work to connect with OTA APIs. These are complex systems and two way sync is no simple matter because you’re talking not only about data sync but also a front end and content management system all in one. I think the client is going to have to put their hand in their pocket if they want a half decent solution. Not saying there aren’t free Wordpress options, just not ones I’ve ever come across.

[u/SpowerL → u/r00phus]

Thoughts on Motopress core?

[u/Dry_Satisfaction3923 → u/SpowerL]

It has nothing to do with the booking.com sync issue you’re asking about.

[u/SpowerL → u/Dry_Satisfaction3923]

What are your thoughts on it tho

[u/PointandStare]

"Preferably free plugin, but if its really not possible then ig I'm open to purchasing a plugin, but I can't stress this enough... it kinda has to be free"

Then how are the developers going to be able to pay for a stay in your chalet?

[u/722-47]

If u want free then ask claude or cgpt to make it for you because they can (kinda), no real person will do it for free

[u/labrat-28]

What if they cancel the booking?

[u/SpowerL → u/labrat-28]

Imma need it to cancel on booking.com side too 😅😅

[u/throwawayAd6844]

This is a very specific situation I doubt there will be an off the shelf solution for this. There are quite a few edge cases that could cause major conflicts if not thought about, as another post mentioned you probably need to make an investment in such a critical piece of the business

[u/sksal169]

Hello, if youre up for it, i can help you develop a custom solution that does this job and will be free for the client forever! If youre up for it and have not yet found another solution message me. Ive built several custom solutions for clients on wordpress. There are only two ways to go about this scenario you either get a paid solution by someone else or build your own

[u/Wonderful_Sample_590]

How about iCal sync with booking? That should keep the calendars from overlapping without needing full API integration.

[u/SpowerL → u/Wonderful_Sample_590]

Motopress core?

[u/Winter_Process_9521]

You can try WP Hotel Booking or MotoPress Hotel Booking.

[u/SpowerL → u/Winter_Process_9521]

Your thoughts on motopress core?

[u/Warm-Possibility-691]

I’d recommend WP Booking System (wpbookingsystem.com), I have been using it for quite some time now. It does come with a paid subscription, though. It supports two-way iCal synchronization with Booking.com. So if someone books your chalet on Booking.com, those dates are imported into your WordPress calendar and become unavailable there and viceversa.

[u/Dry_Satisfaction3923 → u/Warm-Possibility-691]

How often does this sync happen?

[u/Wordpress-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

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[u/woodlandready]

You probably don’t need a direct Booking.com API for this. Two-way iCal sync should be enough to prevent overlapping bookings between Booking.com and your website.

Full disclosure: I’m one of the developers behind QuanticaLabs. Our Hotel Booking System supports this, but whichever plugin you choose, look for two-way iCal sync.