Last updated:
Pricing
Booking window
The booking window is the spread of time between when guests reserve and when they arrive, measured across all bookings for a property or market. It is usually described as a distribution rather than a single number, because leisure and business guests book on different horizons.
Why Booking window matters for your revenue
The window tells pricing when to hold rates and when to release them. In a market that books six months out, discounting in the final fortnight is too late; in a last-minute market, holding high rates until the final week is normal.
Related terms
- Lead timeLead time is the number of days between the moment a specific booking is made and the guest's arrival date. Where the booking window describes a whole pattern, lead time describes one reservation within it.
- Dynamic pricingDynamic pricing is the practice of changing nightly rates continuously in response to demand signals: local occupancy, competitor rates, events, day of week, seasonality and how far ahead the booking falls. Rates are recalculated regularly rather than fixed at the start of a season.
- SeasonalitySeasonality is the repeating annual pattern of demand in a market, driven by climate, school holidays, religious calendars, events and travel habits. It determines which months command premium rates, which sustain steady occupancy and which need active demand generation.
- Compression nightA compression night is a date when city-wide accommodation supply is close to sold out, usually because of a major event, conference, holiday or festival. Prices across the whole market rise sharply as remaining inventory becomes scarce.
Dynamic Pricing at Pinnacle Path
Booking window sits inside our dynamic pricing work. See how we apply it market by market.