SabeeApp gives hotels a guided path off legacy PMS software. One structured migration covers reservations, OTA connections, pricing, and staff training. No manual channel updates, separate Channel Managers, or guesswork—just a cloud-based system backed by a personal account manager.
The problem: Staying with what you know
Getting used to the inconveniences of an outdated product is easy.
We are not saying you should switch your hotel PMS every year like an iPhone, but one should strive to live with the least amount of friction possible.
But maybe the team knows the current PMS inside out. It may be outdated and have a lot of issues, but with with workarounds they learn to use it, where known issues and limitations are just part of the job.
These are the usual issues you can spot:
- A Channel Manager stitched in from a different vendor, at extra cost.
- Rate changes added manually across platforms.
- Every hardware failure requiring an in-person fix, for an additional price of course.
- Can’t log into the PMS only from the front desk where the hardware lives
Take the case of Villa Erla. They were using one of the “legacy” softwares, something they knew well. But over the years, the subscription fee had climbed significantly. They were paying more for a system that still required a separate Channel Manager purchase on top. (The maths wasn’t mathing.)
They knew they should switch. But for a long time, they didn't. Because the biggest fear wasn't the new software - it was the move itself.
The solution: what switching should look like
The first step isn’t a contract, it is a conversation.
Our account manager sat down with the Villa Erla team to understand what mattered most to them: which OTAs they couldn't afford to go dark on, how their pricing model worked, what their peak season looked like. No set in stone workflows, just a real conversation about their specific property.
And of course any concerns were addressed in that conversation:
The team had a question early on about their restaurant: SabeeApp doesn't have its own POS system, so how would restaurant charges be posted to guest rooms? It's the kind of operational detail that would become a dealbreaker if nobody addresses it. Our team recommended Placcon, an integrated partner in their software.
That's how we flow - address the issue in the first call and we will offer our solutions.
From there, the migration was structured across the first week, designed around how the hotel in question operates:
Foundation first
Tax settings, email templates, user permissions, and property configuration were set up with the account manager guiding every step. The hotel team didn't need to figure anything out alone.
Pricing and reservations
The team learned how to manage reservations, set up rate plans, and configure the booking engine. Not from training videos, but by doing it live, with support guiding them. The pricing functionality, as the team later put it, is "very easy to manage."
Direct bookings enabled
SabeeApp's booking engine was connected to the hotel's website, with the appearance customised by the team themselves. Guests could now book add-on services directly: champagne in the room, dinner, flower arrangements - selected at the time of booking.
Connections live
OTA channels were connected and running within the first week. The Channel Manager went live, syncing availability across all platforms in real time. The era of manual OTA updates was over.
One thing worth mentioning about the training itself: Erla Villa doesn't work heavily with online meetings, so the format was a new one for the team. And this is a 14-room property — guests were arriving and departing throughout the sessions. The trainer adapted throughout: patient, flexible, working around the rhythm of a real hotel in operation rather than waiting for a quiet moment that was never going to come. The recorded sessions meant anyone could go back and rewatch at their own pace, which the team made good use of.
The result: what changes to expect
The overbooking problem: gone
Before switching, Erla Villa managed availability manually across booking platforms, no Channel Manager, just manual clicking. Overbookings happened and it became a danger for maintaining good guest relationships.
Since switching to SabeeApp, there have been 0 overbookings. One technical issue did come up, but it was resolved quickly. That's the difference between a system with no safety net and one with a dedicated team behind it.
The data migration: clean
One of the team's biggest fears going in was losing reservation data. No data was lost, every booking was transferred. The thing they were most worried about didn't happen.
The team: adapted faster than they expected
Three staff members went through training, two daytime receptionists and a night receptionist, each with appropriate user permissions configured from the start. The invoicing workflow was the one part that felt different from what they'd used before, particularly around adding payments. But once it was explained, they adapted quickly.
The Channel Manager: the feature that changed everything.
"Without a doubt, the Channel Manager changed the game for us. We no longer have to manually close availability across different booking channels. Reservations appear instantly in the room calendar, and we receive notifications about every new booking, modification, and payment."
Why it worked
The software was part of it. But the bigger reason Erla Villa was running smoothly within the first week was the migration model itself.
The support didn't stop at go-live. Every question that came up after: on pricing, on edge cases, on specific requirements, they all got a real answer from a real person.
Could this be your hotel?
If you're running on legacy software, Excel, or any system that's more workaround than workflow, the switch you've been putting off is probably easier than you think.
Every SabeeApp customer gets a dedicated account manager from day one. A real person who knows your property and stays with you through go-live and beyond.