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Self-catering software for cottages, guest houses and B&Bs in South Africa

For self-catering, guest houses and B&Bs in South Africa

From a Cape Town flat to Garden Route cottages, a guest house in Durban, Joburg or near the Kruger: one calendar for Booking.com, Airbnb and your own website, guests who let themselves in, and invoices in rand.

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Free for 2 units, no time limitKeep your Booking.com and Airbnb listings

01Cottages and rooms

Self-catering units and B&B rooms in one account.

A cottage you let as a whole and a guest house room with breakfast are both just units in TIOO, each with its own calendar, rate and way in. Run a few cottages in one town and a guest house in another from the same login on the Growth plan.

  • Whole units or rooms

    Set up each cottage, flat or room with its photos, beds, rate and house rules.

  • More than one property

    Up to 3 properties on Growth, 10 on Pro, each with its own settings.

  • Staff see their own place

    Give a manager or housekeeper access to one property only.

02Booking sites

Booking.com, Airbnb and the rest, without double bookings.

Each listing's calendar link goes into TIOO once. From then on its bookings arrive by themselves, and each unit gets its own calendar link to add back, so a night taken on one site closes on the others.

  • Booking.com and Airbnb

    Connected through each listing's calendar (iCal) link, checked every few minutes.

  • Lekkeslaap and other local sites

    TIOO has no direct link to them. If your listing gives you an iCal calendar link, it works the same way; if not, add those bookings by hand.

  • Phone and email bookings

    Type them in once and they block the dates everywhere else.

  • Your own website

    Guests who book you direct pay no booking-site fee, and TIOO takes no commission.

03Self check-in

Guests arrive after a long drive. You don't have to wait up.

Guests check in online before they come: names, phone and arrival time, plus their car registration and an ID photo if you ask for them. On the day, the guest app on their phone has the way in, the Wi-Fi, the house rules and directions.

  • Load-sheddingTTLock locks run on their own batteries, so a code already on the lock keeps working through a power cut. New codes and the tap-to-unlock button need the lock's Wi-Fi gateway online; with a key safe nothing needs power at all.
  • Lock batteriesTIOO reads each lock's battery every day and warns you before one runs flat.
  • Codes that end with the stayEach guest's door code stops working at check-out time.

Online check-in on every plan · door codes from Starter · ID photo from Growth

04Invoices in rand

Invoices with VAT, paid by card or EFT.

Make an invoice from the booking with your logo, VAT number and banking details. The guest pays it online through your own Paystack account, or by EFT and you mark it paid. The money never passes through TIOO.

Invoices: Starter plan and upThe booking form on your website doesn't take payment itself

05Also in the box

Everything else a self-catering business needs.

Set your time zone to Johannesburg and your currency to rand once; every date and price follows.

06Price

Two units free. A small monthly fee after that.

A two-cottage place can run on the free plan with no time limit. Add units, smart locks, cleaning or invoices when you need them.

Free
$0per month

Free for your first 2 units, no time limit, no card.

  • Airbnb, Booking.com and your website in one calendar
  • Online check-in and the guest app
  • Your own booking website
  • 50 guest messages a month
Starter
$19per month

Up to 5 units.

  • Smart lock door codes (TTLock)
  • Invoices your guests pay with Paystack
  • Cleaning board for your cleaners
  • Text messages to guests
Growth
$49per month

Up to 15 units in up to 3 properties.

  • Guest ID photo at check-in
  • Reports per unit and booking site
  • Maintenance list for repairs
  • Your own web address

TIOO's own price is shown in the currency we bill you in; your guests still see your prices in rand. WhatsApp is an add-on on any paid plan. Full pricing

07 · Questions

Questions South African hosts ask us

Does TIOO work for self-catering units and guest house rooms together?
Yes. Every cottage, flat or room is its own unit with its own calendar, rate and way in (keypad, key safe, reception or meeting the guest). The Growth plan holds up to 3 properties in one account, for example cottages in one town and a guest house in another.
Can guests pay in rand?
Yes. Set your business currency to rand, send the guest an invoice, and they pay it through your own Paystack account with the methods Paystack offers you, or by EFT to the bank details on the invoice, which you then mark as paid. The money never passes through TIOO. Invoices are on the Starter plan and up; the booking form on your website doesn't take payment itself.
What happens during load-shedding?
TTLock smart locks run on their own batteries, so a door code that is already on the lock keeps working through a power cut. Sending a new code and the guest's tap-to-unlock button need the lock's Wi-Fi gateway online, so put the gateway and router on a backup supply if you can. TIOO checks lock batteries every day and warns you when one runs low. With a key safe, nothing needs power at all.
Does TIOO work with Lekkeslaap?
TIOO has no direct link to Lekkeslaap. If your listing there gives you an iCal calendar link, paste it into TIOO and those bookings show in your calendar like Airbnb and Booking.com ones; if it doesn't, add those bookings by hand.
Is TIOO a channel manager?
Not today. TIOO keeps Booking.com, Airbnb and your own website in step through calendar (iCal) links, so a night booked on one is closed on the others. Rates and listing details are still changed on each site.
Do I still need zoning approval, a grading or a tourism registration?
TIOO doesn't apply for anything or file VAT or tax for you. Short-term letting is governed by your municipality's zoning and by-laws (the City of Cape Town, for example, has its own), sectional title schemes can have body corporate rules, and star grading by the Tourism Grading Council is voluntary. Check with them what applies to you. This isn't legal advice.
Can I add VAT to invoices?
Yes. In invoice settings you set a default tax rate and its name, for example VAT at 15% if you are VAT-registered, and each invoice adds it. Invoices are on the Starter plan and up.
What about POPIA?
TIOO looks after your guests' details for you as a data processor. Its data processing agreement, at tioo.com/dpa/, names POPIA among the laws it covers. You still tell your guests what you collect and why.
Is there a free plan?
Yes. TIOO is free for your first 2 rooms or units, with no time limit and no card: calendar sync, the guest check-in app, 50 guest messages a month and your own booking website. Smart locks, invoices, cleaning and text messages start on the Starter plan.

Your cottages and rooms, in one place.

Free for your first 2 units, no time limit. Or click around the live demo first.

Get early access Try the live demo

No card neededKeep your Booking.com and Airbnb listings