My calendar isn't syncing with Evolve

Does anyone else have an issue of calendar not syncing with Evolve bookings? It's been okay so far, but all of a sudden today I noticed that a new Evolve booking isn't coming through to my OwnerRez calendar. It's been about seven hours. I have gone to the "Import and export calendars" page here and hit "Sync Now" but it still isn't bringing in the new booking dates.

Ideas?

Thanks!
Monica

Has it synced before and just stopped now? Or never has?
You need ical link form evolve synced into OR, you have to get ical link from evolve. and vice versa, get your OR ical link and have evolve import/sync it

It was but it stopped. But Chris Hynes helped me fix it. Thanks!

I stopped using the Evolve iCal sync because the dates from Evolve were incorrect sometimes. Be cautious and check to ensure they are right (this is not an ownerrez issue but an evolve issue)

My calendar isn't syncing with Evolve again... I updated my Evolve calendar a few days ago and the new booking isn't being pulled into the OwnerRez calendar. As I understand it, the Evolve calendar link is a Homeaway / VRBO link so I'm not sure what the issue is, but I really need my calendar to be accurate, so I don't accidentally double book. Help?

Thanks!
Monica

We answered this on a support ticket but just wanted to circle up here in case anybody else has the same issue.

The problem in this case was that the OwnerRez calendar import was set to "bookings only"... but the Evolve calendar link sends everything as blocked-off time (even though it is theoretically a HomeAway link that can send bookings).

Changing the sync to "all events" solved the issue.

The calendar here is still not pulling new owner bookings from Evolve into OwnerRez calendar. I understand that there was a problem in that my settings were wrong on this side of the equation, but that's been fixed and it's still not wanting to pull in new dates. Help?

Thanks!
Monica

Looks like a different issue this time. :-)

Right now that calendar import is set to only send a warning on cancellations instead of actually cancelling the bookings. That means that when you get that email from us notifying you of the cancellation, you need to go in to OwnerRez and cancel the booking. Right now those "canceled" bookings (but still active in OwnerRez) are blocking up the calendar and keeping new events from coming in.

If you look at the sync history for the calendar import, you'll see the cancellations there. Click on those bookings and cancel them and then hit the Sync Now button to resync and bring in the items that were blocked out before.

Thank you for your response.

A few things...

1. I don't know where to find the sync history so I can click on those bookings you highlighted. I have looked everywhere I can think of to find the sync history.

2. I never received a cancellation warning email from OwnerRez when the Airbnb guest cancelled their stay from July 5 - 8.

3. I also don't understand why there would be three "silently removed / canceled" events showing when to my knowledge, there was only one Airbnb reservation canceled.

Every time I think I'm getting to understand how to use the site, something happens that I don't understand again. ((sigh)) I SWEAR TO GOD, I'M REALLY TRYING.

Thank you,
Monica

Some more answers:

1) To find the sync history, click on Properties up top, click on your property, then go to the Calendar Import section. Click on the calendar you want to drill into and it will show you all of the details there (see screenshot).

2) Each calendar import has its own settings for whether to cancel directly or warn, and Airbnb is set to cancel directly. Confusing, right?

However, it looks like some Airbnb bookings were created directly by you as a booking instead of imported by the calendar sync. If that happens, then it's not managed by the calendar sync so it won't know to cancel it if you originally created it.

3) We were talking about Evolve, though, right? Drilling into the Homeaway calendar import shows a bunch of the silently removed/canceled events with the blocks/bookings still in place.

Two things:

1. When I followed your instructions and I clicked on the Airbnb calendar link, I don't see the same history you see. It shows me only ONE line in the history.

2. I'm referring to the sync not putting from Airbnb, despite that I have recently manually hit the "Sync Now" button.

I do have OwnerRez calendar syncing with Evolve, even though I know Evolve does some effed up things that I still don't comprehend. But I thought the Airbnb sync would be easy and work accurately with OwnerRez. Is that not the case?

Thanks,
Monica

1) That's because my screenshot is from your Evolve calendar (the HomeAway iCal in that list). You had mentioned Evolve specifically: "The calendar here is still not pulling new owner bookings from Evolve into OwnerRez calendar" so I gave instructions for that. I'd recommend running through that log and making sure all of those cancel items are actually canceled since you have that one set to send a warning instead of actually cancelling it.

2) The sync is updating from Airbnb, but there are no future bookings to pull which is why there are no new sync items in the log. The only future booking in the Airbnb iCal right now is for Bianca Bernwinkler -- and you actually created that booking manually in the system before the sync was able to. That's why there are no sync log entries for that booking in the Airbnb import -- because you created it not the import.

Do you have a booking number for the canceled one from Airbnb that didn't sync? I can check and see if it's the same scenario.

In future, if you want to update the calendar ASAP, don't create the booking directly but instead go to the sync and click "Sync Now". That way the calendar import will be connected to the booking and know that it needs to manage it for any date changes or cancellations.

I thought I updated my calendar on Airbnb about four days ago, to show a booking from July 4 to 8, and it isn't syncing to OR, even when I hit "sync now". That is the specific issue I am referring to.

But now I wonder if I DIDN'T do it through Airbnb but instead put it into EVOLVE because then Evolve "feeds" the Airbnb calendar. That's probably what happened.

I'm so OVER managing all this shit in multiple places. And I only have one little house. I can't imagine how people with multiple properties deal with it. Yikes.

Ahh. Yes, our Airbnb import only imports bookings, not blocked off time. That's because Airbnb includes *everything* on their calendar as blocks -- from holidays to days in advance rules to days between bookings rules. The only way to get round that is to only import bookings from them.

If you want to block off time, the best thing to do is either put it in OwnerRez or Evolve. Ideally you'd put it in OwnerRez as the master calendar, but because Evolve doesn't import and only exports, that wouldn't automatically show up there and you'd have to block it off manually in Evolve. So it's easier to put the block in Evolve and have it come across to OwnerRez.

If you go through the Evolve calendar log and make sure the canceled bookings are actually canceled, that'll get your calendar straight. Did you set up the warning only on purpose? You can either turn that off so it'll try and cancel automatically, or leave it on and make sure to attend to those notification emails.

I do already have my settings set up to only import "Bookings" from Airbnb.

That is actually what I do -- I go into Evolve because it's my master calendar and I create an "Owner Booking" and then it usually syncs here, but this time it hasn't and I don't know why.

I haven't had any canceled bookings with Evolve ever since I began listing with them. I can't imagine why there are cancellations showing up in my calendar sync history at all.

You are hilarious. :o) I have no idea whether they were on purpose or not. In truth, all my settings here have been trial and error since the beginning because I don't understand what they are supposed to be set on, based on what I want to have happen.

All I really want out of life on earth is for all my calendars to be pulled into one place so I can avoid double booking. I was hoping that one place would be OR but I continually get warnings about possible syncing conflicts which I don't understand and I am never fully confident that I really know whether my OR calendar accurately reflects my actual reservations.

Shoot an email over to help@ownerreservations... let set up a call and get everything sorted.

So I'm finding that Evolve's calendar synch is sometimes a day off and blocks my calendar on OwnerRez. Anyone else having this issue?

Yes. Chris and I have spent a lot of time on this and it's something wacky on the Evolve end. Unfortunately, alll we can do is call them to complain that their hinky calendar is jacking with our OwnerRez. (((sigh)))

I wish I could tell you what settings to look for here to avoid OR blocking your calendar incorrectly.

Monica

a lot of problems can be solved if u use OR calendar as master, not the other way around. I use OR as master and it syncs both ways to/from HA, Airbnb, Tripadvisor etc. I do not maintain all those separate calendars.

@Marinas Edge -- we've tracked down an issue with the Evolve calendar system. They change the dates to be off by a day every morning around 1AM eastern, then change them back to the correct dates around 4AM.

If you want proof of that so you can contact Evolve support, let me know and I'll put a trace on your account and provide you with the specific files where they show wrong dates. Happy to help communicate with their tech folks to see if they can fix this bug -- it seems to be affecting all Evolve customers we've worked with so far.

I'm assuming they have some issue where their timezone code is off so that it thinks it's the wrong day when the calendar is viewed early in the morning, but they haven't admitted anything yet.