Going Live
This page outlines the technical and compliance requirements for each Booking.com APIs and the API elements before going live.
Implementing APIs in your live environment
To offer your properties the best possible service, Booking.com recommends that you get certified before using some of the business-critical APIs. However, for certain basic APIs, you can start using them after you successfully perform a self-assessment.
Additionally, you're required to adhere to certain compliance standards before going live with some APIs.
When you go live with an API, we advise you to offer the functionality of the API to a small beta group for the first few weeks. This will allow you to identify and resolve potential issues before you implement the API for all your properties.
Technical requirements
To implement an API in your live environment, you may need to fulfill the following technical requirements depending on the criticality of the API:
Certification: You'll go through a certification process which includes running several test requests on certain API endpoint(s). The Connectivity Support team will share the testing steps with you. They will evaluate the test requests you send and the responses that the API returns on your test properties. If you successfully complete the required tests, you can start the go-live process.
Self-assessment: You'll follow the steps as outlined in the relevant self-assessment tutorial. Depending on the tutorial requirements, our Connectivity Support may ask you to send certain information. It could include sharing RUIDs of API responses and/or screenshots of how your systems show relevant required data.
If there isn’t any self-assessment tutorial available for the API you want to implement, we recommend that you read through the API documentation. You’ll need to make sure you’re confident implementing the API on your test properties before you roll out to live properties.
Compliance requirements
To implement an API in your live environment, you may need to fulfill certain compliance requirements:
PCI Compliance: PCI compliance refers to attesting to comply with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), a set of requirements intended to ensure that all companies that process, store, or transmit credit card information maintain a secure environment. For more information, see Introduction on PCI and PII compliance.
PII Compliance: PII stands for personally identifiable information. We'll review your compliance based on relevant regulations. For more information, see Introduction on PCI and PII compliance.
Booking.com APIs and the go-live requirements
| API | Mandatory/ Optional | Compliance requirement | Technical requirement | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Contacts API | optional2) | PII Compliance | Certification 3) | For existing certified Content API providers, no certification is required. Optionally, you can send us the RUIDs for a quick check/verification by the support team. For non-Content API/new providers,please go through this tutorial. |
| Content API | mandatory1) | PII Compliance | Certification | Depending on your business model, the data you have about your hotel or home properties and how involved you are in managing them, we encourage you to implement the full Content API. You'll also need to implement the Contracting API, Licences API and Photo API when you implement the full Content API. If you support properties by managing only their rooms and rate plans, you may be able to just implement the Room type and rate plan management API. To request a certification, reach out to Connectivity Support. |
| Contracting API | optional | N/A | Self-assessment | The API is a part of the Onboarding Solutions. It enables you to efficiently participate in and keep track of the contracting process of your properties. You'll need to implement this API if you implement the full Content API. There isn’t any certification or self-assessment tutorial available. We recommend that you read through the API documentation. You’ll need to make sure you’re confident implementing the API on your test properties before you roll out to live properties. |
| Guest Review API | optional2) | PII Compliance | Self-assessment | You'll need to complete a self-assessment exercise. For more information, take a look at the tutorial. |
| Licences API | optional | N/A | Self-assessment | The API is a part of the Content API and Room type and rate plan management API. It lets you manage property licence information that may be required before the property can open for bookings. There isn’t any certification or self-assessment tutorial available. We recommend that you read through the API documentation. You’ll need to make sure you’re confident implementing the API on your test properties before you roll out to live properties. |
| Market Insights API | optional | N/A | Self-assessment | There isn’t any certification or self-assessment tutorial available. We recommend that you read through the API documentation. You’ll need to make sure you’re confident implementing the API before you roll out to live properties. |
| Messaging API | optional2) | PII Compliance | Certification | You'll need to complete a self-assessment exercise. For more information, take a look at the tutorial. You'll need to follow the tutorial and reach out to Connectivity Support with your provider ID and the specified proof indicated in the tutorial. |
| Opportunities API | optional | PII Compliance | Self-assessment | There isn’t any certification or self-assessment tutorial available. We recommend that you read through the API documentation. You’ll need to make sure you’re confident implementing the API before you roll out to live properties. |
| Photo API | optional2) | N/A | Self-assessment | You'll need to complete a self-assessment exercise. For more information, take a look at the tutorial. If you implement the full Content API, you must also implement this API. |
| Promotions API | optional | N/A | Self-assessment | You'll need to complete a self-assessment exercise. For more information, take a look at the tutorial. |
| Property API | optional2) | PII Compliance | Certification 3) | For existing certified Content API providers, no certification is required. Optionally, you can send us the RUIDs for a quick check/verification by the support team. For non-certified Content API/new providers, please go through this tutorial. |
| Property Scores API | optional | N/A | Self-assessment | There isn’t any certification or self-assessment tutorial available. We recommend that you read through the API documentation. You’ll need to make sure you’re confident implementing the API on your test properties before you roll out to live properties. |
| Rates & Availability API | mandatory1) | N/A | Certification | The certification will cover the extra API element(s) you choose to implement, tailored to your properties’ pricing models. To find out what are the required API functionalities and availability restrictions, take a look at this article. To request a certification, reach out to Connectivity Support. |
| Reporting API | optional2) | PII Compliance | Self-assessment | You'll need to complete a self-assessment exercise. For more information, take a look at the tutorial. |
| Reservations API | mandatory1) | PCI & PII Compliance | Certification | To find out what are the required API functionalities and mandatory reservation details your system needs to show to your properties, take a look at this article. To request a certification, reach out to Connectivity Support. |
| Room type and rate plan management API | optional | N/A | Certification | This API enables you to support hotel or home properties by managing their rooms and rate plans. You can still choose to implement the full Content API if you wish. To request a certification, reach out to Connectivity Support. |
1) Not applicable for Specialised Partners who are not implementing these APIs.
2) For Specialised Partners who are implementing these APIs, it is mandatory to implement the API relevant to your service offering.
3) The certification process for modularised content api has been modified to make it lighter and provide the certification results within the specified SLAs.
Implementing Rates & Availability API related elements in your live environment
You can also choose to implement extra Rates & Availability API related elements tailored to your properties’ pricing models. You may need to request a certification with Connectivity Support depending on the element you choose.
Technical requirements
To implement Rates & Availability API related elements in your live environment, you will need to fulfill certain technical requirements, see Technical requirements.
Booking.com Rates & Availability API related elements and the go-live requirements
This section captures a list of extra Rates & Availability API related elements and the relevant technical requirements.
| API | Mandatory/ Optional | Technical requirement | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Derived pricing | optional 1) | Self-assessment | You'll need to complete a self-assessment exercise. For more information, take a look at the tutorial. |
| Length of stay (LOS) pricing | optional 1) | Certification | We highly recommend you to implement this pricing model. To request a certification, reach out to Connectivity Support. |
| Occupancy-based Pricing (OBP) | optional 1) | Certification | We highly recommend you to implement this pricing model. To request a certification, reach out to Connectivity Support. |
| Single use pricing | optional 1) | Self-assessment | There isn’t any certification or self-assessment tutorial available. You’ll need to make sure you’re confident implementing the API element on your test properties before you roll out to live properties. In addition, please contact Connectivity Support before you implement it so they can make sure it’s suitable for your connected properties. |
| Standard pricing | optional 1) | Certification | Standard pricing is the default pricing model. If your initial Rates & Availability API certification did not cover it, you’ll need a certification. To request a certification, reach out to Connectivity Support. |
1) The API element(s) you choose to implement in your Rates & Availability API integration are mandatory and covered in your Rates & Availability API certification.