> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://wiki.inels.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://wiki.inels.com/inels-harmony/reception/taking-a-booking.md).

# Taking a booking

The seven-step booking wizard, one step at a time.

New bookings are made in a seven-step wizard. Each step is small, you can go back at any point, and **nothing is saved until the final step** — so there is no way to half-create a booking.

Open **Reservations** and click **New reservation**.

## The seven steps at a glance

| Step | Name    | Asks for                         |
| ---- | ------- | -------------------------------- |
| 1    | Date    | Check-in and check-out           |
| 2    | Guests  | How many people                  |
| 3    | Room    | Which room                       |
| 4    | Contact | Who the booking is for           |
| 5    | Option  | Meals and extra services         |
| 6    | Access  | Cards, PIN and zones             |
| 7    | Sum     | A summary to check before saving |

## Walking through it

{% stepper %}
{% step %}

#### Date

Pick arrival and departure in the calendar. Move month with **<** and **>**; **Clear** starts the selection again.

Check-out must be after check-in — the wizard tells you rather than letting you continue.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

#### Guests

How many people will stay. This filters the rooms offered next, so a party of three is never shown a room that sleeps two.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

#### Room

Only rooms that are free for those dates **and** big enough for the party appear. A room with an overlapping booking is not offered at all, so you cannot double-book by accident.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

#### Contact

Name, surname, company, address, city, phone and email.

The email address matters — it is where booking confirmations go.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

#### Option

**Meal:** None, Breakfast, Halfboard or Fullboard. **Services:** Parking, Airport transfer, Late check-out.

These appear on the booking so the whole team can see what was promised.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

#### Access

Where the guest's key is decided — cards, a door PIN, or a Salto credential, plus any extra zones. What you see depends on what the hotel has installed. Full detail in [Guest keys](/inels-harmony/reception/guest-keys-cards-pins-and-salto.md).
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

#### Sum

Read it back to the guest — dates, room, party size, services — then click **Save**. Only now does the booking exist.
{% endstep %}
{% endstepper %}

{% hint style="success" %}
**Always check the guest database at step 4.** Click **Select from database** and search. For a returning guest this fills every field at once and keeps their history on one record instead of quietly creating a second one. See [The guest database](/inels-harmony/reception/the-guest-database.md).
{% endhint %}

## If the wizard refuses to save

A dialog tells you why. The usual causes:

<details>

<summary>The four common reasons</summary>

* Someone else took the room while you were filling the wizard in
* The party is larger than the room's capacity
* Check-out is not after check-in
* A required contact field is empty

Go **Back**, fix it, and carry on — nothing you have typed is lost.

</details>

## After saving

The booking appears in **All reservations** with status **Booked**. From there you can edit it, confirm it, check the guest in, or delete it — see [Check-in and check-out](/inels-harmony/reception/check-in-and-check-out.md).