How to set up rate restrictions

Restrictions are how you shape demand without changing prices. The classic example: high-demand summer Saturdays with min stay 3 — guests can only book if they take Friday and Saturday or Saturday and Sunday too, lifting your average stay length on the busiest nights. This article walks through the form and the patterns we see properties use.

Where they live

Backoffice → Rate Restrictions → +. Each restriction document covers a date range and contains one or more per-rate-plan restriction rows. The same date range can have rules for the Flexible rate (min 2) and the Non-Refundable rate (no restriction) so the engine sells one but not the other.

The fields

• startDate / endDate — the window the restriction applies to. Inclusive on both sides.
• ratePlanId — which rate plan this row targets. One row per rate plan; add a row for each rate that needs the same restriction.
• minStay — total nights of the booking must be ≥ this number.
• maxStay — total nights ≤ this number. Useful for rates targeted at short breaks.
• closedToArrival — no new check-ins on this specific date. Existing multi-night stays passing through are fine.
• closedToDeparture — no check-outs on this date. Use to prevent guests checking out on a day you can't accommodate the turnover (e.g., low staff).
• stopSell — completely closes the rate plan for this date. No new bookings of any kind.

Common patterns

• Weekend min stay — high-season Friday/Saturday: min stay 2 or 3 to prevent single-night cherry-picks.
• Holiday week min stay — Christmas / New Year: min stay 5 or 7 to commit guests to longer stays during peak demand.
• Closed to Sunday arrival — when Sunday is your slowest arrival day. CTA on every Sunday for the season pushes guests to arrive other days.
• Stop a discounted rate — peak weeks: stop sell on the Early Bird and Mobile-Only rates so all bookings come through your standard rates at higher ADR.

OTA propagation via Channex

If your rate plans are mapped to Channex (channexRatePlanId set per room type in the rate plan form), restrictions push to all connected OTAs automatically — Booking.com, Expedia, Airbnb apply the same min stay or stop sell. Without the mapping, the restriction stays on your booking engine only. Verify mapping in the rate plan form before relying on OTA propagation.