How to Connect OwnerRez to GuestsBoard

One of the most impactful things you can do with GuestsBoard is connect it to OwnerRez. The moment a booking is confirmed, your kiosk knows who's arriving, when they're checking out, and how many nights they're staying. When guests walk in and see "Welcome, Sarah!" on the TV — that's not a small thing. It sets the tone for the entire stay.

Why Connect OwnerRez?

Without the OwnerRez connection, your kiosk displays generic content — your property name, WiFi, rules, and recommendations. That's already useful. But with the connection, it becomes personal:

• Guest name on the welcome screen — "Welcome, Marcus & Emily!" pulled from the booking
• Check-out date displayed — "Checking out Sunday, March 9" so there's no confusion
• Nights remaining — a subtle countdown that gently reminds guests of their stay duration
• Guest count — useful context if you have occupancy-sensitive rules (hot tub hours, parking spots)

The data stays current automatically. When a guest extends, the kiosk updates within minutes. When one booking ends and a new one begins, the kiosk switches over on its own.

Before You Start

You'll need:

• An active OwnerRez account with at least one property configured
• Your OwnerRez API credentials (username and API key — found in OwnerRez under Settings → API)
• A GuestsBoard property already set up with a paired kiosk device

Step-by-Step Connection

1. Log in to app.guestsboard.com and open the property you want to connect.
2. Click the Reservations tab in the property editor sidebar.
3. Click Connect OwnerRez. A credentials panel will appear.
4. Enter your OwnerRez username (your login email) and your OwnerRez API Key. You can find the API key in OwnerRez under Settings → API → API Key.
5. Click Verify & Connect. GuestsBoard will authenticate with OwnerRez and list all your properties.
6. Select which OwnerRez property maps to this GuestsBoard property, then click Save.
7. GuestsBoard automatically imports the current and upcoming bookings. If there's a guest checked in right now, their name will appear on the kiosk within 30 seconds.

How the Sync Works

After the initial connection, GuestsBoard uses OwnerRez webhooks to receive real-time updates. Every time a booking is created, modified, or cancelled in OwnerRez, OwnerRez sends an event to GuestsBoard. There's no polling or manual refresh needed.

GuestsBoard processes these events and updates the kiosk display immediately. The Pi pulls the latest booking data every time it renders the welcome screen, so even if there was a brief connectivity gap, it self-corrects the next time the screen refreshes.

What Data Syncs

Field	Where It Appears
Guest first name + last name	Welcome screen header ("Welcome, [First Name]!")
Check-in date	Reservation info panel
Check-out date	Reservation info panel + checkout reminder screen
Nights remaining	Calculated from today's date vs check-out date
Guest count (adults + children)	Reservation info panel

GuestsBoard does not sync financial data, guest contact info, or booking notes to the kiosk display. Only the display-relevant fields are used.

Troubleshooting

Booking isn't showing on the kiosk

First, check that the booking exists in OwnerRez with a status of "Confirmed" — blocked dates and tentative holds are not pulled. Then go to Reservations → Sync Now in GuestsBoard to force a manual refresh. If the booking still doesn't appear, verify the OwnerRez property mapping under the Reservations tab.

Check-out date is off by one day

This is almost always a timezone issue. OwnerRez stores dates in the property's local timezone. Make sure your GuestsBoard property timezone setting matches the timezone configured in OwnerRez for that property. You can set it under Property → Settings → Timezone.

Guest name shows "Guest" instead of the actual name

Some booking channels (particularly certain Airbnb flow types) mask the guest's full name in the OwnerRez record until closer to check-in. If the guest's name in OwnerRez itself shows as "Airbnb Guest," GuestsBoard will reflect the same thing. This resolves automatically once OwnerRez receives the unmasked name from the channel.

API credentials rejected

Double-check that you're using the API key and not your OwnerRez account password. In OwnerRez, go to Settings → API → your API key is labeled separately from your login password. If you regenerated your API key recently, you'll need to re-enter the new one in GuestsBoard.

Related Guides

Now that your reservations are syncing, you might want to set up the AI Concierge so the kiosk can answer personalized questions — see How to Set Up the AI Concierge and Build Your Knowledge Base. Or review the full initial setup flow in How to Set Up Your GuestsBoard Kiosk.

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