iCal or API connection? How to sync Booking.com and Airbnb without double bookings

Do you rent out through Booking.com, Airbnb and your own website? Then you want just one thing: all your calendars always aligned, so the same date is never booked twice. There are two ways to connect those calendars: an iCal link and an API connection. They achieve the same goal but work very differently. In this article we explain the difference, with the pros and cons of each.

What is an iCal link?

iCal (sometimes called "iCalendar") is a universal calendar standard. Each platform issues a special calendar link, and you exchange those links between platforms. That way the platforms "read" each other's availability and block booked dates. Almost every booking platform supports iCal, so you can nearly always use it — including smaller channels.

Advantages of iCal

• ✓Instant to activate: you paste the calendar links back and forth, done in minutes.
• ✓Works with almost every platform, including smaller channels and standalone calendars.
• ✓No approval or waiting time needed — you set it up entirely yourself.

Disadvantages of iCal

• ✓Syncs on an interval (usually every few hours), not to the exact second. With two bookings close together on different channels there is a small risk of overlap.
• ✓Only exchanges availability — not prices, booking details or guest data.
• ✓You still manage prices separately per platform.

What is an API connection?

An API connection is a direct, deep link between Mikaflow and the platform (such as Booking.com or Airbnb). Instead of only exchanging a calendar link, the systems "talk" to each other directly. That means much more information flows across: availability, rates and bookings are synchronized virtually in real time.

Advantages of an API connection

• ✓Virtually real-time synchronization — the small time window of iCal disappears, so even less chance of double bookings.
• ✓Exchanges not only availability, but also prices and booking details.
• ✓You manage everything from one central dashboard, without logging into each platform.

Disadvantages of an API connection

• ✓Setting it up takes longer: an API connection must be approved and activated by the platform.
• ✓Not every small channel offers an API — for those channels iCal remains the solution.

Important: setting up an API connection takes time

Keep in mind that creating an API connection with Booking.com, Airbnb and other channels is not ready instantly. Unlike iCal — which you activate yourself in minutes — an API connection has to be requested, reviewed and approved by the platform itself. That verification and activation process typically takes anywhere from a few days to a few weeks, depending on the platform and how quickly they process your request. So plan this well in advance, especially before high season. In the meantime you can use an iCal link, so your calendars are already in sync while the API connection is being finalized.

Which should you choose?

The smartest approach is usually a combination. Use the API connection for the big channels like Booking.com and Airbnb, where real-time prices and bookings deliver the most value. Use iCal for the smaller channels or standalone calendars that do not have an API. That way you have one central, up-to-date calendar everywhere.

How Mikaflow handles this for you

Mikaflow supports both: a direct API connection with Booking.com and Airbnb, and iCal synchronization for all other calendars. Everything comes together in one central calendar, so you never double book again. We help you set up the connections and request the API links, so you do not have to worry about the technical side.

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