Chapter 2

How To List Your Property on Booking.com

Convinced yet to add your property as a listing on Booking.com? Once you decide that you are ready to list on Booking.com, the next step is to register your property so that you can get it listed on this platform. This process only requires a few steps and can move quickly, but you’ll want to take the time at this stage to confirm that your property is listed accurately.


First thing first: how to register a property on Booking.com? To start, you’ll need to visit join.booking.com. Click the “Get Started” button, and a series of pages will guide you through the initial steps of your account creation (with information such as your email address, password, and contact information). 

Once this is complete, you can begin to register your property by first selecting the type of property to want to list. Booking.com provides four main categories from which you can choose (with a brief explanation of each if clarification is needed): 

  • Apartment: these are single, self-catered units that are rented in their entirety.
  • House: similar to the apartment category, these independent homes might be distinguished by the fact that they are detached and perhaps also come with some private perks outside, such as an exclusive yard or beachfront.
  • Hotels, B&Bs, and More: this category is for those who want to rent out multiple rooms within the same building or unit. If, for example, your three bed & breakfast rooms are part of your own private dwelling, you should pick this option.
  • Alternative Places: staying on trend with the current popularity of “experience travel,” Booking.com’s final category caters to those spaces that are more unique, for instance, anything from a yurt to a yacht. 

These options might seem straightforward, but it is to your advantage to consider under which one your property falls as it will influence the searches in which your listing pops up on the website. Keep in mind that it will also depend on where your property’s located and if you need a license for it. Some countries require tourism licenses, so you will have to select the property type you have a license for.

Once you’ve selected your category from the four listed above, you will then be prompted to identify how many you wish to list. For example, if you select the “Apartment” option, you will then need to select between “one apartment” or “multiple apartments”. If “one apartment” is all you need to list, then you can follow those prompts, add in the property details, including address, and your contact information to complete your registration. 

While we’ll cover the ways to make your property shine in a later chapter, you should already be thinking at this stage about how to advertise your property on Booking.com effectively. Perhaps most important at this stage from this marketing perspective, is the name you give your property, as this will be the heading title that potential renters will see when they search Booking.com. Concise and captivating is the way to go, but you should also try to use this name to call out the unique features of your rental: “3450 Main Street Two-Bedroom” is far less exciting, for instance, than “Riverside High Rise Oasis,” which implies the striking tranquillity and views possible.

With this registration complete, your details will go under review by the Booking.com team and, once approved, you’ll receive an email with your login credentials. That means you can now fill out your property’s page. At this stage, you can:

  • Add photos of your space that are both accurate and flattering. Warm-up your shutter finger: Booking.com recommends posting at least 24 photos of your property.
  • Share the essentials that come with your rental. These can be added under “Facilities & Services” and should include all amenities to which renters can have access (don’t forget the essentials, like a washing machine or air conditioning unit, if you have them!).
  • Update the availability calendar so that potential renters will be able to assess quickly when your unit might be free. You can confirm you’ve updated this calendar correctly by visiting the “Rates & Availability” page.
  • Share something about yourself under “Your Profile”; this doesn’t need to be your entire life story, but a little backstory can make your property all the more compelling.
  • Price your property just right by looking at other listings similar to yours. You don’t want to be the most pricey rental on the block unless you have the unique features to support it. Also look into their cancellation and prepayment policies as they also need to be aligned with the market to increase potential bookings.

Remember, drafting these components is the time to make your rental property shine. Double-check your photos, for example, to make sure no embarrassing shots make your page, and ensure that you are providing the most accurate information about your unit’s location and offerings. 

How to Register Multiple Properties on Booking

If you have multiple properties to list on Booking.com, the process is very straightforward: instead of selecting “one apartment” as noted in the earlier scenario you can instead select “multiple apartments.” You will then need to share if all of these units are at the same address or in different locations and then will be prompted to provide the required information for each. 

If you are not ready to add multiple properties from the outset of your Booking.com experience, that is okay: you can always add more properties later on. If you wish to add a new rental at the same address as another of your listed properties, you can click “Property Layout” and Booking.com will prompt you to enter the additional details. If you have an entirely new address to list, you will need to click on “Add Another Property” and complete the registration process from the beginning. 

How to Create House Rules on Booking.com

Vacation and leisure travelers are often looking for fun and indulgence during their time away from home, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t put some limitations on their actions in your rental property. Some buildings and neighborhoods have noise, pet, or litter covenants, for example, that renters will need to uphold; in other locations, such as sleepy seaside villages, you might just want to make sure that your renters are respectful to the local community. 

To add these rules or restrictions, start by heading to “Policies” and click on the “House Rules” tab. There, you can click on “edit” to note guidelines such as if your property accommodates pets or smokers or has set hours for limited noise. Once you click “Save,” these will appear in your properties profile. It can also be a good idea to remind renters of these rules when they check-in or in a manual that awaits them in the unit, but we’ll return to this topic in a later chapter. 

Tips for Maximizing your Booking.com Listing

Knowing the ins and outs of each channel you’re present on is a necessary step towards increasing your bookings. Follow these easy tips to maximize your success when advertising your property on Booking.com.

  • Respond to any inquiries immediately

As Booking.com is an instant booking channel, all communication with prospective guests will have to be as quick as possible. That means always being alert to any new messages that you receive, and, if you want to save some time and effort, preparing autoresponders. By having ready-made answers which resolve the most frequently asked questions, you will be able to reply to your inquirer in just a few clicks.

  • Be crystal clear with information

Autoresponders are a good solution, but it’s even better when you don’t have doubts to respond to! So, how can you reduce the number of questions you receive? By being as clear as possible in your listings. Put yourself in your guests’ shoes and think of all the questions you might have as a possible renter. What information would you need before making your booking? Explain in detail and include everything that a stay at your property provides.

  • Show it off with photos

Guests who are searching for their next vacation property want to see it from all angles in order to imagine themselves there. Be sure to include high-quality photos of every corner of your property so that travelers know exactly what to expect from it. Photos can also help resolve any doubts about the type of beds you provide, whether the kitchen has an oven or not and so on.

  • Choose your amenities well

When inputting the amenities that you provide at your vacation rental, be sure to include them all – however basic they may seem! If you can, check out your competitors (properties in the same area as yours with similar bedroom/bathroom numbers) to see what amenities they have. You may even be able to offer something that they can’t, which will help your rental stand out from the crowd.

How to Integrate Booking.com With Lodgify

We understand the importance of distribution for your vacation rental business, that’s why we offer a full two-way connection with Booking.com. This means that, from inside your Lodgify account, you can manage everything related to your listings on Booking.com. If you already have a Lodgify account and you want to list on Booking.com, it’s super easy to set up. What’s more, you won’t have to worry about modifying calendars and rates on both platforms – you can do it from one place inside your Lodgify account.

Our team of experts are on hand to facilitate the Lodgify and Booking.com integration. This connection is completely free and will help to save you a lot of management time!

Steps for advertising your property on Booking.com with Lodgify:

1. Register on Booking.com for your free account.
2. Set up your properties so that they correspond to the properties in your Lodgify account.
3. Select Lodgify as your “Channel Manager” in Booking.com.
4. Contact us and we’ll help you connect the two channels.