Kalend

iCal Sync

Airbnb/Booking integration

Calendar Synchronization (iCal Sync)

Calendar Synchronization is the system that automatically imports your reservations from platforms like Airbnb, Booking, Agoda, and VRBO into Kalend. You don't need to enter each reservation manually — platforms communicate with Kalend via the iCal link (URL).

There is no separate "iCal Sync" page in Kalend. This feature is managed from the Listings page, and can be manually refreshed from the Calendar and Timeline pages.

How It Works

The process is straightforward:

  1. Airbnb (or another platform) provides you with a unique iCal URL
  2. You paste this URL into Kalend
  3. Kalend periodically visits this URL and pulls new reservations
  4. Reservations appear on your Calendar, Timeline, and Overview pages

Synchronization works in two ways: automatic (every morning) and manual (on demand).

Supported Platforms

Platforms where iCal links can currently be added:

  • Airbnb — Most widely used, full support
  • Booking.com — Full support
  • Agoda — Full support (minimal data)
  • VRBO — Full support
  • Other — Any iCal feed compliant with the RFC 5545 standard

You can add multiple platform links for a single listing. For example, if you list the same listing on both Airbnb and Booking, you need to add two separate links.

How to Add a Link

Calendar links are managed from the Listings page:

  1. Go to the Listings page
  2. Click the relevant listing card
  3. Find the Calendar Links section in the detail panel that opens
  4. Select the platform from the dropdown
  5. Paste the iCal URL you copied from the platform
  6. Press the "Add" button

After the link is added, reservations are fetched in the next automatic synchronization (each morning at 07:00 (UTC+3)) or immediately if you press the "Refresh Calendar" button.

How to Get iCal Links from Platforms

Airbnb

  1. Log in to the host panel
  2. Open the Calendar page
  3. Find "Export Calendar" or "Availability Settings" → "Connect to another website"
  4. Copy the Export Calendar (iCal) link

Booking.com

  1. Log in to Extranet
  2. Go to the Tariffs & Availability menu
  3. Open the Sync calendar or iCal sync section
  4. Copy the iCal URL provided for the listing

Agoda

  1. Log in to your YCS (Agoda host panel) account
  2. Get the iCal export link from Property → Calendar

VRBO

  1. Log in to the Owner Dashboard
  2. Calendar → Connect calendars
  3. Copy the iCal export URL

The iCal link for each platform is unique to you. Do not share this link with anyone — it provides access to your personal reservation data.

Automatic Synchronization

Kalend automatically updates all your links every morning at 07:00 (UTC+3). This process:

  • Adds new reservations to the system
  • Updates changes (dates, status) on existing reservations
  • Deletes cancelled reservations (only future-dated ones — historical data is preserved)
  • Automatically creates missing cleaning tasks

Automatic synchronization runs in the background and finishes before you wake up. When you open Kalend in the morning, everything is up to date.

Synchronization runs sequentially for each platform — if there is an error on one listing, the others are not affected.

Manual Synchronization

When you want to update links immediately, you can use the "Refresh Calendar" button. This button is found on:

  • Calendar page — in the top toolbar
  • Timeline main page — next to the title

When you press the button, all your links are updated immediately. The duration depends on how many listings and links you have — it typically takes 5-30 seconds.

When the operation completes, a green notification appears: "3 added, 1 updated, 0 cancellations removed". If there are no changes, the "Refresh complete, no changes" message is shown.

Use the "Refresh Calendar" button right after adding a new iCal link to see reservations immediately — you don't need to wait until the next day.

Blocked Entries

During synchronization, some entries are marked as "blocked". These are:

  • Dates you closed as "Not available" on Airbnb
  • Reservations from one platform reflected on another
  • Generally, occupied dates without a guest stay

Blocked entries appear with gray diagonal stripes on Calendar and with a "Blocked" badge on Timeline. Cleaning tasks are not created for these because no guest is arriving.

You can also add manual reservations on blocked dates — the system does not warn you about conflicts in this case.

Known Limitations

The iCal system has some platform-imposed limitations:

Guest Name Is Not Included

Due to platform privacy rules, iCal feeds do not contain the real guest name. Therefore, reservations from synchronization typically appear as "Reserved" or "iCal Reservation". If you want to add your guest's name, you can manually edit the reservation detail.

Price Information Is Not Included

The iCal protocol has no price field. Therefore, all iCal reservations are saved with 0 price. To see the correct price, you need to open the detail of each reservation and enter it manually.

Phone/Email Information Not Available

Guest contact information is not included in iCal. If you need this information, use the respective platform's messaging system.

Past Reservation Limit

Platforms typically keep reservations starting from the last 3-7 days in their feeds. To import older reservations into the system, you can use the "Import CSV" feature on the Calendar page.

Synchronization Delay

Platforms like Airbnb update their iCal feeds every 2-3 hours. The moment a guest makes a reservation on Airbnb does not immediately reach Kalend — a delay of 1-3 hours can occur.

Troubleshooting

"New reservation exists on Airbnb but doesn't appear in Kalend"

Two possible reasons:

  1. Platform delay — Airbnb's iCal feed may not have updated yet (takes 1-3 hours). Wait a bit and press the "Refresh Calendar" button.
  2. Link refresh — In Listings > listing detail, check that the correct iCal link is added.

"Reservation appears twice"

You probably added two links from the same platform for the same listing. In Listings > listing detail, review the links and delete the duplicate.

"Shows as blocked but it's a real reservation"

In some platforms, depending on the iCal feed structure, Kalend may estimate it as "blocked". In this case, you can manually edit the reservation detail.

"I deleted the iCal but old reservations remain"

When an iCal is deleted, only future-dated reservations are deleted. Past reservations are preserved as historical data — this is intentional design.

"I can add manually, should I use iCal?"

Using iCal is sensible in most cases because:

  • It works automatically, no manual workload
  • Reservation changes reflect automatically
  • It's error-free (no copy/typing mistakes)

Just know the iCal limitations: price and guest name must be filled manually.

Deleting a Link

To delete an iCal link, click the trash icon in the Calendar Links section of Listings > listing detail.

Warning: When a link is deleted, all future-dated reservations and incomplete tasks from that link are permanently removed from the system. The confirmation dialog warns you.

Only the listing owner has permission to delete. Co-hosts with the Edit Listings permission can add new iCals but cannot delete them.

Tips

  • After adding a new iCal link, press the "Refresh Calendar" button right away — you don't have to wait for the automatic morning sync.
  • iCal-sourced reservations don't have price and guest name info — you can manually edit these details.
  • Add only one iCal link per platform per listing — multiple links can pull the same data twice.
  • To add old reservations (more than 3 days in the past), use the CSV import feature on the Calendar page.
  • Synchronization errors are rare, but if expected numbers don't come after "Refresh Calendar", check that your iCal URLs are correct on the Listings page.

For your questions: info@getkalend.app