Rules are how you tell the booking page what your kitchen can actually do. Get them right and the page stops offering things you cannot deliver.
Panel Reservations Settings
Slot step and sitting length
| Setting | What it means | Usual value |
|---|---|---|
| Slot step | How often a start time is offered: every 15 or every 30 minutes. | 30 minutes for most restaurants |
| Default duration | How long you hold a table for one booking. | 90 minutes for à la carte, 120 for a tasting menu |
| Buffer | Dead time added after a booking for clearing and resetting. | 10–15 minutes |
Duration plus buffer is what decides whether you turn a table twice in an evening. Both are guesses at first; correct them after a month of watching how long people actually stay.
Notice and how far ahead
- Minimum notice — how close to the sitting a booking may still be made. Two hours suits a kitchen that preps; thirty minutes suits a bar.
- Maximum advance — how far into the future the page offers. Sixty days is common; a year invites bookings nobody remembers making.
- Maximum party size online — above this, the page asks the guest to call. Large parties deserve a conversation.
Confirm automatically, or by hand
With automatic confirmation on, a guest who books a free slot is confirmed instantly and gets their email straight away. With it off, every booking arrives as a request that someone has to accept.
| Automatic | By hand |
|---|---|
| Guests get certainty in one step | You keep control of the plan |
| Fewer phone calls | Someone must be watching, all day |
| Right for most rooms | Right when the room is small and every table is a decision |
Closed dates and holidays
Your opening hours cover the normal week. Closed dates are the exceptions: the annual holiday, a private hire, the day after a national holiday when you decide not to open. Add them and the page stops offering those days entirely.
Frequently asked
Can different days have different rules?
Opening hours are per weekday, so Friday can be longer than Monday. The timing rules — duration, notice, buffer — are one set per location.
What if a guest wants a time you no longer offer?
When the requested slot is full, the page offers the nearest alternatives on either side, so most guests re-book themselves instead of giving up.
Can I stop online bookings for one evening?
Yes — add that date as a closed date. Bookings already taken stay; new ones are not offered.
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