Booking thread: the only record of a visit
The booking thread is the written exchange between a guest and the house; it holds every arrangement, and it is cleared twelve months after its final message.
Everything about a booking is agreed in writing, in one running conversation. That conversation is the thread. For a regular it becomes a short history of his trips, one booking under another.
What it holds
The requests, the confirmations, the hour, the length, the figure, the deposit amount and where it goes when one applies, and anything said about the door. It does not hold a profile of the guest, and nobody annotates it.
What it proves
That an earlier booking was agreed and went ahead. That is the whole basis of being a returning client.
How long it lasts
Twelve months after its last message, when it is removed in a monthly clear-out under the rules on the privacy page. Each new booking restarts the count. A thread belongs to the number or address it started from, so a new phone begins a new one unless the first message says where the old one was.
Starting it again on a new trip
A regular coming back after a few months does not need a fresh introduction. He writes into the same conversation he used last time, gives the dates of this visit and the name of his hotel, and the earlier messages show the house who he is. If that conversation has passed its twelve months, the new one starts like any first booking, with half ahead.
Keeping it easy to follow
One booking per exchange keeps the thread readable. A guest who wants to change something writes it as a new line rather than editing an older message, so the agreed length, hour and address are always the last things said. The house works from the confirmation that came last, and so does she.