Limassol, early March. The hotel opens in six weeks. In the office there is a spreadsheet with the bookings, a notebook for phone bookings, the Booking.com extranet open in one tab and Airbnb in another. The JCC terminal sits at reception, but deposits are paid by bank transfer, when they are paid.
A hotel in Cyprus has a different payment bank and a different tax setting from a Greek one. The booking channels are the same, though, and so is the work at reception. Below is a checklist of what booking software for a hotel or rental in Cyprus needs to cover. Use it to check any system you are looking at, ours included.
1. Card payments through JCC
In Cyprus many businesses already have an agreement with JCC. Booking software should work with that agreement and not push you to a new provider. Check:
- that the guest pays the deposit by card on the JCC page, with 3-D Secure,
- that you can send a payment link for any booking, and a link for the balance,
- that a payment is recorded on the booking only once JCC confirms it,
- that the money goes straight to your own account.
In Bookmatrix.com this is done by the JCC integration, with your own API user. It accepts euro, US dollar and British pound, and the payment page opens in the guest's language. It is included in every plan. If you want a second provider, you can switch on Stripe as well and the guest chooses.
2. One calendar for every room
The base of every system. All bookings, from every channel, on one calendar, with a guest card, balance and payments. Check that you can move a stay with one drag, that it works on a phone and that it gives occupancy and income reports per channel. This is what the Bookmatrix.com property management system (PMS) does, on computer, tablet and phone.
3. A channel manager for the channels you sell on
Guests in Cyprus book on the same platforms as in Greece: Booking.com, Airbnb, Expedia and others. A room sold on one channel must close on all of them within seconds. The Bookmatrix.com channel manager connects through Channex, which gives access to 75 OTA channels (544 connections in total, according to the Channex list). Prices, minimum stays and closed dates are set once and go everywhere. For why this matters, read why every hotel needs a channel manager.
4. A booking engine without commission
Every booking from your website saves the platform commission. Check that the booking engine reads the same calendar as the channels, that it is built for phones and that it asks for a deposit according to your cancellation policy. In Bookmatrix.com the booking engine is included in every plan, with no charge per booking, and it has its own address even if you have no website.
5. Confirmations and messages that go out on their own
The guest should get a confirmation at once, a receipt after paying, and instructions before arrival. Check that these emails go out without anyone having to remember. In Bookmatrix.com the confirmation goes out as soon as the booking lands, the receipt for a JCC payment is emailed, and automations send scheduled messages.
6. Housekeeping and check-in without waiting
Two points that cost hours in summer. First, the cleaning team should see on a phone which rooms are checking out today. Second, if you have smart locks, each guest's code should be set on its own. Bookmatrix.com has a housekeeping phone app and a TTLock smart-lock connection. In Greece, Eos on Skiathos and U boutique Experience in Alexandroupoli have issued automatic PINs for 30 and 249 bookings respectively since May 2026.
7. Documents and tax: ask what the system does in your country
This is where Cyprus differs. Many Greek systems, Bookmatrix.com included, have features built for the Greek authorities: sending documents to myDATA, the AADE short-term rental registry, the climate resilience fee. These are for properties in Greece. For a property in Cyprus, ask your accountant which documents and filings you need, and check with every provider exactly what it covers for Cyprus. A system that says "all done" without asking where you are has not understood you.
8. Data transfer and setup
If you are switching systems, your future bookings must be on the new calendar from day one. Ask who does the transfer and how long it takes. In Bookmatrix.com we transfer your future bookings from your current PMS, a spreadsheet or the OTA extranets before you go live. How it works in practice is in set up in 48 hours.
9. Support in your language
When something gets stuck in August, you want a person on the phone, not a form. At Bookmatrix.com phone support is in Greek.
10. A price you know in advance
Ask for a yearly price, in writing, with what it includes. In Bookmatrix.com the PMS, the channel manager, the booking engine and the JCC integration are in every plan. Hotel plans start at €810 a year and rental plans at €180 a year for the first property. All the details are on the pricing page.
The checklist at a glance
- Card payments through your own JCC agreement
- One calendar for all bookings, on the phone too
- A channel manager for Booking.com, Airbnb, Expedia and your other channels
- A booking engine without commission
- Automatic confirmations and payment receipts
- Housekeeping on the phone and, if you want, smart locks
- A clear answer on documents and tax in Cyprus
- Booking transfer done by them, not by you
- Support in Greek
- A written yearly price
Getting a property in Cyprus ready for the season? Try Bookmatrix.com with a free 14-day demo, or leave your phone number at bookmatrix.com/form and we will call you on the next working day. Or call us at +30 2351 151525.