Last Updated on June 16, 2023 by Rental Recon
As an Airbnb host, my Airbnb host calendar is one of my most important tools. The host calendar doesn’t only help me manage bookings, but I use it to schedule cleaning and maintenance at my properties as well.
If I am having problems with my calendar, it can create chaos for my rental business from double bookings to properties not being cleaned and serviced on time.
Keep reading for descriptions of common Airbnb host calendar problems and some simple fixes and tips to keep your calendar and rental up and running.
“Something is Wrong with Host Calendar”
Are your guests getting the error “something is wrong with host calendar” when they are trying to instant book your rental? I have had guests message me in the past with this problem and it can be very frustrating.
It is common to see this issue with new Airbnb users who have not yet verified their identity. If you require identity verification and a guest has not completed their verification, they may get this error. To fix it, you can ask your guest to verify their identity, or you can manually submit the booking request.
How to Share Your Airbnb Calendar
Sharing your Airbnb calendar can be very useful. I share my calendar with my cleaning team, so they know what days the rental is booked and when cleanings need to be scheduled. You may also want to share your calendar with another rental website or third-party calendar app.
Sharing your calendar is easy and just requires that the calendar you will you exporting to supports iCal format. Follow these steps:
- Log into your Airbnb account
- Navigate to your dashboard
- Go to Listings and select a listing
- Click Pricing and Availability
- Click Calendar Sync
- Select Export Calendar
- A window will appear with your iCal link
- Copy this link
The iCal link can be sent to another party to paste into their calendar app, or you can use this link to share your calendar to your own calendar app.
Note- This cannot be done on the Airbnb mobile app. You must use the desktop website.
Airbnb Calendar Not Working
Like any app or website, Airbnb does get bugs and glitches that can cause the host calendar to not function correctly. Most hosts experience calendar issues on the Airbnb mobile app. For this reason, Airbnb recommends that you use the desktop website to manage your calendar.
You may experience issues if you have recently updated your phone, or you are not using the latest version of the Airbnb app. Most users were able to solve this issue by deleting the Airbnb app and then reinstalling it.
My Airbnb Calendar Is Not Refreshing
If your Airbnb calendar isn’t refreshing, this can create numerous problems, most notably, double bookings. The calendar is supposed to refresh every few minutes to stay up to date, however, sometimes this doesn’t happen.
To manually refresh your Airbnb host calendar, follow these steps:
- Log into your Airbnb account
- From the host menu, select Manage Listings
- Click on a unit or listing
- Under the hosting section select Calendar
- Click on Availability Settings
- Scroll down and click on Sync Calendars
This will manually sync your calendars so your rental’s availability and information will be updated.
My VRBO Calendar Is Not Syncing with My Airbnb Calendar
It is common for hosts to list their properties on more than one rental platform to increase bookings. If you have your rental listed on both Airbnb and VRBO, it is crucial that the calendars sync to avoid double bookings.
You can import and export your calendars between these sites by locating your iCal link and then copying it and pasting it into the desired calendar. To find your iCal link, follow these steps:
- From your Airbnb dashboard go to Listings and select a listing
- Select Pricing and Availability
- Click on Calendar Sync
- Select Export Calendar
- A window will appear with your iCal link
The link is usually long and is comprised of letters and numbers.
Some hosts have experienced issues getting the two calendars to work together. One solution for this is to disable Instant Book on Airbnb. This way, guests must request a booking and the host can check the calendar to ensure the desired dates are available.
Although this extra step can be inconvenient, it is the best way to ensure that rentals will not be double booked.
How to Sync Airbnb Calendar to iPhone
Many hosts like to sync their Airbnb calendar to their iPhone or iPad for the convenience of managing their calendars on the go. This is simple and can be accomplished by exporting your Airbnb calendar to your iCloud calendar using the iCal link.
To import the iCal link to your iPhone or iPad, follow these steps:
- Go to the Settings on your iPhone/iPad
- Click Passwords and Accounts
- Select Add Account
- Choose Other and scroll down to Add Subscribed Calendar
- Paste the iCal link in this spot
- Click Next then click Done
Your calendar and all your bookings should now be viewable on your iPhone or iPad.
What is the Airbnb Calendar Sync Frequency?
Your Airbnb calendar is supposed to automatically sync every five minutes. Other calendars that you may have linked to your Airbnb calendar, however, may have other sync frequencies.
It is important to check that all of your calendars are syncing and they are not, perform a manual sync to issue the information showing up on each calendar is accurate and up to date.
How to Link Airbnb Calendar to Booking.com
Booking.com is another website that is frequently used with Airbnb. Just like VRBO, it is important that these calendars are linked. You will again use the iCal link for your Airbnb calendar to sync the calendar with your booking.com calendar. Once you have your iCal link, follow these steps:
- Log into your Booking.com account
- Click on the Calendar tab
- Select Sync Calendars
- Click on Add Calendar Connection
- Paste the iCloud link in the correct field
- Name your new calendar
- Click Next
It is important to stay up to date on all your reservations across various booking websites. You can also export your Booking.com calendar to other third-party calendars to manage your rentals.
Airbnb Multi Calendar View
If you manage multiple properties or units, Airbnb has the option to have a multi-calendar view so you can see all your bookings for each property on one calendar. To access the multi-calendar view, follow these steps:
- Log into your Airbnb account
- Select Account Settings
- Click Settings
- When you see Use Professional Tools, select Opt-in.
This will allow you to use a multi-calendar view.
Several hosts have reported issues with multi-calendar view on Airbnb or have complaints that it does not complete certain functions. As an Airbnb host, you do have the option to use a third-party calendar managing app.
There are several companies including Uplisting, Hosty’s, Your Porter App, and Guesty that provide multi-calendar apps for managing Airbnb rentals. These apps allow you to sync all your property calendars in one convenient location. They also provide more customizable options like filtering that Airbnb multi calendars do not have.
A third-party app will usually require a fee, but if you have multiple listings and want to stay organized, it is a good investment for your rental business.
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Airbnb Blocked My Calendar
A common question I receive regarding Airbnb calendars is “why is my Airbnb calendar blocked?”. Dates on your Airbnb host calendar may be blocked for a variety of reasons.
- Listing Settings- The settings you choose for your listing may cause your calendar to automatically block dates. Settings regarding advance notice, preparation time, and availability window all effect when a date is automatically blocked.
To change the preparation time between reservations, follow these steps:
- From your Airbnb account click Listings
- Click Pricing and Availability
- Select Calendar Availability
- Click Edit next to Preparation Time
- Choose the desired time and click Save
- Pending Reservations- If you have a reservation pending, the dates will be blocked until you accept or decline the reservation. This is done to avoid double bookings. What many hosts don’t realize is that if you fail to respond to the request within 24 hours, the date will remain blocked until you manually unblock it. You can adjust your notification settings to receive alerts when you have a reservation request to avoid this issue.
- Confirmed Reservations- Once a reservation request is accepted, Airbnb will automatically block the requested reservation dates.
- Syncing Events from Other Calendars- If your listing is on several rental platforms and you have your calendars synced, your Airbnb calendar will block dates if your listing books on another site. This prevents double bookings at your rental.
- Cancelled Reservation- If you cancel a reservation as a host, the reservation dates will remain blocked. This is one of Airbnb’s cancellation penalties to deter hosts from unnecessarily canceling guest reservations.
Your calendar will not be blocked if a guest makes an inquiry about reservation dates. This allows multiple guests interested in the same dates to ask questions about the property before the listing is reserved or blocked for booking.
If you pre-approve an inquiry, you have the option to hold and block the dates that the guest asked about for 24 hours. Preapprovals can be retracted if you change your mind.
Sometimes, Airbnb will have an internal issue and you will lose access to your calendar until that issue is resolved. Many hosts find that when they are having issues with the mobile app, the desktop website is actually working fine.
If the desktop website is also having issues, you can report those issues to Airbnb. There is also a website called Downdetector.com that receives user reports and will show any current problems or outages that Airbnb is experiencing.
Your Airbnb Calendar URL is the same thing as your calendar iCal link. This is used for importing and exporting your calendar to different calendar apps.
Locating your Airbnb calendar URL or iCal link is simple. Follow these steps:
1. Log into your Airbnb account.
2. From the Host section, select Calendar
3. Click on Availability Settings
4. Locate Sync calendars at the bottom of the page
5. Click on Export calendar
The link that appears is the calendar URL.
If your Airbnb calendar isn’t updating, it could be a glitch with the Airbnb website or app, or it could be a simple problem with an easy fix. Try these actions to get your calendar updated:
-Refresh your browser
-Clear cache and cookies and refresh your browser
-Log out of Airbnb and then log back in
-Manually sync your calendar
-Always make sure you are hitting the Save button after making changes
One host found that every time they added something to their guidebook the calendar would update. If nothing else works, this is a useful trick.
Final Thoughts
Managing an Airbnb, especially if you have multiple listings or units, can be a complicated job. The Airbnb host calendar is an important tool to help you stay organized whether it is booking on multiple sites or arranging for cleaning and maintenance at your rentals. Always make sure your calendars are synced and up to date to ensure the most success with your Airbnb rental properties.
