Working with Booking.com

Additional information is available to FareHarbor employees.

Booking.com is a global online travel agent (OTA) based in the Netherlands that operates the first travel online marketplace for accommodations, as well as for car rentals, taxis, tours, and activities.

Booking joined the FHDN as an API affiliate in 2025. The integration is only available in the US, EU, and UK with more regions to be added in the future.

Getting Connected

We are currently accepting new requests to connect products to Booking.com. All requests are subject to an eligibility review by our Connectivity team to ensure they meet Booking.com’s requirements as described here in detail.

If you have activities you would like to have connected to Booking.com, please submit your request using the Connectivity Support Request form.

Please note that submitting a request does not guarantee a successful connection or that Booking.com will make the product live on its platform.

Eligibility

3 initial criteria must be met in order to be listed on Booking.com:

Must be part of the FHDN program.
Items must use the Content Builder optimization tool.
Items must meet Booking.com’s Eligibility and Minimum Content Requirements to get bookings from Booking.com.

Note: the following are not currently supported but may be in the future as we continue to develop a more comprehensive integration with the Booking.com team:

Tiered pricing of any kind, per person or per group.
Per group customer types.
Items priced using a custom field.
Multi-language items where the language is not specified by the customer types (i.e. only uses public headlines).
Items that include transportation or pickup options (as those cannot be collected from end customers).
Multi-day activities.
Activities with mandatory fees, surcharges, or additional costs not included in the base ticket price.

Listing experiences on the FHDN does not guarantee sales on Booking.com. Like many OTAs, Booking.com has a curated selection of products–meaning that it may opt not to display certain products that do not align with traveler demand or inventory. For example: A product may not be displayed if Booking.com is not active in a certain destination, if a product does not fit the criteria, or if similar products are already offered.

Minimum Content Requirements

Below is the minimum required content for Booking.com. Please note that while having this content is required, it does not guarantee to be listed on Booking.com. To review your content, navigate to an item’s respective Content Builder Page.

Content Builder Fields

Content Builder: Content Builder is enabled.
Language: All content must be in English. If the main language is not English, check that English translations have been added to the Dashboard as automatic lightframe translations provided by Google are not supported.
Title: The item must have a clear title.
Full description: Include a detailed description of at least 60 words.
Short description: Includes 1–2 sentences.
Inclusions: List at least one inclusion using bullet points in the What's Included section.
NO Contact information: Content does not contain any emails, phone numbers or URL link pre-booking.
NO Pricing: Content does not contain pricing.
NO Transportation: Content does not include transportation wording.
Formatting: No content is written in ALL CAPS, has excessive punctuation ex. (!!!!!), no HTML tags or formatting codes

Photos

3+ Photo count: Include at least 3 photos, with one designated as the primary/cover photo.
- Relevance: Images must reflect the actual travel experience.
- NO Nudity: Images must not show or imply nudity.
- NO Children: Images featuring children must be stock images.
- Promotional content: Images must not contain promotions, advertisements, brand images, or similar material.

Customer Types & Age Ranges

English ticket names: All ticket names must be in English.
Customer types and ages: Booking.com supports Adult, Child, and Infant ticket types with no overlapping or conflicting age ranges.
Tour language: Include the tour language in the offer name, such as “English Tour.”
No duplicate offers: Remove exact duplicates, such as two identical Adult offers.
No cancellation wording: Do not include cancellation terms in ticket names, such as “Non-refundable Adult”.
All ages: Includes one ticket option for all eligible groups, including children and infants where applicable.

NOTE: The Group ticket category and tiered pricing is not supported by the Booking.com integration at this time. If all activities provided are Group tickets, then item is not eligible.

Custom Fields

Custom fields do not carry over to Booking.com.

An item will be ineligible if it requires the following:

Essential information collected through custom fields: For example, a required hotel pickup location or equipment size.
Unsupported pricing: For example, a ticket price that is set through a custom field.
Mandatory priced custom fields or extra required fees: For example, a required $10 equipment rental added through a custom field. All required costs must be included in the ticket price.

Location

Make sure the item has either a Start Location or Primary Location assigned in its Info & Policies tab. The assigned location must show the correct meeting point, an accurate address, and a matching Google Place ID.

NOTE: If both item locations are assigned, make sure the Start Location and Primary Location have correct meeting point/Google Place ID

Opting into Genius Discount

40% of Attractions bookings come from Genius members. We recommend opting into the program and granting a 10% discount at an item level, as this can increase the chance of being displayed on Booking’s website and actively selling.

To enable Genius Discount:

Navigate to the Items tab, and select the item to be discounted.
Select Integrations from the sidebar.
In the Channel Settings tab, select Opt into Booking.com Genius Discount (10%).
Click the Save changes button to finalize the update.

Frequently asked questions

How does Booking.com sell tours and activities?

Booking.com offers these products to their travelers in two main ways:

Products can be sold on the Attractions pages of the Booking.com website, where travelers can browse activities for a select variety of destinations.
Products can be sold directly to travelers via email, when they currently book accommodations through Booking.com for a specific destination.

Booking.com is not active in every destination, and may offer products differently in various destinations.

Can I sign an agreement directly with Booking.com?

Booking.com does not offer direct agreements to tour and activity operators, and will instead select products using the FHDN.

What if I am already selling on Booking through an OTA, like Viator or Musement, and am on FHDN?

If you are already selling on Booking through an OTA integration, your products may appear multiple times on Booking’s site. Booking will pull inventory from different platforms, whether it is from the FHDN or other OTA partners. By clicking into the supplier details on the product page, you will be able to see which system the product is being sent from.

Is there a way to promote my trips on booking.com like I do with other OTA platforms to increase my impressions?

Consider opting in to Genius discounts! This has been proven to attract Booking.com users and boost conversions. See the section above on how to Opt in to Genius Discounts.

How can I opt out of the Booking integration?

You must opt out of FHDN to opt out of the Booking integration.

How can I opt into FHDN only for the Booking integration?

You cannot single out one OTA. You must fully opt in to FHDN to be sold on Booking.

I also offer accommodations and/or hotel products in addition to activities. Can I connect those accommodation products to Booking.com?

The integration between Booking.com and the FHDN is only for the Attractions section.

Can I decide which activities I list with FHDN and Booking.com?

Yes! Using our affiliate rules feature, you can decide which products, dates, times etc. are available to the FHDN API affiliate to help tailor your channel mix. Any restrictions will apply to all partners in the network, including Booking.com.

How can I change the way my products show up on Booking?

Since the integration is through FHDN, the product details will pull directly from your FareHarbor Dashboard. Product content can be edited via an item’s Content Builder page.

Can I modify my pricing for Booking.com?

FHDN products are resold using your online retail rates. Unique pricing cannot be set for Booking.com or FHDN affiliates.

Will custom fields flow through the API?

Custom fields are not currently available via the API. If you have activities with mandatory fees built as custom fields those are not currently eligible.

Why do I need to prepare English descriptions for my products if I don’t offer any English-speaking tours?

Booking.com requires product details, descriptions, etc. to be provided in English as an operational standard for products sold on the site. Booking.com does not require offering tours in English; it simply means that English content is required to build the tour in the Booking system.

Are bookings from Booking.com subject to API fees?

No API fee is applied, since bookings flow through FHDN.

What commission rate does Booking.com take on bookings?

Standard commission is 25% through FHDN API.

How do I modify a Booking.com booking from the FHDN API?

As for all FHDN API bookings, the affiliate (Booking.com) needs to process any booking modification so you will need to instruct your customer to reach out to Booking.com’s customer service directly for it to be effective.

How do I cancel a Booking.com booking from the FHDN API?

Cancellations made in FareHarbor will automatically sync with Booking.com. Please note, cancellations made in the FareHarbor Dashboard do not automatically notify Booking.com to process a refund, please provide customers with a written proof confirming the cancellation and refund so they can provide this to Booking.com to initiate the refund on their end.