Bookings FAQ
Answers to common setup and operating questions about Bookings.
For what the app is and how to set it up from scratch, see the
Bookings Overview.
Setup
Do I need to configure anything before employees can book?
Bookings works immediately once enabled — all eight resource types are available by default and every role can create bookings. Open Settings to adjust booking policies, disable resource types you do not need, and choose who can administer spaces.
Which resource types can I turn on or off?
Eight types are available, each with its own toggle under Available Resource Types in Settings: Desks & Workspaces, Meeting Rooms, Parking Spots, Lockers & Storage, Phone Booths, AV Equipment, Company Vehicles, and Gym Equipment. Disabling a type hides it from the booking flow; existing bookings for that type are not cancelled.
Permissions and access
Who decides which employees can open Bookings?
App access (who can open Bookings at all) is governed by platform Access Management on the app’s listing — not a role list inside Bookings. Inside Bookings, three pickers under Bookings → Settings → User Permissions decide the rest: Who can book a space? (default: everyone who can open Bookings), and Who can add and edit spaces? and Who can see booking analytics and reports? (default: managers and above). Business admins and Bookings app admins can always do all three.
Who can access the emergency dashboard?
By default, admins and Bookings app admins. Three pickers under Bookings → Settings → User Permissions decide who else, and anyone named in any of them can open the dashboard and its live head counts: Who can see who is in the building? adds the live roster of names, Who can export the occupant roster? allows the first-responder CSV, and Who can alert everyone checked in to a building? allows the broadcast to everyone checked in to the building or floor you pick. That alert is separate from Safety Hub’s emergency alerts, which have their own setting in Safety Hub → Settings — restricting one does not restrict the other.
Can employees modify or cancel each other’s bookings?
Everyone keeps full control of their own bookings. Editing or cancelling someone else’s booking is limited to the managers above that person and to administrators (business admins and Bookings app admins). Bulk cancel and bulk delete are restricted to administrators.
Day-to-day
How does double-booking prevention work?
When someone creates or updates a booking, the system locks the space for that moment to prevent a race condition. If another confirmed booking already occupies the same space during the requested time window, the new booking is rejected. The availability calendar and the AI agent only offer free slots.
How do employees check in to a booking?
Three ways: scanning the QR code on their booking confirmation email, scanning a QR code posted at the space, or checking in from the booking detail page. Check-in opens 15 minutes before the booking starts and stays available until the booking ends. QR-code check-in has a tighter window — 15 minutes before to 30 minutes after the start time.
What happens if someone doesn’t check in?
If you enable Automatic Room Release in Settings (off by default), unchecked-in bookings are marked as no-shows and released after a grace period. The default grace period is 15 minutes (adjustable from 5 to 120 minutes). The booker receives an email and an in-app notification. If the waitlist is on, the first matching waitlist entry is notified.
How does the waitlist work?
When a space is occupied during a requested time, employees can join the waitlist (on by default; toggle Waitlist in Settings). If that booking is later cancelled or auto-released, the earliest waitlist entry for that space and time slot is notified by email and in-app notification. That person gets a 15-minute head start to book the freed slot. It is not a hold — anyone can still book the space in that time — and if they have not booked it when the 15 minutes are up, the next entry is notified.
What emails does Bookings send?
Booking confirmation (with a calendar invite attachment), a reminder before the meeting, auto-release notice for no-shows, waitlist-available and waitlist-expired notices, service-request status updates, and a space-feedback request after checkout. Confirmations and reminders include an .ics calendar invite as an attachment.
Does Bookings sync with Google or Outlook calendars?
Not as a live two-way sync — changes made in Google or Outlook do not reach Bookings. In the other direction, every confirmation email carries a calendar invite (.ics) that lands the booking on the holder’s Google, Outlook or iCal calendar. A reschedule re-sends the invite so your calendar updates, and a cancellation removes it. Bookings also appear on your MangoApps Calendar. The Calendar Invites setting turns the invites off.
Can employees set up a recurring booking?
Not yet. Each reservation is booked individually. There is no repeat-pattern or standing-booking feature.
When something looks wrong
“I can’t book a room — it says I’ve hit my daily limit”
Each employee is limited to a configurable number of bookings per day (default: 3, adjustable from 1 to 10 in Settings > Booking Policies > Maximum Daily Bookings). Only confirmed bookings on that calendar day count. Cancel an unneeded booking to free a slot, or ask an admin to raise the limit.
“I can’t cancel my booking”
Cancellations are blocked when the booking starts within the Cancellation cutoff (default: 2 hours, adjustable from 0 to 48 in Settings). Changing the time or the space follows its own Change cutoff (also 2 hours by default). A business admin or Bookings app admin can still cancel inside the cutoff. Once a booking has started and someone is checked in, it can’t be cancelled by anyone — check it out instead.
“I tried to check in but it said ‘Unable to check in at this time’”
Check-in opens 15 minutes before the start time. If you are earlier than that, wait and try again. If the booking has already ended or has been cancelled, check-in is no longer available. QR-code check-in closes 30 minutes after the start time even if the booking is still running — use the booking detail page instead.
“My booking disappeared — what happened?”
Most likely, Automatic Room Release is enabled and you did not check in within the grace period. Your booking was marked as a no-show and released. You should have received a notification titled “Booking Released.” If you do not see one, ask your admin whether auto-release is turned on and what the grace period is.
Licensing and limits
Does Bookings require a licence?
No. Bookings is pay-as-you-go and available to every tenant without a licence decision. You are billed per bookable space under management — no per-user fee and no minimum. Archived (inactive) spaces are not billed.
What are the configurable policy limits?
All five are set in Settings > Booking Policies:
| Policy | Default | Range |
|---|---|---|
| Advance Booking Limit | 30 days | 1–365 days |
| Maximum Daily Bookings | 3 per user per day | 1–10 |
| Maximum Booking Duration | 8 hours (12 for desks, parking spots and lockers) | 1–24 hours |
| Cancellation cutoff | 2 hours before start | 0–48 hours |
| Change cutoff | 2 hours before start | 0–48 hours |
The minimum booking duration is fixed at 15 minutes and is not configurable.
More help
- Bookings Overview
- Ask AI — the assistant answers Bookings questions from these articles.