Works with familiar booking platforms
Keep Airbnb, VRBO, and Booking.com in the mix while RentalBeam handles your website flow.
Boat and watercraft rental operators
Day-based boat rental bookings from your own website
Publish live availability for each boat and take rental requests with the details that matter: boating license, experience, marina pick-up notes, or a document upload. You stay in control of who gets on the water.
Day-based rentals (not hourly)
Approval-first flows fit license checks
Document uploads on Pro
Works alongside your stack
Your website booking flow, connected to familiar platforms and payments
RentalBeam handles the host workflow while iCal feeds keep availability aligned. Stripe supports guest card payments and wallet options such as Apple Pay and Google Pay where available on Pro.
Supports many major cards and wallets on Pro
Turn on guest payments when you are ready. Card brands and wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Pay appear where Stripe, device, browser, and region support them.
Secure card processing
Hosts use RentalBeam day to day. Stripe supports card processing and payouts underneath the same host workflow.
Third-party names and logos are used for identification only and remain the property of their respective owners.
Product facts
What this setup gives you
What you get before you publish a direct booking path.
- 0%
- Commission on booking requests that come from your own website
- 3
- Booking flow options: inquiry only, bill later, or pay in widget
- ~2 min
- To publish a live, embeddable availability calendar
- 5
- Curated map themes to show renters where to pick up the boat, on Plus and Pro
Why it fits
A direct booking path without overbuying software
RentalBeam keeps the guest-facing website flow focused: accurate dates, and payment only when it suits how you host.
A calendar per boat
Each boat or watercraft gets its own embeddable availability calendar with manual date control on Plus and Pro.
Screen every renter first
Inquiry-first and request-now flows let you check licenses and experience before anything is confirmed or charged.
Collect licenses and waivers
Custom fields capture boating license numbers and experience; on Pro renters can upload a license photo or signed document with the request.
Pick-up and drop-off, counted in days
Set the rental to a vehicle or equipment under Booking settings on the Setup tab and the booking form and your emails say pick-up and drop-off, count days, and ask for no guest count, in all 24 languages. Show an informational security deposit and add fuel or captain services as optional fees.
Dashboard
The back office behind your booking widget
The calendar and form are what visitors see. Behind them sits the RentalBeam dashboard where you review, manage, and get paid for every booking - all on your own website, and we never take a cut.
Request review
Confirm licenses and conditions before anyone boards
A renter picks dates and fills in the fields you set up on your boat rental website, boating license and hours on the water included if you ask for them. The request arrives by email with a secure review link where you weigh the renter and the conditions together, then approve, decline, or send a payment request.
- Up to 3 notification emails per request on Pro
- Approve, decline, or send a payment request from one screen
- Advance-notice rules give you time to check the forecast before confirming
Custom fields
Collect licenses and waivers with the request
Add the questions your dock needs: boating license, experience, marina pick-up notes, up to 20 fields per rental. Add a file-upload field so renters attach a license photo or signed document, and view it securely from the booking in your dashboard.
- Text, dropdown, date, time, number, and phone fields on Pro
- Secure license photo or document uploads (up to 3 files, 10 MB each)
- A preferred pick-up-time field, with availability still managed per day
Payments
Bill after approval, or take card in the widget
We never take a cut of what you charge. Approve a request and send a secure pay-later link, let renters pay by card in the widget through Stripe, or record a bank transfer yourself, with a branded invoice PDF either way.
- Zero RentalBeam commission, card payments carry only the standard Stripe fee
- Secure pay-later links or pay in widget on Pro
- Per-day pricing with optional fees for fuel or captain services
What your guests receive
Every email is sent under your name, and you can see it first
Request received, payment request, confirmed, changed, canceled, reminders: each one carries your rental name, your colors and your logo. Preview any of them from the Emails tab, or send yourself a test before a guest ever gets one.
The moment they submit
Pick-up, drop-off, days and total. No guest count on a vehicle.
When you ask for money
Daily rate, delivery fee, one button. Your business name and address on it.
When it is confirmed
What was paid, what was booked, and that nothing else is due.
Booking flows
Choose the guest path that matches how you host
Start inquiry-first, request payment after approval, or take payment in the widget when your pricing and payout setup are ready.
Lowest commitment
Inquiry only
Hosts who want to screen, quote, or reply manually before anything is confirmed.
Guests send dates and details from your website. You review the request and reply with the next step.
- 1Guest chooses available dates and sends a request
- 2Host reviews the request and guest message
- 3Host replies, confirms manually, or declines
What most hosts here pick.
Approval first
Request now, bill later
Hosts who want a clear booking request first, then a secure payment link after approval.
Guests send the request, you approve it, then send a secure payment request for deposit, balance, or full payment.
- 1Guest submits the booking request
- 2Host confirms the booking and payment steps
- 3Guest pays later through a secure RentalBeam page
What most hosts here pick.
Fastest checkout
Pay in widget
Hosts with reliable pricing who want guests to complete card payment during the website flow.
Guests choose dates, review the total, and pay in the booking widget when Stripe-powered payments are enabled.
- 1Guest chooses dates and sees the amount due
- 2Guest pays in the widget with a Stripe-supported method
- 3Host receives the booking request and payment status
How to use it
A practical path from website dates to a confirmed booking
Start with the piece that solves today's problem, then add the booking and payment layers when the guest journey is ready.
Best first step
Publish live boat availability
Start with the free calendar widget so renters can see open dates before they call or message.
ExploreBooking layer
Add the Pro booking form
Take rental requests with dates and the license or safety details you require.
ExplorePayments
Bill after approval or pay in widget
Approve the rental first, then send a secure payment link, or take card payment during submission on Pro.
ExploreNo PMS migrationBooking widget on ProWallets appear where supported
Related solutions
Other ways hosts use RentalBeam
Compare the same booking engine through nearby host types, then pick the one closest to what you rent.
Vacation rental hosts
A vacation rental booking engine that fits your website flow
Show synced availability from Airbnb, VRBO, and any iCal source on your website. Then, on Pro, give guests a booking form where they can inquire, get a payment link after you approve, or pay directly in the widget.
Bed-and-breakfast owners
B&B booking software for hosts who still want a human touch
Give guests a professional B&B booking path without adopting a full PMS. Use inquiry-first requests, send secure payment links after approval, or enable Stripe-powered guest payments on Pro when your pricing is ready.
Boutique and small hotels
Small hotel booking software for your existing website
Add a direct booking widget, live availability, and optional guest payments to your hotel website. RentalBeam handles the guest-facing booking path while your front-desk and operations tools stay separate.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions for boat and watercraft rental operators
Does RentalBeam charge a commission or booking fee on Pro?
No. RentalBeam Pro takes no commission and no booking fee - your direct booking revenue is 100% yours. The booking form widget, guest payment workflow, coupon codes, seasonal pricing, custom fields, and booking rules are all included. The only cost when a guest pays by card through RentalBeam is the standard Stripe card-processing fee, which is paid to Stripe, not RentalBeam. Inquiry-only and pay-later flows have no per-transaction cost.
Does RentalBeam take a commission on my direct bookings?
No. RentalBeam never takes a commission on your booking revenue on any plan, and Pro adds no RentalBeam booking or application fee. If a guest pays by card through RentalBeam, only the standard Stripe card-processing fee applies - that fee goes to Stripe, the same as any payment processor. Inquiry-only, pay-later, and off-platform bookings (such as bank transfer) have no per-transaction cost at all.
Does RentalBeam support coupon codes and discounts?
Yes. RentalBeam Pro includes coupon codes, percentage and fixed-amount discount rules, and seasonal pricing tiers. You can run promotional codes for repeat guests, configure off-season discounts, and combine them with custom fees and booking rules from the same booking form widget setup.
Can I charge sales tax, VAT, or occupancy tax on my booking form?
Yes. RentalBeam Pro supports percentage fees built for taxes: you enter the rate (up to three decimals, so rates like 8.875% work) and it is calculated on the discounted subtotal plus your other fees, the same base tax authorities use. The rate can be added on top of your prices (US-style sales tax) or shown as already included in them (EU-style VAT, with an "Includes Tax" line under the total). You can exclude individual fees from the tax base when your jurisdiction does not tax them, and guests see the tax clearly labeled with the rate. Fixed per-person tourist taxes are also supported through per-guest-per-night fees with child age rules.
Can I message guests from my email inbox?
Yes. On Pro, every booking notification email includes a reply address linked to that booking. Reply in Gmail, Apple Mail, or any email app and your message goes to the guest. When they reply, it comes back to your inbox and is saved in the dashboard Messages tab. Your personal email address is never shared with the guest.
Does the form say check-in and check-out?
Not if you set the rental to a vehicle or equipment under Booking settings on the Setup tab. The form, your emails, and your dashboard then say pick-up and drop-off, count days instead of nights, and ask for no guest count. A day is the 24-hour period that starts at pick-up, so Monday to Tuesday is one day.
Does RentalBeam work for boat rentals?
Yes, for day-based and multi-day rentals. Each boat gets an embeddable availability calendar, and on Pro a booking form with custom fields, optional document uploads, and Stripe-powered card payments where available. Hourly time slots are not supported.
Can I verify a boating license before confirming?
Yes. Use the inquiry-only or request-now flow so every rental waits for your approval. Add a license number field, and on Pro a file upload field so renters attach a license photo or document with the request.
Can I require a security deposit?
You can show an informational security deposit notice on the booking form so renters know what to expect; the deposit itself is arranged directly with you and is not added to the booking total.
Can I charge extras like fuel or a captain?
Yes. Configurable fees cover required and optional extras, shown transparently in the price breakdown. You can also offer coupon codes and discounts for longer rentals on Pro.
Boat and watercraft rental operators
How RentalBeam fits the way boat and watercraft rental operators work
RentalBeam gives boat and watercraft rental operators live availability on their own website with automatic iCal sync from Airbnb, VRBO, Booking.com, Google Calendar, and any other iCal-compatible source. The availability calendar is available on the Free plan, while Plus and Pro add more control over sources, managed dates, combined exports, custom colors, branding removal, and per-source sync health. On Pro, the same calendar becomes a real direct-booking surface with a booking form widget, coupon codes, seasonal pricing, configurable booking fees, custom guest fields, booking rules, and optional inline guest card payments through Stripe Connect.
RentalBeam works alongside your OTA listings rather than replacing them. It is not a full PMS, a channel manager, or a website builder. What it does is take you from a plain website calendar to direct bookings on your own site.
Start with a live availability calendar
- Free plan available: one rental, one iCal source, a multi-month view, and an embeddable availability widget.
- Any iCal source: Airbnb, VRBO, Booking.com, Google Calendar, and other feeds that export iCal or ICS.
- Automatic syncing: RentalBeam refreshes availability through iCal so your website never relies on manual updates.
- Built for real websites: responsive layouts, widgets translated into 24 languages, and embed options for Wix, Squarespace, WordPress, Webflow, and any builder that accepts HTML or scripts.
- More control on Plus: managed dates, custom colors, branding removal, and a combined export URL back out to other calendar tools.
Grow into direct bookings on the same foundation
- Booking form widget on Pro: add a direct booking form alongside your availability calendar so guests can inquire, wait for approval and a secure payment link, or pay in the widget from your own website.
- Flexible payment path: stay inquiry-first, approve requests and send a secure payment link later, or enable guest card payments when you want a faster checkout flow. Apple Pay and Google Pay can appear where supported by Stripe, the guest device, browser, region, and the host's connected account setup.
- Host controls: seasonal pricing, configurable booking fees, percentage and fixed-amount discount rules, coupon codes, multi-currency pricing, split payment steps, invoice PDFs, custom guest fields, guest-count settings for stays, and booking rules (booking window, advance notice, prep time, minimum and maximum length).
- Sync visibility: track Healthy, Stale, or Error status per source and see export access activity from your dashboard.
Keep 100% of your direct bookings
RentalBeam Pro is a single direct-booking plan with no commission and no booking fee. It unlocks the booking form widget, guest-payment workflow, coupon codes, seasonal pricing, custom fields, booking rules, host email tools, and reply-from-inbox guest messaging. RentalBeam never takes a cut of your booking revenue. When a guest chooses to pay by card through RentalBeam, the only deduction is the standard Stripe card-processing fee, which is paid to Stripe - not RentalBeam. Inquiry-only, pay-later, and off-platform bookings (such as bank transfer) carry no per-transaction cost at all.
Install on every major website builder
- WordPress: availability calendar guide • direct booking guide
- Wix: availability calendar guide • direct booking guide
- Squarespace: availability calendar guide • direct booking guide
- Webflow: availability calendar guide • direct booking guide
Typical setup flow
- Copy your iCal URL: get the export link from Airbnb, VRBO, Booking.com, or another iCal-compatible source.
- Create your widget: paste the feed into RentalBeam and preview your availability calendar instantly.
- Embed it on your website: add the snippet to Wix, Squarespace, WordPress, Webflow, and any builder that accepts HTML or scripts.
- Add bookings when you are ready: on Pro, keep inquiry-first, send payment after approval, or turn on guest card payments from the same setup.
Related guides
Related guides
Continue with the practical setup and strategy guides behind this solution.
Build the booking flow that fits your business.
Start with a free availability calendar, then add booking requests, secure pay-later links, payment PDFs, and optional guest card payments on Pro.