Listing sites
List on CoolStays and Connect It to Your Website
How to apply, what the subscription means, and how to keep your calendar and own website in step with a CoolStays listing.
CoolStays is curated, so getting listed isn’t automatic.
To list on CoolStays, you apply online and the team decides whether your place fits its handpicked collection. You then pay a subscription instead of commission. Guests message you and book directly with you. Keeping your calendar, copy and own website working alongside the listing is left to you.
Who CoolStays suits
CoolStays suits owners with an unusual or characterful place, such as a shepherd’s hut, treehouse, cabin or boutique cottage. Its own about page says every listing is hand-picked for style, character or a little quirk.
That rules out the generic. Three identical pods on a farm with plain photos will have a harder time than a shepherd’s hut with a hot tub, a view and a story. The owner page puts it as a place that delivers a genuine “WOW” factor.
It also suits owners who want to keep the booking relationship. Guests contact you through CoolStays’ messaging system and then book directly with you, so the guest is yours from the first message.
How to list on CoolStays
You apply online at join.coolstays.com, or through the “Get started” button on the owner page. The team then looks at your property and decides if it fits.
The steps are simple.
- Gather your best photos and a short description of what makes the place different.
- Fill in the application with your property details.
- Wait for the team to review it. CoolStays doesn’t publish a set review time or the exact criteria.
- Ask the team about subscription levels and pricing.
- Get your calendar connected before the listing goes live.
If you’re turned down, CoolStays doesn’t publish its criteria, so you can’t be sure why. Sharper photos and a clearer first paragraph are sensible first things to improve.
How the CoolStays subscription works
CoolStays charges a subscription, not commission, and you can pay annually, quarterly or monthly. Because there’s no commission, a busy summer doesn’t add to what CoolStays charges.
The owner page describes three levels.
| Level | What it says you get |
|---|---|
| Silver | Standard search positioning, third-party booking platform integrations and email promotion when you go live |
| Gold | “Twice as visible”, with enhanced search positioning, plus inclusion in new-property sections, email marketing and Editors’ Picks |
| Platinum | “Four times as visible”, with priority search positioning and the same extras |
CoolStays doesn’t publish prices. The owner page says to contact the team for the latest pricing, so ask for all three quotes before you pick.
There are no exclusive contracts, so you can stay on Canopy & Stars, Airbnb and Booking.com too. The owner page doesn’t state contract length, cancellation or renewal terms, so ask about them and read what you’re sent before you sign.
Photo and copy standards
CoolStays doesn’t publish a photo checklist, so the safest approach is to match the style of listings already on the site. Look at ten places similar to yours and note what they lead with.
Lead with what’s distinctive. A guest scrolling the search results sees a photo, a name and a line or two, so the first image and first sentence do most of the work.
You can reuse copy from your own website, but write it for the listing rather than pasting it over. If the same paragraph appears on your site, your Airbnb page and CoolStays, none of them stands out. Keep the facts identical, but change the opening and the order. If you already have a CoolStays listing, its copy is also a helpful start for a new website.
Keeping your calendar in sync with CoolStays
CoolStays doesn’t take bookings itself, so you are the one who has to keep availability accurate, and your calendar needs one source of truth. If a guest books you on Airbnb and you forget to block the dates on CoolStays, the double booking is yours to sort out.
CoolStays works with booking systems and channel managers that connect to it. SuperControl, for example, lists CoolStays under its channel manager integrations, and its help centre says CoolStays’ tech team asks for your SuperControl account ID and a property reference. Other systems differ, so ask your booking system provider if it lists CoolStays.
| Option | How it works | Suits |
|---|---|---|
| Booking system with a CoolStays link | Your booking system pushes availability to CoolStays | Owners already on a booking system |
| Channel manager | One calendar feeds CoolStays and your other listings | Owners on three or more platforms |
| Calendar on your own website | Your site’s calendar syncs availability with CoolStays and other platforms | Owners who want everything in one place |
| Manual updates | You block dates on each platform yourself | One or two units with few bookings |
Manual updating works for one hut in a quiet year, but it breaks the first time you’re busy. Once you’re on two or more platforms, an automatic link is worth setting up.
Syncing is not the same as instant. Check how often your calendar updates, and test it by blocking a date and checking it appears on every platform.
Keeping your listing and website consistent
Your listing and your website should tell the same story. Same name, same photos, same description of the place, same house rules and same prices.
A listing gets guests to your door. Your own website is where they check you out.
This matters because some guests who find you on CoolStays will search for you by name afterwards, perhaps hoping for a better deal. If they find a site that looks different, with other photos and other prices, they may doubt which is right and book nowhere. If they find a site that matches and has its own booking page, they can book direct with you.
A direct booking page with an availability calendar, enquiry form and rate card in one place makes this easy for guests, and our free audit will tell you whether your current site does it.
Subscription details and tiers accurate as of October 2026.
FAQs
Does CoolStays take commission?
No. CoolStays says it charges a subscription, which you can pay annually, quarterly or monthly, and takes no commission. Guests contact you through its messaging system and then book directly with you. CoolStays describes itself as a marketing platform, not a booking agent.
Can I list on CoolStays and other sites?
Yes. CoolStays says it never insists on exclusivity, so you can also be on Canopy & Stars, Airbnb or Booking.com and run your own website. The catch is admin. Every extra place you appear is another calendar that has to match, so decide how they will stay in sync before you go live.
Do I need my own website to list on CoolStays?
CoolStays’ owner page doesn’t list a website as a requirement. It is still worth having one, because some guests who find you on a listing will look for your own site afterwards, perhaps hoping for a better deal. Without one, those guests have nowhere to book direct.
How much does it cost to list on CoolStays?
CoolStays doesn’t publish its prices. Its owner page describes three levels, Silver, Gold and Platinum, with higher levels giving more search visibility, and says to contact the team for the latest pricing. You pay the subscription annually, quarterly or monthly, with no commission on bookings.
Get your website ready for the guests CoolStays sends
A CoolStays listing brings people to look at you, and your own website decides whether they book direct. Send us your website and we’ll tell you, for free, what’s stopping it getting bookings. If you’d rather talk it through first, you can get in touch.