Property management (PMS): room board, front desk, housekeeping, books
HostBooking ·
A PMS (property management system) runs a place's day: the room calendar, bookings, check-in and check-out, cleaning, payments and the books. HostBooking puts all of it on one page in the browser and on the phone, for homestays, villas, serviced apartments and small hotels, with a free plan for life.
What a PMS does
A day at a homestay or a small hotel goes round the same loop: who arrives and leaves today, which room, check-in, the deposit, cleaning, expenses, and the month-end sums. A notebook, Excel and Zalo work with a few rooms; add rooms, staff or sales channels and things start to slip. A PMS is where all of it shares one set of data.
| Daily job | In HostBooking |
|---|---|
| Who's arriving, leaving, which room is free | Today's room board and the Today page |
| Bookings from every source | One calendar: your website, OTAs, phone, walk-ins |
| Check-in and check-out | At the desk on the booking; guests can check in online first |
| Cleaning | Housekeeping tasks made when a guest checks out, done on the phone |
| Payments | QR bank-transfer deposits, cash, card, on each booking |
| Extras | Front-desk sales: drinks, food, bike rental, services |
| Books | Expenses, monthly profit and loss, household-business tax books |
The parts of HostBooking’s PMS
Room board and booking calendar
Today's room board shows each room as free, occupied, arriving or waiting for cleaning. The booking calendar shows days or hours; drag a stay to another room or other dates, and two guests can never hold one room.
Front desk and self check-in
Reception creates walk-in bookings, checks guests in, moves rooms and checks them out from the booking. Guests can check in online before they arrive: details, ID photos, directions and door code. Guest details export for the police residence declaration.
Housekeeping on the phone
When a guest checks out, a cleaning task is made for that room. Housekeepers take it on their phone, mark it done and note supplies or damage; a manager inspects before the room goes back on sale.
Payments, front-desk sales, books
Each booking shows what was paid and what is due. QR bank-transfer deposits carry the amount and reference, and the money goes straight to your account. Front-desk sales add services to the stay. Expenses, profit and loss and the tax books come from bookings and expenses, with no adding up by hand.
Staff, several properties, reports
Each person has a role: reception, housekeeping, manager of one branch. Several branches run on one account, each with its rooms, rates and calendar. Reports show revenue, occupancy, average rate and booking sources; on plans with AI you can ask the assistant in plain words.
PMS and OTA sync work together
A PMS is only as good as its calendar. HostBooking pulls Airbnb, Booking.com, Agoda, Traveloka, Trip.com and Expedia calendars every 5 minutes and reads OTA confirmation emails into bookings. See channel management.
How it differs from big-hotel software
- Built for how Vietnamese homestays sell: by the hour, overnight and by the day on one calendar; QR deposits; booking alerts on Zalo.
- A booking website included: guests book direct, no commission, same data as the PMS.
- Public prices, not per room: a free plan for life; paid plans are per brand. See pricing.
- Nothing to install: runs in the browser and the mobile app.
Frequently asked questions
What is a PMS?
A property management system: software that runs a lodging business day to day — room calendar, bookings, check-in and check-out, cleaning, payments and the books, on one set of data.
Is HostBooking's PMS free?
There is a free plan for life with unlimited properties and rooms and 50 bookings a month. Signing up gives a 14-day trial of the full product, no card needed.
Does it work for a hotel with several branches?
Yes. Each branch has its rooms, rates, calendar and staff, run from one account.
Can staff use it on their phones?
Yes. Reception and housekeeping work in the phone browser or the HostBooking app, and each person sees only what their role allows.