=== VikBooking Hotel Booking Engine & PMS ===
Contributors: e4jvikwp
Tags: hotel booking, booking engine, channel manager, hotel, reservations
Requires at least: 4.7
Tested up to: 6.9
Stable tag: 1.8.5
Requires PHP: 7.4.0
License: GPLv2 or later
License URI: https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html

Famous Booking Engine, PMS and Hotel Reservations plugin for property managers. The best solution for accommodations to drive more direct bookings.

== Description ==

= Vik Booking for WordPress =

The famous Booking Engine and PMS online software for accommodations is now available also for WordPress as a native Plugin!

If you are looking for a reliable reservation system for a Hotel, B&B, Villa, Apartments, Hostel or any similar accommodation, then you have found the right plugin. In fact, Vik Booking is a **PCI-DSS** and **OpenTravel** compliant hotel & vacation rental Booking Engine used by thousands of properties every day.

This is the **free** version of the plugin, but you can upgrade to the **Pro** version at any time from your *wp-admin* section. Experience the power of a true and internal Booking Engine that competes with the best ones of the world!

The **Pro** version is compatible with *Vik Channel Manager*, the first and only native Channel Manager for WordPress, listed as a Premier Partner of **Booking.com** since 2018 among the top 20 systems worldwide. **Full API** connections available with the most famous OTAs such as **Airbnb**, **Expedia** and **Google Hotel** for their new Free Booking Links! Beware of "fake" Channel Manager plugins that only offer unreliable iCal synchronizations with no private access to the OTA's APIs.

Vik Booking was born in 2010 for a different web-software (CMS) than WordPress, and that's how it became famous. The same powerful framework is now (since 2018) at the service of all webmasters, designers and web-agencies that work with WordPress. It's definitely the hotel reservation plugin that you, or your client, were looking for.

Visit [VikWP.com](https://vikwp.com/) for more details. Interested in our full solution comprehensive of the Channel Manager? Visit also [E4jConnect](https://e4jconnect.com/).

= Some of the unique features =

* Custom Rate Plans (Refundable, Flexible, Non Refundable rates)
* Rooms, Room Types and Sub-Units management functions
* Availability Calendars and Occupancy Overview
* Bookings Management made right
* Feature-rich Back-end section
* Front-end customizable booking process
* 8 different Views for the front-end (8 Types of Shortcode for your pages)
* Compliant with any Pricing Model: Occupancy, Nightly, LOS, OBP etc..
* Housekeeping features with Tableaux, festivities and room-day notes
* Permissions/ACL Management functions for the various WP Users Roles
* Multi-language support with built-in translation functions
* Channel Manager compatible. We are a certified Channel Manager provider (e4jConnect).
* Google Hotel Ads certified for Free Booking Links.

= Some of Pro version features =

* Seasonal Rates and Rates Calendar with 1-click modification
* Booking Restrictions: Min, Max LOS, CTA/CTD, Forced Arrival/Departure days
* Custom Payment Gateways (over 60 available on VikWP.com)
* SMS Gateways for automated notifications
* Custom Cron Jobs Scheduling for automated tasks (reminders, invoices)
* Customers Management functions, sales channels and commissions
* Graphs and Statistics
* Custom Options, Extra Services, Extra Fees
* Add, Remove or Switch rooms from existing bookings
* PMS Reports with extendable framework (built-in services for various countries)
* Electronic invoices extendable framework compliant with Italy (Agenzia delle Entrate) and Greece (myDATA ΑΑΔΕ).
* Registration functions: check-in, check-out, no-show
* Our award winning solution of Booking Engine + PMS and Channel Manager is all you need on your WordPress website.

= Interested in, curious about the Pro version? =

You should take a look with your own eyes at the demo website to see what you can do with Vik Booking. Do not stop at the front-end though, make sure to visit the wp-admin section too.

1. [Front-end Demo Website](https://vikwp.com/demo/vikbooking)
1. [Admin Demo Website](https://vikwp.com/demo/vikbooking/wp-admin)

== Installation ==

= Installation through the WordPress Plugins Browser =

* Search for "Vik Booking" in the Add Plugin section of your website back-end
* Install the Plugin by clicking on the apposite button
* Activate the Plugin by using the apposite activation button
* A link to access and configure Vik Booking will be visible in the left-menu
* Enjoy it

= Alternative Installation Method =

You can only install the **free** version of Vik Booking, not the Pro version. If for some reasons the WordPress Repository installation won't work, you can contact us to receive the zip installer file and upload it via FTP onto your server.

* Download the installer zip file from [VikWP.com](https://vikwp.com/)
* Unzip the archive on your computer's local drive
* Upload via FTP the unzipped folder *vikbooking* onto your */wp-content/plugins* directory
* Log in to your *wp-admin* section and activate the plugin

== Frequently Asked Questions ==

= Is upgrading to Pro mandatory? =

No, not at all. However, it took our company 8 years to build the *Pro* version and we are willing to spend a lot more years of work on this software. We encourage you to evaluate the free version first, and then upgrade to Pro to unlock its potential.

= Why some functions are not available in the free version? =

We are a software development company listed as a certified Channel Manager Provider by the major OTAs of the world. We work to deliver a full software solution for CMS and Web Software like WordPress as a valid alternative to the same proprietary and external systems. We make money by selling licenses of the Pro version.

= Is it worth upgrading to Pro? =

Vik Booking is not a one-page plugin. You can build websites worth a lot of money with this plugin. You don't need anything else to deliver a complete website, if not a Theme and some experience with WordPress.

= Can I build a portal of multiple properties/apartments? =

No, you can't! Vik Booking was designed specifically for single properties, or multiple properties managed by the same company. Basically, you cannot build a portal with multiple vendors where certain users should access and manage only their rooms and reservations. Vik Booking is a true booking engine for Hotels, B&Bs, Apartments, Villas and Hostels. It should be installed on the website of the accommodation. Even though permissions for receptionists and managers can be set up, the logic of the software remains single-vendor.
If you are looking for a solution for a real-estate agency (for example) that manages multiple properties on its own, then it's still fine as long as you don't need specific users/owners to see or manage their own data because this is not supported.

= Can I use Vik Booking with my preferred Theme? =

Yes, of course. You are free to install Vik Booking on your website with your own Theme. The plugin will adjust to it thanks to its own CSS framework. It is also possible to work on a custom CSS file to adjust some layouts.

= What about Vik Channel Manager or E4JConnect? =

Vik Booking is the Booking Engine and PMS plugin, it can work alone on any existing website. However, if you are looking to establish real-time API connections with OTAs like Booking.com, Airbnb, Expedia, Google Hotel Ads etc.. then you need to use our full solution, which is composed of a one-time fee to purchase the Pro version of Vik Booking as well as the plugin Vik Channel Manager. The only recurring cost, just like any existing (and real) Channel Manager software, is the one to keep the connection active with the various channels. This is the subscription for our certified and award-winning Channel Manager service called "e4jConnect". Please notice that all these services are entirely provided by our company, it's one single company with no third party connections. We are the software developer company as well as the Channel Manager provider. This makes a big difference.

== Screenshots ==

1. Bookings List: reservations from your website and any other channel.
2. Booking Details: a neat, complete and user-friendly interface.
3. The elegant Dashboard: custom admin widgets with sections and containers.
4. Availability Overview: calendars showing the rooms allocated.
5. Rates Overview Pricing Calendar: set or change rates with one click.
6. Direct Reservations from your website: online payments via credit card.
7. Booking Suggestions: in case of no availability, the system will suggest the closest solutions.
8. PMS Reports: an extendable framework to export financial data.
9. A smart Widget only for those who also use the complementary plugin Vik Channel Manager.
10. Tableaux for housekeeping with festivities and room-day notes to highlight bookings and hot dates.
11. Support for Dark Mode appearance preferences to delight your eyes at night (and not only!).
12. Multitask panel: an incredibly fast way to query data for nerds.
13. Browser (web push) notifications will turn your device into a real-time updated system.

== Changelog ==

= 1.8.5 =
*Release date - 26 November 2025*

* OTA onboarding improvements for new listings (E4jConnect channel manager required).
* OTA guest messages indexing and faster processing (E4jConnect channel manager required).
* Split stay bookings calculation improvements.
* New payment transaction hooks for custom metadata.
* Database optimization scheduling.
* Additional caching support to rates calculation.
* Minor framework improvements.

= 1.8.4 =
*Release date - 13 November 2025*

* Introducing the new Door Access Control framework (E4jConnect channel manager required).
* Native support for TTLock - Smart Locks added to Door Access Control framework.
* Task Manager: AI maintenance tasks from guest requests.
* OTA bookings expected payout amounts.
* Airbnb Hosting Quality metrics and dashboard (E4jConnect channel manager required).
* Minor framework improvements.

= 1.8.3 =
*Release date - 13 October 2025*

* Search results filtering options (categories, amenities, price range).
* Search results new interactive map with grid layout and advanced map markers.
* Custom check-in/out times can be defined and overwritten at listing-level.
* Minimum advance booking notice can be defined and overwritten at listing-level.
* Custom currency position (before or after price).
* Silent notifications within the Notification Center.
* Added support to new OTA payout notifications (E4jConnect channel manager required).
* Several new hooks added for the creation and modification of bookings.
* Various performance improvements with large data-sets.
* New PMS report "Guest Registration Data".
* Different format for customers PIN code (8 alphanumeric random characters).
* Various improvements to the Electronic Invoicing framework and interface.

= 1.8.2 =
*Release date - 28 July 2025*

* Custom cancellation policies for custom rate plans.
* Multi-calendar improvements in Availability Overview.
* Availability Overview "Holding Area" row for hotel-inventory rooms.
* Availability Overview "Unassigned units" row for hotel-inventory rooms.
* Availability Overview drag & drop actions improved.
* Main framework updated.
* Introducing the Help Wizard to automatically configure country-related functions.
* Booking.com Payments API for VCC reservations (E4jConnect channel manager required).
* New Task Manager settings for sequential or balanced operators assignment strategy.
* Task Manager new tasks scheduling frequency for pre-arrival.
* Booking availability pre-flight during manual modifications.
* Improved query execution timing for rooms with hotel-inventory.
* New PMS reports (Trentino, Italy).
* Minor fixes.

= 1.8.1 =
*Release date - 18 June 2025*

* Minor fixes.
* Minor CSS improvements.
* Improved support for third-party page builder plugins with Operators Login shortcode.

= 1.8.0 =
*Release date - 10 June 2025*

* Major framework update.
* Various improvements to PMS reports.
* PMS report auto-export functions with support for multiple account profiles.
* Operators work days, exceptions and days off.
* New operators tool for managing the work days.
* Task Manager framework introduced.
* Housekeeping and Maintenance automated tasks scheduling.
* Task Manager projects for sprint board.
* Private tasks for administrators.
* New operator permissions for tasks management.
* New admin widget "Operators Chat".
* Various task manager layouts: board, list, calendar and bookings overview.
* iCal calendar subscription for operator tasks with multiple formats.
* Various history framework improvements.
* New notifications center category for Operators.
* New WebPush Notifications for operator activities.
* Multi-calendar functionalities in availability overview for managing rates and restrictions.
* Matrix selection of multiple dates and listings to handle multiple rate update queues.
* Added support for off-session transactions through the Virtual Terminal (Stripe required).
* New Channel Manager capabilities for Virtual Credit Cards received from OTA reservations.
* Guest message reactions for OTA messaging (Channel Manager required).
* Generative AI improvements (Channel Manager required).
* Major improvements to electronic invoicing framework for an easier customization.
* Various improvements to pre-check-in framework.
* JS core major refactoring.
* Improved support up to PHP 8.4
* New back-end and front-end styling.

= Earlier versions =

For further details about older versions, please refer to the [changelog.md](https://plugins.svn.wordpress.org/vikbooking/trunk/changelog.md) file of the plugin.
