Expedia iCal sync not working: why, and what to check
If Expedia shows a night as available that you already blocked elsewhere (or the reverse), it is almost always because Expedia has not yet pulled the other platform's calendar on its refresh cycle, not a broken connection. A genuinely dead export link, expired or replaced when a room type was edited, is the less common cause and easy to rule out by re-exporting.
What to check first
Re-export the calendar link from the source platform and re-import it into Expedia under Rooms & Rates, then Room Types & Plans & Rates, then Manage linked calendars. If the old link had expired or the room type was restructured, this fixes it immediately.
Check how recently the change was made elsewhere. If it was within the last few hours, the gap is likely just Expedia's refresh cycle catching up, not a fault.
Free iCal sync refreshes on each platform's own schedule, typically every few hours, not instantly. Real-time sync closes this window to seconds.
If it keeps recurring
A one-off delay is normal for iCal sync. A recurring gap, nights staying open on Expedia well after being booked elsewhere, is the structural lag of iCal-based sync, not something re-pasting the link fixes again. At that point, real-time sync through a channel manager addresses the cause rather than the symptom, and matters more on Expedia specifically since a pattern of last-minute cancellations from double bookings can affect the acceptance-rate metric Expedia factors into search ranking.
Check if this is already costing you a night right now, or fix it going forward with real-time sync.
How do I find my Expedia iCal export link?
In Expedia Partner Central: Rooms & Rates, then Room Types & Plans & Rates, then Manage linked calendars, select the room, then under Export the Expedia Group calendar, click Create link and copy the URL.
Why does Expedia show a booked night as open?
Most commonly, the platform where the booking happened has not yet been pulled by Expedia's refresh cycle. Neither platform publishes an exact refresh interval; treat the gap as hours, not minutes.
Can I check both calendars for overlapping dates right now?
Yes, use the free iCal conflict checker: paste both calendar links and it reports any dates currently booked on both.