Answers · Guest data
What guest data should you keep when you switch PMS?
Keep every guest’s contact details, consent and opt-out status, full stay history and the notes your team relies on. Export them before you cancel the old PMS, because consent and history are hard to rebuild later.
A PMS migration usually focuses on listings, rates and upcoming reservations. Guest history often gets left behind: older stays, opt-outs and notes. That is the data that drives repeat bookings, and the data that keeps you compliant.
What to export
Before you switch, export these for every guest, not just upcoming reservations.
Contact details
Name, email, phone, address and preferred language.
Consent and opt-outs
Who agreed to marketing, and who unsubscribed or replied STOP. Losing opt-outs means messaging people who asked you not to.
Stay history
Every completed stay, with property, dates, value and booking channel.
Notes and preferences
Pets, accessibility needs, VIP flags and past issues your team relies on.
What you can leave behind
Not everything needs to move.
Fields you would have to invent
If the old system never stored something, do not guess it during the import.
Unconfirmed duplicates
Do not merge records just because names match. Match on email or phone.
Common migration mistakes
These are the ones that cost repeat bookings later.
Importing only future reservations
Many migrations bring over upcoming stays only, which erases years of guest history.
Losing unsubscribes
Opt-outs often live in your email or SMS tool, not the PMS. Export them too.
Merging guests by name
Two guests named John Smith are rarely the same person.
Migration checklist
1. Export guests and all stays
Ask the old PMS for historical reservations, not just future ones.
2. Export opt-outs
From your email and SMS tools as well as the PMS.
3. Import and match
Match guests on email or phone before merging.
4. Spot-check
Review a sample of profiles before you send anything.
How Yada helps
Yada keeps a guest record alongside your PMS. Historical imports and the new PMS sync merge into one profile, so stay history and consent survive the switch.
Frequently asked questions
Will my new PMS import past stays?
Often only upcoming reservations by default. Ask your new provider for a historical import, or keep guest history in a separate guest database.
Do I need to re-collect consent after switching?
Not if you kept a record of it. If consent records were lost, treat those guests as not opted in until they opt in again.
How should I handle duplicate guests?
Match on email or phone number. Do not merge on name alone.
Does Yada replace my PMS?
No. Your PMS keeps running reservations, calendars and payments. Yada uses the guest and stay data for marketing and repeat bookings.