Direct Booking Guide
Airbnb takes up to 15% of every booking. On a portfolio doing £100,000 in annual revenue, that is £15,000 going to Airbnb instead of your business. There is a better way.
| Feature | Lettiva | Airbnb |
|---|---|---|
| Commission on bookings | 0% | 15% |
| Guest service fee (paid by guest) | None | Up to 14.2% |
| Total cost to complete a booking | 0% (Stripe fees only) | Up to 29.2% |
| You set your own prices | Airbnb suggests pricing | |
| Direct relationship with guests | Airbnb controls communication |
| Feature | Lettiva | Airbnb |
|---|---|---|
| Your own branded website | ||
| Your own domain name | ||
| Build repeat guest relationships | Limited | |
| Collect guest emails for marketing | ||
| Control your reviews and reputation | Airbnb controls |
| Feature | Lettiva | Airbnb |
|---|---|---|
| Set your own cancellation policy | Limited options | |
| Full guest communication | Filtered through Airbnb | |
| No risk of platform policy changes | Policies change regularly | |
| No risk of listing suspension | Can happen without warning |
See how Airbnb commission compares to a flat monthly fee with zero commission on bookings.
| Properties | Lettiva | Airbnb |
|---|---|---|
| 1 property | See pricing | 15% of every booking |
| 5 properties | See pricing | 15% of every booking |
| 10 properties | See pricing | 15% of every booking |
| 16 properties | See pricing | 15% of every booking |
| 30 properties | See pricing | 15% of every booking |
All prices exclude VAT. Competitor pricing based on publicly available information and may vary.
Lettiva charges zero commission on your bookings. On a £1,000 booking, you keep the full £1,000. Only standard Stripe card processing fees apply (1.4% + 20p).
Guests book on your website, remember your name, and come back next year. On Airbnb, they remember Airbnb.
Collect guest emails, send follow-up offers, build loyalty. Airbnb deliberately prevents you from building direct relationships.
Set your own cancellation policies, communicate freely with guests, and never worry about platform policy changes or listing suspensions.
Airbnb has millions of travellers searching every day. You cannot replicate that audience on your own. The best strategy is using both: Airbnb for discovery, your own site for repeat bookings.
Airbnb provides guest identity verification, Host Protection Insurance, and a dispute resolution process. Direct bookings require you to handle these yourself.
Airbnb charges commission only when you get bookings. A direct booking website requires a monthly subscription whether you get bookings or not.
The goal is not to leave Airbnb entirely. It is to reduce your dependency. Use Airbnb to reach new guests, then convert them to direct bookers for their next stay. A property doing £100,000 annually that shifts just 30% of bookings direct saves over £4,500 per year in Airbnb commission.
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