Syncing Booking.com and Trip.com calendars so a room never sells twice

HostBooking · Updated Nov 2, 2026 · 7 min read

Booking.com can import an outside calendar by iCal, re-read every 2 hours, for single-unit room types. Trip.com publishes no iCal guidance for eBooking. So Trip.com bookings block Booking.com via email and a central calendar, and Booking.com bookings are closed in eBooking by hand. Both OTAs have relocation rules for clashes, so prepare ahead.

What each side offers

Booking.com has official iCal calendar sync with a visible connection status in the Extranet. For Trip.com we found no official documentation on iCal links in eBooking; Trip.com connections go through channel managers. So this pair syncs one way automatically (into Booking.com) and one way by hand (into Trip.com).

Reading Booking.com’s connection status

Booking.com is the only side that updates itself, so make sure it is working. The Sync calendars page shows one of these statuses:

Channel managers: what to connect, what to remove

Booking.com only allows iCal when the property does not use a connectivity provider for Booking.com. If a channel manager connects only Trip.com, Booking.com can keep using iCal. If it connects both, remove the iCal connection on Booking.com first so only one source edits the calendar. Channel manager providers also say that connecting Trip.com may lock the eBooking calendar and skip earlier bookings; note your upcoming stays before you connect.

Setting it up

1. Check on Booking.com that each room is its own room type (one unit per type). If not, split types or use a channel manager.
2. On Booking.com: Rates & Availability → Sync calendars → Add calendar connection on the right room. Continue to the export part, name it and click Copy link.
3. In HostBooking, Calendar → Sync OTAs (iCal): paste each room’s Booking.com link, set the channel to Booking.com, then copy HostBooking’s link for Booking.com.
4. Back on Booking.com, paste the HostBooking link as the import (Complete setup if you skipped it), click Next step, Done, and wait for Okay.
5. Under Booking emails from OTAs, create the address and set a filter forwarding Trip.com (trip.com, ctrip.com) and Booking.com emails to it.
6. When the first Trip.com email becomes a booking, click Import now on Booking.com and check the night is closed.
7. For each Booking.com booking, close the nights in eBooking as soon as it arrives.

What does not cross over

• iCal into Booking.com carries booked dates only, no Trip.com prices or guest names.
• Rooms left do not travel over iCal; hence the one-unit-per-type rule.
• eBooking receives nothing automatically without a channel manager.

Checklist against double bookings

• Booking.com shows Okay, not Import only, Export only or Service error.
• Your email filter catches trip.com and ctrip.com and has produced at least one real booking.
• Every Booking.com booking has a "closed in eBooking" step.
• Trip.com booking for today or tomorrow: click Import now on Booking.com, or close it by hand.
• A list of backup accommodation is ready (see below).

Prepare a relocation plan in advance

With this pair, a clash almost always ends with one guest being moved. Booking.com requires you to arrange accommodation of the same or better standard and pay for it; Trip.com promises its guests alternative accommodation. Prepare once, use when needed:

• Two or three nearby homestays or hotels in the same price range, with the owner’s phone number.
• An apology message template stating the new place, how to get there and who pays.
• Who on your team may book the replacement and spend the money.

If a double booking still happens

Booking.com: move the guest to a room of the same type or better if one is free; if not, book comparable or better accommodation elsewhere, pay for it, ideally including transport. Contact Booking.com to mark the reservation as a double booking or report the relocation. Commission is still charged unless the property has been live under 30 days or has had no more than four double bookings in 12 months.

Trip.com: if a guest arrives to find no room, they can call Trip.com to be rehoused at a comparable place nearby; some regional sites say Trip.com covers the difference up to the first night’s rate. We found no public rule on what the partner must bear. Contact Trip.com partner support and the guest before arrival.

On HostBooking

OTA calendar sync reads Booking.com’s calendar every 5 minutes, reads Booking.com and Trip.com booking emails, and warns you about double-booked nights. HostBooking does not update eBooking for you and takes no commission on bookings. See also the cancellation policy guide, the background iCal sync guide and the pricing page.