Hi All, I have asked this question sometimes back and I’ve got lots of answers (by using PHP scripts, google calendar and or go through 3rd party with subscription).
Since that time till now has any RW developer, developed a stack that does The Online Booking (without going through this agony) similar to the attached snapshot for an Online Booking I’ve used earlier this year with WP, were you select an opening date and time then fill the short form name, phone and send..
A booking system for is something that I have been working on, off and on, for a couple of years.
The problem(s) that arise are simply that a booking system is more of a web app than a stack.
While, I have had success in my personal tests with a series of stacks that essentially let you build a booking system wrapped in a RW theme … It would be, IMO, a support nightmare.
It would involve creating a mysql database, installing a table into that database as well as some other info that would be unique to each user.
Having been in the RW Community for 13 years now, I know that there is a limit to what the RW Community is willing to pay for a product, regardless of how good or helpful it is. Releasing a booking system would appeal to such a small number of people that it would likely be cost prohibitive.
How would you feel about some videos showing you how to install a 3rd party booking system in a RW project?
Or are you wanting something that was designed specifically for RW/Stacks?
I’m interested in this, but specifically for small hotel/apartment rental booking, which is slightly different to Monica’s request.
I’ve used a hotel booking script from PHP Jabbers and have linked to third party Channel Managers like Siteminder and Qbook among others, to provide booking systems for small hotel and apartment rentals. As this market evolves having a standalone booking script that doesn’t integrate with the Online Travel Agencies (booking.com, expedia, AirBnB etc) via a Channel Manager is, IMO, pretty limited.
Integrating a RW site to a Channel Manager such as Siteminder is pretty straightforward, the painful bit for the hotel owner is the monthly fees!
What would be interesting for me in this market would be a two step approach:
A Stack or Plugin that gives similar functionality to the PHP Jabbers script, but is easier to integrate and maintain in a RW project - to give a self contained hotel booking facility.
Being able to take that further by having an option to connect to one of the channel managers, and out to booking.com, expedia etc etc
As far as pricing goes I accept that this wouldn’t be a mainstream product, so it would carry a higher price tag.
I no I am not looking for a 3rd party integration, but what I though and was looking for is a simple RW stack designed specifically for online booking for small clinic and a learning driving school etc…
@yuzool - I too would be interested in a solution that solves this. - YabDab’s DateSnap does ok at reflecting a google calendar - but it’s not an effective solution to a real business that needs online bookings for hotels, b&b’s etc.
The stack seems simple to use and might be a good solution for smaller businesses. But is there no booking confirmation for the customer? I made some reservations on the demo site but didn’t get a confirmation
Thank you for developing the stack, well the 2 sites I have built earlier are still on WP as that time I could have the online booking through WP.
The Booking Stack is great. I did try roughly the demo and need to learn it more, but I agree with others that we would need more fields “such as for time” and an email confirmation to customers that the appointment has been confirmed.
Hi, the Booking Stack is a great first step. But I think it needs some more features. From the user’s site I would love to add a timing selection, a person selection (how many and which age, e.g. adult or kids). Then they need a confirmation, and now we are looking at the backend:
The backend has to store the dates already booked and display a visual indication at the frontend - a different color in the day selection perhaps? The company needs to see bookings and requests on a one page panel. Before I start using excel or other tools, I would rather just use a preexisting service and add it via iframe or other means to my site.