Guides for homestay owners
What homestay owners ask most, answered briefly and ready to act on.
Syncing Airbnb, Booking and Agoda calendars by iCal: the bugs behind double bookings
iCal only carries booked dates and always lags. Two real bugs that reopened sold nights or shifted stays by a day, and habits that keep a homestay safe.
· 7 min readRead
Forwarding OTA booking emails so bookings enter your software
Set a Gmail filter or Outlook rule that forwards Booking.com, Agoda and Airbnb confirmations to a private address: bookings with guest, price and OTA code.
· 8 min readRead
A cancellation policy for your homestay: three tiers, worded to avoid disputes
A homestay cancellation policy with three refund tiers, written in dates and amounts, plus deposits, no-shows, date changes, weather and OTA bookings.
· 7 min readRead
New bookings and payments on Zalo, without a Zalo Official Account
How homestay owners and staff get new-booking and payment alerts on Zalo, and send guests confirmations from a personal Zalo, with no OA and a daily cap.
· 6 min readRead
Cleaning a homestay room between two guests
A checklist for bedroom, bathroom and kitchen, restocking, damage and lost items, photo proof, and an inspection before a room is called clean.
· 7 min readRead
ADR, RevPAR and occupancy: how to calculate and use them
What occupancy, ADR and RevPAR mean, the formulas, a worked example in VND for a six-room homestay, and how to use the figures to set prices.
· 8 min readRead
Keypad door locks for a self check-in homestay
Keypad, card or app locks; why a gateway matters; a code per stay or one fixed code; batteries, backup keys and online check-in before guests arrive.
· 7 min readRead
Choosing free homestay management software: what to check first
Where free homestay software plans usually stop: properties, rooms, bookings a month, a cut of each booking, who holds the money, exporting your data. 8 checks.
· 6 min readRead
Tax for homestay household businesses in Vietnam from 2026
From 2026 the flat tax is gone: homestays under 500 million VND a year pay no VAT or income tax; above it, quarterly filing. Rates and books to keep.
· 7 min readRead
Notifying the police of overnight guests: what, when, how
Homestays in Vietnam notify each overnight stay before 11 pm on arrival day, or by 8 am for late arrivals. What form CT14 asks for, and doing it fast.
· 6 min readRead
How to build a booking website for your homestay, step by step
Build a booking website for your homestay in Vietnam: pick a name, add rooms and prices, take VietQR deposits, get on Google. No coding, works on a phone.
· 7 min readRead
Managing a homestay in Excel or software: when should you switch?
Excel, Google Sheets and Zalo vs software for a homestay in Vietnam: pros and cons, 6 signs it is time to switch, and how to move without losing bookings.
· 6 min readRead
Take homestay deposits by QR bank transfer
How homestays in Vietnam take deposits by VietQR transfer: the exact amount and reference, money straight to your account, booking confirmed on arrival.
· 5 min readRead
How to get your homestay on Google Maps and Google Search
Set up a Google Business Profile, add your booking link and verify your site in Search Console, so guests find your homestay in Vietnam on Google.
· 8 min readRead
Rely less on Booking.com and Agoda: how to get more direct bookings
How a Vietnam homestay gets guests to book direct instead of via Booking.com and Agoda: your own website, Zalo, Google Maps, perks for repeat guests.
· 6 min readRead
Running an hourly homestay or private cinema room
Running hourly rooms or private cinema rooms in Vietnam: hourly prices, time slots, cleaning gaps, deposits, and how to avoid double bookings.
· 7 min readRead