Every moment in a Timeline has a start time and four access toggles, both on its Timeframe & Access tab. The start time decides when the moment begins; the toggles decide whether guests can open it before it starts or after it ends. For example, you can keep a door code hidden until a few hours before check-in.
Table of contents:
How a moment's window works
A moment opens at its start time and runs until the next moment starts, so moments never overlap.
Out of the box, nothing is locked. Guests whose stay has dates can tap ahead and open every moment from the day they get their link until check-out. Post-stay opens at check-out and stays open. The toggles are how you narrow that window.
Start times and toggles only apply to guests whose stay has dates (a personal invitation). On a quick share link or QR code every moment is open.
With the default start times, a stay from 13 Nov at 3:00 PM to 17 Nov at 10:00 AM looks like this:
Moment | Starts | Runs until |
Pre-arrival | when the invitation is sent (0 hours after invitation) | 12 Nov, 3:00 PM |
Check-in | 12 Nov, 3:00 PM (24 hours before check-in) | 13 Nov, 3:00 PM |
During stay | 13 Nov, 3:00 PM (check-in) | 16 Nov, 10:00 AM |
Check-out | 16 Nov, 10:00 AM (24 hours before check-out) | 17 Nov, 10:00 AM |
Post-stay | 17 Nov, 10:00 AM (check-out) | — |
Set when a moment starts
Under Moment timeframe starts there are four dropdowns. Read them left to right as one sentence:
[amount] [hours / days] [before / after] [invitation / check-in / check-out]
For example: 3 hours before check-in, 0 hours after check-in or 2 days before check-out.
Amount: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 12, 24, 36, 48 or 72.
Unit: hours or days.
Before / after and the anchor (invitation, check-in or check-out): not every moment lets you change these:
Moment | You can change | Fixed |
Pre-arrival | amount, unit, before/after and anchor | — |
Check-in | amount and unit | always before check-in |
During stay | amount, unit and before/after | the anchor is check-in |
Check-out | amount, unit and before/after | the anchor is check-out |
Post-stay | — | always starts at check-out |
Change it on the moment's Timeframe & Access tab, then select Save Changes (the door-code example below shows each step). Use Reset to go back to the default.
Example: You want check-in instructions to appear on the morning of arrival instead of the day before. For a 3:00 PM check-in, set Check-in to 6 hours before check-in: the Check-in moment starts at 9:00 AM on the arrival day.
Starting a moment later doesn't hide it on its own: by default, guests can still tap ahead to it. To keep it closed until it starts, turn off Before the moment (see the toggles below).
The four toggles
You'll find them under Allow access to this timeline moment.
Before the guest arrival
Default: On (always on for Pre-arrival)
Off: the moment stays closed until the check-in date and time. The invitation's Lead time doesn't change this.
Use it when… Something should only appear once the stay has begun, for example the door code exactly at a 3:00 PM check-in. Turning it off also turns off and locks Before the moment.
Before the moment
Default: On
Off: the moment stays closed until its own start time, so guests can't tap ahead to it.
Use it when… You want to choose the hour yourself. For example, start Check-in 3 hours before check-in and turn this off: for a 3:00 PM check-in, the code appears at 12:00 PM.
After the moment
Default: On
Off: the moment closes as soon as the next moment starts.
Use it when… Content stops being useful later, for example packing tips or an airport-pickup offer in Pre-arrival that should disappear once Check-in begins. ⚠️ Don't turn it off on Check-in if guests still need the door code during their stay: Check-in would close at check-in time.
After the guest departure
Default: Off (on for Post-stay)
On: the moment stays open after check-out.
Use it when… Guests should still see it after they leave, for example the review request or a “book again” offer in Post-stay. Leave it off on Check-in, so the door code and Wi-Fi stop showing once they've checked out.
Example: show the door code 3 hours before check-in
Go to Guidebooks → your guidebook → Timelines. (To change every guidebook that uses the defaults, go to Guidebook defaults → Timelines instead.)
Open the Check-in moment and select Timeframe & Access.
Under Moment timeframe starts, choose 3 and hours, so it reads 3 hours before check-in.
Under Allow access to this timeline moment, turn off Before the moment. Leave the other toggles as they are.
Select Save Changes.
For a 3:00 PM check-in on 13 Nov, the Check-in moment is closed until 12:00 PM on 13 Nov, open from 12:00 PM until check-out, and closed after check-out.
Make sure the code isn't also written in an Info topic (see below).
What your guests see
A closed moment still shows in the moments strip. When the guest opens it, they see This content is currently unavailable, with when it becomes available, for example: “Check-in” info is available 3 hours before check-in time until check-out only. There's also an Ask Assistant button.
Once the moment opens, its widgets appear, including the access code.
Timelines vs. “Visible only during the stay”
You don't need Lead time or topic visibility for Timelines to work. They're separate controls, and if you use both, both apply:
Timelines toggles | Topic access level + Lead time | |
Controls | Moments on the Home tab | Topics: the Info tab, and wherever the topic is used |
Where to set it | Guidebook → Timelines → a moment → Timeframe & Access | Topic → Visibility → Visible only during the stay, plus the invitation's Lead time |
Precision | Hours, from the check-in and check-out times | Whole days or weeks before the arrival date |
Timelines never hide anything in the Info tab, and they can't hide a topic until a certain time. Adding a topic to a moment's Useful info doesn't lock it: while the moment is closed, guests don't see that list, but the topic stays in the Info tab and the AI Assistant can still answer from it.
A topic hidden by Lead time stays hidden even inside an open moment (for example in Useful info).
If you type the door code (or {{access_code}}) into an Info topic, Timelines won't hide it there, and the AI Assistant and the guidebook PDF can show it too. Keep the code in the Check-in moment's Access code widget, or set that topic to Visible only during the stay (day precision).
📖 See The Lead Time explained for how Lead time works.
How to test it
The Hub preview and quick share links don't apply these toggles: they always show every moment open. To see exactly what a guest sees:
Create two test invitations to yourself for the same guidebook: one with check-in today, a couple of hours from now, and one with check-in tomorrow.
Open each invitation link in a private or incognito window and open the Check-in moment.
With the example above, today's invitation shows the access code; tomorrow's shows This content is currently unavailable.
Delete the test invitations when you're done.
Good to know
The toggles can only restrict a moment further. They never open up a topic that the invitation's Lead time has closed off.
Times are worked out in your property's timezone. If an invitation has no check-in or check-out time, Touch Stay uses 3:00 PM and 10:00 AM.
If a start time would put a moment before the one ahead of it, Touch Stay keeps them in order.
The hint under the dropdowns is about which moment the guidebook opens on when a guest loads it. It doesn't decide who can open a moment: that's what the toggles do.
Post-stay starts at check-out. New Timelines set it up with After the moment and After the guest departure on. Timelines set up earlier may still have After the guest departure off on Post-stay: switch it on if guests should see Post-stay after they leave.
If you switch Before the guest arrival off, Before the moment is locked, because arrival is already the wider of the two rules.
🤝 Need help?
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