Custom Domain Setup
Point a custom domain at your Hearth Host & Stay subdomain so guests can find you at your own web address.
1 Understanding your subdomain
When you create a company, you receive a subdomain like:
This is your fully functional booking page — guests can browse properties, view units, and make reservations from this URL. A custom domain lets you use your own address instead.
2 What is a CNAME record?
A CNAME (Canonical Name) record is a DNS setting that makes one domain name point to another. When you add a CNAME record, visitors to your custom domain are transparently directed to your Hearth Host & Stay subdomain.
For example, you could point bookings.yourproperty.com to your-company.hearthhoststay.com.
3 Step-by-step DNS setup
- Log in to your domain registrar (the service where you bought your domain)
- Find the DNS Management or DNS Records section
- Add a new CNAME record with these settings:
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Type | CNAME |
| Name / Host | bookings |
| Value / Target | your-company.hearthhoststay.com |
| TTL | 3600 (1 hour) |
Replace bookings with your preferred subdomain prefix (e.g., www, stay, or book), and replace your-company with your actual Hearth Host & Stay subdomain.
4 Popular registrar guides
| Registrar | Where to find DNS settings |
|---|---|
| Cloudflare | Dashboard → Select domain → DNS → Records → Add Record |
| Namecheap | Domain List → Manage → Advanced DNS → Add New Record |
| GoDaddy | My Products → DNS → Manage Zones → Add Record |
| Google Domains | My domains → DNS → Custom records → Manage |
5 SSL/HTTPS
Your Hearth Host & Stay subdomain comes with SSL (HTTPS) enabled automatically. For custom domains, SSL configuration may require additional setup.
Once your CNAME record is configured, please contact us so we can provision an SSL certificate for your custom domain.
6 Important notes
Root domain limitation
CNAME records cannot be used on a root domain (e.g., yourproperty.com) according to DNS standards.
You must use a subdomain like www.yourproperty.com or bookings.yourproperty.com.
Some DNS providers (like Cloudflare) support CNAME flattening or ALIAS records at the root — check your registrar's documentation.
DNS changes can take up to 48 hours to propagate globally, though most changes take effect within 1 hour. You can use a tool like dnschecker.org to check propagation status.