Direct Bookings are available on the Pro plan and above. If you're on the Host plan, you'll need to upgrade before you can set up a Direct Booking site.
To check your current plan: Go to Settings → Subscription in Hospitable. Your active plan is shown at the top of the page.
To upgrade: From the Subscription page, click Upgrade and select the Pro plan. Your new features (including Direct Bookings) will be available immediately after upgrading.
To create bookings for returning guests, you can either share your site link for guests to book or create a payment link with their details.
From the Inbox or Calendar Click
+Add bookingSelect Add a Direct Booking
It will open a new page and show the amount (Optional: you can edit the prices to set a custom quote for your guest)
Select the property and adjust the number of guests
Identify the check-in and check-out dates
The calendar prices will be generated or the prices can be set and changed to create a custom quote
This is an optional step, allowing you to edit values for your nightly rate and fees
You can add any additional fees or discounts.
Taxes and Direct Premium fee calculation update automatically
Add the guest details
Set the quote expiration time of 24, 48, 72 hours or 1 week.
Confirm details and submit
Hospitable emails a link to pay to the guest
Once payment is completed, the booking will automatically be accepted unless the guest is flagged with Higher risk after completing the Guest Verification on Direct Premium.
Booking dates that are blocked on the calendar
If the dates you want to book are already blocked on your calendar, you don't need to manually unblock them first. When you create a Direct booking using a custom quote, Hospitable will temporarily block those dates while the quote is active. If the guest completes payment, the booking is confirmed and the dates remain blocked. If the quote expires or is canceled, the block is automatically removed and the dates become available again.
Booking without collecting payment (comp stays)
The Direct booking flow always generates a payment link for the guest, so there is no way to create a $0 Direct booking through Hospitable. If you need to add a complimentary stay — for example, for friends, family, or a maintenance hold — use a Manual Booking instead:
Open your calendar and click Add Booking.
Select Manual Booking (instead of Direct Booking).
Fill in the guest details and dates.
A Manual Booking blocks the dates on your calendar and triggers your automated messaging, but it does not process any payment through Hospitable.
Booking for a guest who already has an upcoming reservation
You can create a new Direct booking for a guest who already has an existing upcoming reservation. Each booking is treated independently — the system does not block or warn you about overlapping guests. The guest will receive a separate payment link and confirmation for the new booking.
Once you create a Direct booking, here's what happens behind the scenes:
Does the guest receive a confirmation email?
Yes — but the timing depends on your Direct plan:
Immediately after you create the booking, Hospitable emails the guest a secure payment link.
After the guest completes payment:
Direct Basic: The reservation is automatically accepted, and the guest receives a booking confirmation.
Direct Premium: The guest must first complete ID Verification and any Guest Portal tasks. Once verified, the host can accept the reservation (or it is auto-accepted if Instant Book is enabled and the guest passes verification). The confirmation email is sent only after the booking is accepted.
Is payment collected immediately?
Not exactly. Here's how the payment flow works:
Authorization hold: When the guest submits their payment details, Hospitable places an authorization hold on their card. This reserves the funds but does not charge them yet. The booking shows as Pending.
Capture (charge): The card is actually charged only when the booking is accepted — either manually by you, or automatically if Instant Book is enabled and the guest passes verification.
In short: the guest's card is authorized at the time of payment, but the charge is captured upon acceptance.
How does a manually-added booking interact with Instant Book?
Instant Book settings apply to Direct bookings you create manually, just as they do to bookings guests initiate on their own:
Direct Basic: Bookings are always automatically accepted once payment is completed. Instant Book settings do not apply.
Direct Premium with Instant Book enabled: If the guest passes ID Verification, the reservation is automatically accepted — no manual approval needed. (Note: If the guest ID is flagged and does not pass verification, the Hospitable team will need to manually review it first. Once approved, the booking will be automatically accepted with Instant Book Enabled.)
Direct Premium with Instant Book disabled: You will need to manually review and accept the reservation after the guest completes verification.
Note: Guest verification is not skipped for new guests, even when the booking is created via a custom quote. Previously verified guests may skip verification on subsequent bookings via Custom Quote.