Own your guests’ data.
Save on Airbnb fees.
We build custom direct-booking sites, engineered to be fast and easy to find — and they keep themselves up to date from your PMS. Guests book direct, you stop handing Airbnb a cut of every stay, and the guest relationship is finally yours to keep.
We’re new to short-term rentals, not to building on the web.
We’re a small studio in Portland, Maine. For over ten years we’ve designed and built for venture-backed tech companies — marketing sites, software products, and the brands behind them.
“Speed was immaculate. The customer service aspect was on point. We’ll definitely keep using Luma as a creative partner”
Chaenara O’BrienHead of Strategy — Thought BakeryWhat you get
Ownership
Beat Airbnb at their own game: pocket the fees and keep the guest data — the emails, the history, the repeat stays. Every direct booking is money and a relationship that stays yours.
Visibility
Engineered for speed and real SEO, so guests searching for a place to stay find you — not just your Airbnb listing buried in the results.
PMS automation
Connected to your PMS, so your rates, photos, and availability stay current on their own. You manage your properties where you already do — the site keeps up.
The guest is yours.So is the booking.
Book on Airbnb, and the guest’s email and phone number stay with the platform — not you. Book direct, and they become your contact: someone you can email a returning-guest offer or an off-season rate. Over a few seasons, that list becomes one of the most valuable things you own — and every direct booking is one where Airbnb never takes a cut.
Engineered to be found.By Google and by AI.
We build your site from the ground up: light, fast, and structured so Google understands exactly what it is. That’s the difference between sitting buried in the results and being the place that shows up — or the one ChatGPT recommends when a guest asks where to stay. Foundational SEO is built in; deeper SEO we can take on together after launch.
You run your properties.The site keeps up.
Most hosts expect a website to be one more thing to maintain. Yours isn’t. It connects to your PMS — we build on Hostaway — so change a price, swap a photo, or block a date there, and the site follows. Guests see real-time availability and book through a branded checkout that keeps your calendar in sync everywhere. The site runs itself — you just host.
Don’t take our word for it.
These tech leaders came to us with products to launch, marketing sites to build, and customers to win — and stayed because the work delivered. Different industry, same standard.
Shrav MehtaCEO — Secureframe“The guys at Luma Studios helped us on a number of fronts. They designed our marketing site, created effective pitch decks that helped us raise millions from investors, designed our conference signage and billboards. We were super impressed with the quality of their work, turn-around time, and responsiveness throughout the process.”
Corey AubuchonVP Product — Splitero“Working with Luma Studios has made a huge difference for our team at Splitero. Their work on our marketing site and web app has been nothing short of impressive. Their team has a knack for creating designs that not only look great but also resonate deeply with our audience. Luma Studios has been an exceptional design partner, and we are incredibly thankful for their contributions.”
I’m Ivan, founder and principal
designer at Luma Studios.
I’ve spent over a decade designing for tech companies, working directly inside their product and marketing teams — helping shape the work that drove their growth. That product-side thinking is what I bring to every project: a site isn’t just how it looks, it’s how it performs.
I run every project personally. If we work together, you’re working with me — not an account manager.
Ready to see what a custom direct-booking site could do for you?
Share a few details about your properties and book a quick call. We’ll walk you through how it works, what it involves, and whether it’s the right fit — no pressure.
What to know before we build your site
How does a direct-booking site actually work?
Guests browse your properties, check real-time availability, and book — all on your own site, at your own domain. Your rates, photos, and availability come straight from your PMS, so everything stays current on its own. You keep taking bookings on Airbnb too; this just gives guests a way to book you directly.
Do I still need Airbnb?
Keep it — it’s still where new guests discover you. A direct site doesn’t replace Airbnb; it gives returning and referred guests somewhere to book without the platform in the middle, so you keep more of what they pay and own the relationship.
Will I have to maintain the site?
No. You manage your properties in your PMS exactly like you do now — rates, photos, availability — and the site keeps itself in sync. There’s no separate dashboard to learn and nothing on the site for you to update.
Why Hostaway?
It’s the platform we build on right now, and building deep on one system is how we keep the integration solid rather than spreading thin across ten. If you’re on a different PMS, book a call anyway — we’ll talk through your setup and see what we can do.
I already have a website. Can you still help?
Usually, yes. Most host sites are templates that load slowly and don’t rank. We’d build you a custom one that does — and if there’s anything worth keeping from your current site, we’ll fold it in.
Will my site actually show up on Google?
That’s the whole point of how we build. Your site is custom-built to load fast and be read clearly by search engines and AI tools — the foundation that lets you rank for the searches guests run in your area. Deeper SEO work is something we can take on together after launch.
How long does it take?
Most builds run a few weeks from our first call to launch, depending on how many properties you have and how ready your photos and details are. We’ll give you a real timeline on the call, not a vague promise.
What does it cost?
It depends on your properties and what you need — so we scope it on a quick call rather than guess with a number on a page. Book a call and we’ll walk you through exactly what it involves and what it would run.
What do you need from me to start?
A short call, access to your Hostaway account, and your property details and photos. We handle everything else — design, build, integration, and launch.