An Airbnb alternative: your brand, no commission

Airbnb gives you reach, but at a cost many hosts underestimate: it charges commission to both you and the guest, puts its brand front and centre, and sits in the middle of every conversation. Travellers don’t remember your place — they remember “an Airbnb”. If you want to build something of your own — a brand, a list of repeat guests and commission-free bookings — you need a direct channel. That’s the modern alternative to depending on Airbnb alone: your own booking website and a branded guest portal, where you control the full experience.

Kanarix vs Airbnb: quick comparison

How Airbnb works and what it costs

Airbnb connects hosts and travellers and takes commission for the match. With the usual split-fee model, the host pays around 3% and roughly 14% is added on top for the guest. That surcharge makes your place more expensive to the traveller without you seeing the money, and dents your competitiveness. Airbnb also handles payments, messaging and reviews inside its platform, so the whole relationship runs through them.

Where it falls short for hosts

You have no real access to the customer: you can’t contact them off-platform, offer a direct repeat stay, or build your own brand. Every booking starts from scratch, competing with thousands of similar listings. And if Airbnb changes its algorithm, fees or policies, your business is affected with nothing you can do. You depend entirely on a third party.

How Kanarix is different

Kanarix gives you your own booking website with your brand and a digital guest portal. Direct bookings are 0% commission: the guest books and pays on your site, and the money lands straight in your account. Instead of a percentage on every stay, you pay a fixed fee of €49 per month plus €15 per property. We build it custom in about 2 weeks, with support included and a 30-day guarantee.

The guest portal is the difference

Kanarix includes a digital guest portal with WiFi, access instructions, house rules and local tips — a premium experience that avoids repetitive calls and messages. The guest experiences your brand, not a middleman’s, and that’s what makes them remember your place and return.

Build loyalty and repeats

With direct data and contact, you turn a guest who arrived via Airbnb into a returning customer who books with you, commission-free. A base of repeat guests is the most profitable asset a rental can have — and it’s exactly what OTAs prevent you from building.

Who it’s for (and who it’s not)

Kanarix fits if you want your own brand, loyalty and your full margin, without building the technology yourself. It’s not for someone who only lists on Airbnb occasionally; it’s designed for hosts who treat their rental as a business and want a direct channel that grows with them.

How to switch without losing bookings

Switching models doesn’t mean turning off what already works overnight. The move happens in steps, in parallel, and is usually ready in about 2 weeks:

• ✓You share your properties, photos, seasonal pricing and rules. We build the custom site with your brand.
• ✓We connect calendars via iCal with Booking, Airbnb and any portals you already use, so dates block automatically and you never double-book.
• ✓We turn on online payments (card, Bizum, PayPal) straight to your account, with no portal holds.
• ✓We launch your site and you start taking direct bookings, keeping the portals as a discovery channel.
• ✓Over time, you reconvert guests who arrived via a portal into direct bookings on their next stays.

What Kanarix includes (and you don’t pay extra for)

• ✓Custom design with your brand — not a generic template.
• ✓Ongoing support included in the price, also after launch.
• ✓Calendar (iCal) sync with Booking and Airbnb to prevent double-bookings.
• ✓Secure online payments (card, Bizum, PayPal) straight to your account.
• ✓Multilingual site optimised for local SEO and AI search.

Pricing is transparent: €49 per month plus €15 per property, no setup fee and a 30-day money-back guarantee. Your system is live in about 2 weeks.

Frequently asked questions

Can I stay on Airbnb and use Kanarix at the same time?

Yes. The sensible setup is to keep Airbnb to capture new travellers and use Kanarix as your direct channel. Calendars sync via iCal, so you’ll never double-book between the two.

Is it really 0% commission?

Yes — direct bookings that come through your site carry no per-booking commission. You only pay the fixed fee of €49 per month plus €15 per property, with no percentage on your revenue.

Can I contact my guests directly?

With your own website, yes. The contact details of direct bookers are yours, so you can invite them back, send offers or ask for reviews without going through a platform.

Is there a lock-in contract?

There’s no lock-in and you get a 30-day money-back guarantee. You try the system risk-free.

What does the guest portal include?

WiFi, check-in instructions, house rules, local recommendations and the practical stay information — all with your brand and accessible from the guest’s phone.