> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.hostelmate.co/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.hostelmate.co/finance-management/payment-processing/waitlist.md).

# Booking Waitlist

The **Waitlist** is a booking status in Hostel Mate that holds a reservation in a pending state without blocking the bed. The bed stays available for other guests — particularly those who pay upfront — until a staff member decides to confirm or cancel the waitlisted booking.

It applies in multiple situations: direct bookings made via your booking engine using certain payment methods, and OTA bookings that arrive without full payment collected.

***

### Why it exists

A confirmed booking immediately blocks a bed. That is the right behaviour when payment is secured, but it becomes a problem when:

* A guest books via Pay on Arrival or Manual Card Capture with no money changing hands yet
* An OTA reservation arrives marked as unpaid or partially paid
* You need time to verify a guest before committing a bed

In all these cases, placing the booking in Waitlist status keeps the bed open. You review it, then either confirm (blocking the bed from that point) or cancel.

***

### Where a booking can end up on the waitlist

#### Direct bookings — Booking Engine

When the **Hold new bookings in waitlist** toggle is enabled on a payment method, any booking made through that method goes to Waitlist instead of Confirmed automatically.

This is configured per method:

* **Pay on Arrival** → setting in the Pay on Arrival tab
* **Manual Card Capture** → setting in the Manual Card Capture tab

#### OTA bookings

Some OTA reservations arrive without full payment — the channel confirmed the booking but the property has not yet collected or the payment is pending on the OTA side. In those cases, staff can manually assign the Waitlist status to hold the reservation without blocking the bed while the payment situation is resolved.

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### What the Waitlist status means

|                         | Confirmed | Waitlist                |
| ----------------------- | --------- | ----------------------- |
| Bed availability        | Blocked   | Still open              |
| Guest notified          | Yes       | Yes                     |
| Shows in calendar       | Yes       | Yes                     |
| Counts toward occupancy | No        | No                      |
| Requires staff action   | No        | Yes — confirm or cancel |

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### How to manage waitlist bookings

Waitlist bookings appear in the **Front Desk → Booking Calendar** and in the reservation list. You can filter by Waitlist status to see all pending bookings at once.

From the booking detail:

* **Confirm** — status moves to Confirmed, bed is blocked from that point forward
* **Cancel** — reservation is removed, bed remains open

There is no automatic expiry. Waitlist bookings stay pending until a staff member acts on them.

***

### When to use it

| Scenario                                                 | Recommendation                                                   |
| -------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------- |
| High occupancy, Stripe or Nomod is your primary method   | Enable — prevents free holds from blocking paid guests           |
| OTA booking arrived but payment not yet settled          | Assign Waitlist manually until payment clears                    |
| Manual Card Capture with identity checks before charging | Enable — time to verify before committing the bed                |
| Low season, Pay on Arrival as a convenience option       | Disable — confirm guests immediately to reduce friction          |
| Walk-in or same-day Pay on Arrival guests                | Disable — no value in holding when the guest is already arriving |

***

### Notes

* The Waitlist toggle on the Booking Engine is per payment method — enabling it for Pay on Arrival does not affect Manual Card Capture, and vice versa.
* Disabling the toggle does not affect bookings already in Waitlist status — those must still be actioned manually.
* If the parent payment method is turned off, the Waitlist toggle is disabled and has no effect on new bookings.