This article explains the most common reasons the rate shown on Booking.com or Expedia differs from the rate set in RMS, and what to check in RMS and on the channel for each.

Overview

RMS sends rates to Booking.com and Expedia according to the Pricing Model set on the channel connection: Per-day Pricing, Occupancy Based Pricing or Full Pattern Length of Stay.

The channel must use the same model, the rate plan must be active on the channel, and the room's maximum occupancy must agree on both sides. When any of these differ, the channel rejects or misreads the update and keeps showing a different rate.

Applies to: properties connected to Booking.com or Expedia through Channel Management.

For a reservation that arrived in RMS at the wrong rate, see Troubleshooting: A Reservation Arrived from a Channel at the Wrong Rate.

For rates that are not updating at all, see Troubleshooting: Rates or Availability Not Updating on a Channel.

Please Note! RMS is highly configurable. Some Terminology, User Access & Permissions, Images, Labels, and Functions used in these articles may differ from your setup. CLICK HERE to find out more.

Quick Checks

Run through these first.

1. Confirm the rate in RMS for the date, Category and Rate Type in Charts > Rate Manager.
2. Check the Pricing Model on the connection. Go to Setup > Online Bookings > Channel Management, select the channel, select Edit, and look in the Connection Information section.
3. On Booking.com, open Rates & Availability, then Connectivity errors in the extranet. It lists the updates Booking.com rejected and the reason for each.
4. Open the channel's Log in RMS. Go to Setup > Online Bookings > Channel Management, select the channel, select Edit, then select Log. The Request column shows what RMS sent and the Response column shows the channel's reply.
5. Correct the cause before running a Manual OTA Resync. Re-sending the same values does not change the channel's answer.

Possible Causes

The Pricing Model in RMS does not match the pricing model Booking.com or Expedia has for your property

Both systems must use the same pricing model for the rates to sync correctly. If RMS is set to Occupancy Based Pricing and the channel has your property on per-day pricing, or the reverse, the channel rejects the rate updates or shows incorrect prices. The RMS side is selected on the connection; the channel side is held by Booking.com or Expedia.

For example, if RMS is set to Occupancy Based Pricing it sends Booking.com a price for 1 guest, 2 guests and so on up to the Category's maximum occupancy, while a property that Booking.com holds on per-day pricing expects one price per room per day. Booking.com rejects the updates and the rate stays at the last accepted value.

On Expedia, the Log Response for this rejection shows error 3090, which Expedia describes as a pricing models mismatch.

Fix:

1. In the side menu of RMS, go to Setup > Online Bookings > Channel Management, select the channel and select Edit.
2. In the Connection Information section, note the Pricing Model.
3. Contact RMS Support to confirm which pricing model the channel holds for your property and to align the two. Changing the model on the channel side is arranged through Support.
4. Once both sides match, run a Manual OTA Resync for the affected Categories and dates.

The rate plan is inactive or not linked to the room type on Booking.com

Booking.com rejects an update for a rate plan that is inactive, that is not linked to the room type, or that can only be edited in the extranet. RMS keeps sending the rate, Booking.com keeps rejecting it, and the price on Booking.com stays at whatever it last accepted. The Connectivity errors page in the extranet names the room type and rate plan concerned.

Fix:

1. In the Booking.com extranet, open Rates & Availability, then Connectivity errors.
2. For each error, activate the rate plan or room type, or link the rate plan to the room type, as the error describes.
3. If the rate plan is no longer sold, remove its row from the Area/Rate Mapping on the RMS connection instead, so RMS stops sending it.
4. Run a Manual OTA Resync for the Category and Rate Type.

The room's maximum occupancy differs between RMS and the channel

RMS sends a rate for each occupancy up to the Max Occupants Per Area set on the Category.

Booking.com rejects price changes that do not match the maximum occupancy set for the room on its side, and reports this on the Connectivity errors page as a room type occupancy error.

Fix:

1. In the side menu of RMS, go to Setup > Category/Area, select the Category and select Edit.
2. In Category Details, check Max Occupants Per Area.
3. In the channel extranet, check the room's maximum occupancy and align the two.
4. Run a Manual OTA Resync for the Category.

Expedia rejected the rates for a rate plan that does not accept the type of rate RMS sends

Each Expedia rate plan has a rate acquisition type, set in Expedia Partner Central: sell rates, which include Expedia's compensation, or net rates. RMS sends the rate held in RMS.

When the rate plan's setting on Expedia does not accept that rate, Expedia rejects the update with error 3142 and the Log Response reads, for example, "Sell Rates are not expected for Merchant rate plan or Net Rate hotels. Hotel Id: 12345678, Rate Plan Id: 123456789". This usually means a rate plan that should not receive rate updates from RMS, most often an Expedia Collect or derived rate plan, is mapped for updates.

RMS handles the rejection itself: it ticks No Update on the mapping row for that rate plan and raises an "Expedia - Critical Configuration Issues" alert in the Message Centre listing the rows it changed.

Fix:

1. Open the Expedia connection's Log and find the Response containing Error code 3142. Note the Rate Plan Id it names.
2. In Expedia Partner Central, select Rooms and Rates, then Room types and rate plans, and select Export CSV. Find the rate plan. Only rate plans with Interface Rates set to Yes, Rate Plan Status set to Active and no Parent Rate Plan should receive rate and availability updates from RMS; the Rate Acquisition Type column shows whether Expedia expects sell or net rates for it.
3. If the rate plan should not receive updates from RMS, leave No Update ticked on its row in the Area/Rate Mapping. The row still delivers reservations.
4. If the rate plan should receive updates, ask your Expedia market manager to change its rate acquisition type, then untick No Update, select Save and run a Manual OTA Resync for the Category and Rate Type.

Expedia can also accept an update but warn that the rate for a rate plan is outside its rate verification threshold, which Expedia bases on recent bookings. The Log Response shows warning 7019 or 7025 for a net rate and 7021 or 7027 for a sell rate, and the rate for that plan is not updated. Check the rate in RMS is correct, and contact your Expedia market manager if it is.

Important! Do not repeatedly run a Manual OTA Resync for the same rate discrepancy. If one resync does not correct the channel, the cause is a configuration mismatch that needs correcting first.

Prevention

Check the Pricing Model on the connection whenever the Booking.com or Expedia connection is set up again or the rate plans on the channel change, and check the Booking.com Connectivity errors page after adding a room type or rate plan on either side.

Align the Category's Max Occupants Per Area with the channel's room occupancy before mapping the room.

Still Not Working?

If the rates still differ after working through the causes above, submit a ticket to RMS Support and include:

• The property name and the channel.
• The Category, Rate Type and dates, with the rate in RMS and the rate shown on the channel.
• The Pricing Model set on the connection.
• The Response text from the channel's Log for the rejected update, and any error shown on the channel's Connectivity errors page.

Related Articles

• Channel Pricing Models
• Booking.com: Channel Information
• Expedia: Channel Information
• Manual OTA Resync
• Pet fees or extra guest charges are not showing on Booking.com