--- title: "Website for holiday apartments and holiday rentals: direct bookings without paying commission to the portals" description: "Website for holiday apartments and holiday rentals: direct bookings with no commission, an up-to-date calendar, seasonal prices and guests from Google." date: "2026-09-17" category: "Examples by sector" keywords: "website for holiday apartments, holiday rental website, direct bookings without commission, website for holiday apartment, holiday rental booking engine" portada: "/portadas/portada-web-para-apartamentos-turisticos-y-alquiler-vacacional.webp" --- In late September, a couple who have just got back from holiday are looking for «a flat with a terrace in the centre» for the October long weekend. At the same time, a family is comparing houses with a pool for next summer and a group of friends needs somewhere to stay for a spring wedding. They open three results on their phone: all three flats are listed on Booking and Airbnb, with the same photos and a price that already has the portal's commission baked into it. Only one has its own website, with an up-to-date calendar, the price per night and a button to book in two taps. That one gets the booking and pays no commission on it. If your apartment only exists inside the platforms, every booking costs you between 15% and 18%, and the guest will never know how to find you again. A holiday apartment lives off three things: bookings that come in on their own, guests who come back and word of mouth. A website is the only channel that works round the clock, charges no commission and stays with you. It is also the only place where you can properly say what the platforms don't let you say: that you accept pets, that there's free parking, that the beach is a five-minute walk away or that check-in means handing over the keys in person. And if you have two or three apartments, it's the difference between keeping an eye on one calendar and juggling three by hand. ## The booking is decided when you're not looking at your phone People looking for accommodation make up their minds at night, on Sundays and over long weekends, and demand has clear peaks. The first is the end of summer: in September and October people plan the autumn long weekends and book already for the following spring and summer. The second, Christmas and Easter: four or five-night getaways booked months in advance. The third, peak season: July and August, when everything fills up and the difference is who finds you first. And the fourth, the last-minute booking, which almost always ends up on the website or the listing that shows up best on Google. With a well-built website, five profiles are captured almost on their own: - **Couples and short getaways**: they search for «apartment with a hot tub» or «romantic getaway» in your area. They book fast and choose on photos, location and a clear price. - **Families with children**: a week in summer, pool, parking, cot and high chair. They compare the price per week and want to know whether there's a supermarket and a beach nearby. - **Groups of friends and hen and stag dos**: real capacity, enough beds and clear rules on noise and parties. - **International guests**: they search in their own language («holiday apartment with pool») and need flawless arrival instructions. A website in several languages multiplies your market. - **Work trips and long stays**: wifi that works, a desk, an invoice and a washing machine. They book during the week and often at the last minute. ## What a guest looks at before booking Before paying, the guest wants to clear up a few doubts: - **Real photos**: every room, how many people actually sleep there and what the bathroom is like. - **Price per night and per season**, with minimum nights, cleaning and deposit in plain sight. - **A real calendar and direct booking**: up-to-date availability and booking or enquiry in two steps. - **House rules**: pets, parties, check-in and check-out times. - **Location and surroundings**: beach, centre, transport and parking. - **Tourist registration number**: in many regions it's compulsory to show it and, on top of that, it builds trust. - **Reviews** from previous guests, with a name and a date. - **Payment methods, invoice and cancellation policy**. - **A quick reply**: the guest asks three properties at once and usually books the one that answers first. ## The sections that fill the calendar A holiday rental website doesn't need a twenty-screen booking engine. It needs to take the guest from the search to the booking without friction. These are the sections that bring in work: - **Home page** with the apartment, the location and two buttons: check availability and book. - **One page per apartment** if you have more than one, with the photos and the capacity of each one. - **Calendar and direct booking**, with up-to-date availability and no double bookings. - **Prices in a table**: by season, minimum nights, cleaning and deposit. In text, not in a PDF. - **An honest gallery**: rooms, bathroom, terrace and the floor plan. - **Facilities and rules**: wifi, air conditioning, pool, parking, pets, check-in time. - **Frequently asked questions**: arrival, keys, deposit, invoice, cancellation, parking. - **Reviews** with a name and a date. - **A local guide**: what to see, where to eat, how to get around. It helps the guest and it helps on Google. - **Versions in several languages** if you host guests from abroad. - **Legal notice** with your holiday rental registration number. What you don't need: a booking engine with twenty screens, stock photos that aren't of your flat, a five-year-old PDF of rules and a website designed only for desktop, when nine out of ten guests look for accommodation on their phone. ## Before and after: from 18% commission to your own calendar Before the website, everything goes through your phone and the portals: «is the long weekend free?» at eleven at night, three calendars that don't match up, a double booking in August, guests you can't write to again because they booked on a platform and a percentage that disappears every month in commission. When you do your sums in September, you see that a big part of what you earned wasn't yours. Afterwards, someone searching for «apartment with a pool» finds your website, sees the calendar, checks the price for that week and books directly. The guest who already came last year gets an email to come back with a friends' rate. The platforms are still there to fill the last-minute gaps, but the important bookings arrive without commission and with the guest's details in your hands. And you know, at all times, what's free and what's taken. ## Mistakes we see when an owner commissions a website - **Relying only on Airbnb and Booking**: between 15% and 18% commission per booking and no channel of your own to contact the guest again. - **Not syncing calendars**: two guests for the same night is a one-star review guaranteed. - **Bad photos or photos of another flat**: the guest who arrives and finds something else won't come back or recommend you. - **Not publishing prices**: «ask us» filters badly; nobody asks for fear the price won't suit them. - **Hiding the rules and the registration number**: just when the guest is deciding, the doubts creep in. - **A website that isn't adapted for mobile**: almost every accommodation search starts on a phone. - **A website only in Spanish** even though most of your guests are from abroad. - **Not asking for a review or an email at the end of the stay**: the same guest's second booking is the cheapest one to win. - **Leaving last year's prices and availability** on the website. - **No quick contact channel** that also works at night. ## What Google looks at in a holiday apartment Google wants to show accommodation with photos, price and availability, and for that it needs a website that explains it well. When someone searches for «holiday apartment in your city», «house with a pool for eight» or «where to stay this long weekend», Google draws on your page, your copy and your reviews. Your Google Business Profile listing helps, but it isn't enough: it doesn't explain how many people sleep there, whether you accept pets or how much the August week costs. If you want to go deeper, there's a post on the blog about [online bookings 24 hours a day](/blog/en/reservas-online-las-24-horas) and another about [websites for hotels and rural accommodation](/blog/en/web-para-hoteles-y-alojamientos-rurales). ## From the search to the direct booking A holiday apartment doesn't need a complicated website: it needs the person looking for accommodation in your area to find you, see the real calendar, know the price for their week, check that you accept pets and book without going through the portal. That's the website that fills the calendar and the one that makes some of your guests come back to you, season after season, and not to the platform. The good news: you don't need to spend a lot or wait months. You can have your website with a calendar, seasonal prices and direct booking in a few days. If you have a holiday apartment or a holiday rental and you want a website that brings in direct bookings, [ask for a free design proposal](/solicita-web/en): you design your website live with AI and I build it once you approve the design. No contract, no jargon, and the price fixed before we start. Does your calendar fill up on its own or does it depend on the commission you pay that month? Better for guests to find you, with your prices and your rules, than the listing on the next page.