https://mcp.apaleo.com/mcpYes, Apaleo connects to Claude natively, and it is the most direct PMS-to-Claude connection in hospitality. Apaleo launched the industry's first official PMS MCP server in September 2025, and it is now in open beta with self-serve access. Add it in Claude as a remote custom connector with the server URL https://mcp.apaleo.com/mcp, leave Client ID and Secret empty, and sign in with your Apaleo user. The server exposes around 230 tools across booking, finance, inventory, and operations, and access is controlled per employee through two Apaleo user roles, MCP Read and MCP Manage. Setup takes about ten minutes and requires no code.
Apaleo built the connection for you
Every other PMS guide in this series walks you through writing a small Node.js MCP server against the vendor's REST API, because the vendor never shipped one. Apaleo did. According to the announcement on Apaleo's blog dated September 22, 2025, Apaleo is the first property management platform in the hospitality industry to launch a Model Context Protocol server, and according to Apaleo's CTO Stephan Wiesener in the Hospitality Net press release, it lets AI agents "carry out real tasks across hotel systems, from checking availability and modifying bookings" without custom integrations.
That fits Apaleo's whole design. It is an API-first PMS: according to Apaleo's developer documentation at apaleo.dev, anyone can register a free developer account, every capability is exposed over REST with OAuth 2.0 (authorization code, refresh token, and client credentials grants), and the swagger specs are public at api.apaleo.com. Apaleo's Open APIs page claims six-nines uptime and P95 API latency below 500ms. Apaleo also runs the Apaleo Store, a marketplace of connectable third-party apps, and in early 2025 launched Agent Hub, which it describes as the first AI agent marketplace for the hospitality sector. The MCP server started as a closed alpha at launch; per Apaleo's developer documentation as of July 2026 it is in open beta and access is self-serve, alongside an official Claude plugin in beta.
The practical consequence: connecting Claude to Apaleo is a configuration task, not an engineering project. We ranked the field in our hotel PMS open API scorecard, and nothing else comes close on AI readiness.
Three ways to connect
All three run through the same hosted server and the same permission model. This guide walks through the first, which is the right choice for almost everyone.
Claude custom connector
Add https://mcp.apaleo.com/mcp as a remote MCP connector in Claude and approve the OAuth sign-in. Around 230 tools, per-tool permission controls, no hosting.
Apaleo Claude plugin
A .plugin file that installs into Cowork in the Claude desktop app, on top of the MCP connector. Run /apaleo-setup, pick a main property, and get guided workflows like room assignment and SOPs.
Machine to machine
Register a custom app in the developer portal, fetch tokens from identity.apaleo.com/connect/token with client_credentials, and call the same MCP endpoint with a bearer token from n8n or your own agents.
What you can ask Claude
The tools map closely onto the public Apaleo API, so anything the API covers is fair game: availability, reservations, folios, housekeeping status, rate plans, reports. Questions that make sense for a multi-property group:
Nine API domains, around 230 tools
According to Apaleo's MCP documentation, the server exposes roughly 230 tools across nine domains of the Apaleo API. A full machine-readable list, with each tool's JSON schema, is available through any MCP inspector via the tools/list method.
Availability
capacity, ARI, restrictionsBooking
reservations, blocks, groupsFinance
folios, charges, paymentsInventory
units, unit groups, servicesLogs
audit trail, change historyOperations
arrivals, in-house, housekeepingRate plans
pricing rules, restrictionsReports
occupancy, revenue, statisticsSettings
property setup, taxes, currenciesPrerequisites
- An Apaleo account, or a free Apaleo developer account, which comes with a test property. Apaleo recommends starting on a test property before pointing an AI at live data, and so do we.
- A Claude plan that supports custom connectors (remote MCP servers). If you plan to process real guest data, note the DPA point in the safety section below.
- An MCP role in Apaleo. Without
MCP ReadorMCP Manageassigned in Apaleo user management, a user cannot use the MCP server at all. The exception, per Apaleo's docs, is the Account Admin. - No Node.js, no API key, no hosting. There is nothing to install for the standard flow.
Set it up in five steps
Get a test property (optional, recommended)
If you don't already use Apaleo, or you want a sandbox first, register a free developer account at identity.apaleo.com/account/register-dev-account. It gives you a test property that is separate from any production hotel, so Claude's first experiments can't touch a real booking.
Assign MCP roles in Apaleo
In Apaleo, open Settings, then User management, select the employee, and open their role assignment. Tick MCP Read for view-only access, or MCP Manage to also allow changes, then save. Roles can be granted account-wide or per property.
| Role | What it allows |
|---|---|
| MCP Read | View information through the AI assistant: arrivals, reservations, reports, occupancy. Read-only, no changes possible. |
| MCP Manage | Everything MCP Read allows, plus making changes, for example amending a reservation or updating settings. |
Add the connector in Claude
Open Claude's connector settings and add a new remote MCP connector with these values:
https://mcp.apaleo.com/mcphttps://mcp.apaleo.com/mcp
Leaving the Client ID and Secret empty is correct: per Apaleo's docs, the connector then starts the default OAuth flow against Apaleo's identity server, and you approve scopes interactively. Custom clients are only needed for machine-to-machine automations.
Connect and approve
Select the new connection, press Connect, sign in with your Apaleo user on the redirected page, and approve the requested permissions. Afterwards you will see a new app called "MCP Server App" under Connected apps in Apaleo admin. That is expected: it is auto-created by the MCP server's OIDC proxy. Don't delete it while the integration is active.
Gate the write tools, then ask your first question
In the connector's Tool permissions panel, Claude lets you block specific tools entirely or set them to Needs approval. Apaleo's own recommendation, which we endorse: gate any write tool while you're experimenting. Any tool with "create", "update", "move", or "assign" in its name can modify property data.
Then start a chat and try: "How many arrivals do we have tomorrow, and which rooms are still unassigned?"
Safe usage and guest data
Apaleo publishes unusually direct guidance here, and it is worth repeating. Start on a test property before pointing Claude at live data. Give each user only the MCP role they need, which usually means MCP Read. Keep a human in the loop for refunds, rate plan edits, and reservation cancellations. Never paste real guest data, payment information, or other PII into a chat window.
On GDPR, Apaleo's documentation notes that if you process guest personal data through an AI assistant, you should treat its provider like any other data processor, and that consumer plans generally are not a suitable basis for doing so because they lack a Data Processing Agreement. Its worked example: with Claude, the Team, Enterprise, and API plans include a DPA through Anthropic's Commercial Terms, while the Free, Pro, and Max plans do not. That is Apaleo's general guidance, not legal advice, and ours isn't either: check your provider's current terms with your own data protection team.
The one thing the API can't tell Claude
Everything above runs on structured data: a unit is Clean or Dirty, Occupied or Vacant, because a person tapped a status. Claude can now read and move that status, but neither Claude nor Apaleo can see whether the room actually looks the way the status claims.
RapidEye adds that visual layer: AI inspection of housekeeping photos and video walkthroughs that catches damage, missed cleaning, and staging errors before the status flips to Clean. If you're wiring your PMS to Claude, photo-verified room condition is the natural next feed. See the RapidEye API.
Troubleshooting
Claude connects but write tools fail
Per Apaleo's FAQ, this is usually a permissions issue. Write tools need the MCP Manage role, and role changes only apply after the user reconnects (signs out of the connector and back in). If roles look right, disconnect, reconnect, and approve every requested scope this time.
The OAuth sign-in loops or errors
Clients don't always get the OAuth handshake right. Apaleo's suggested fix: sign out of Apaleo in your browser, sign back into the AI app, remove and re-add the Apaleo MCP connector, then connect again. Stale Apaleo browser sessions are a known blocker.
Claude doesn't load the Apaleo tools
Sometimes the model has trouble loading tools dynamically. Apaleo's docs give a Claude-specific fix: in the chat, open +, then Connectors, then Tool access, and switch to Tools already loaded.
Not sure which endpoint to use
There is exactly one: https://mcp.apaleo.com/mcp is the single production endpoint for all MCP traffic, over Streamable HTTP. The only exception is n8n's OAuth credential setup, which asks for the base URL https://mcp.apaleo.com/ without the /mcp suffix.
The Claude plugin's /apaleo-setup command doesn't appear
The plugin lives in Cowork in the Claude desktop app, under the Customize menu, not in Claude's general settings, and it only activates in fresh conversations in the normal chat interface. If /apaleo-setup doesn't autocomplete, you're either still inside Cowork or in an older chat; start a new conversation and try again. The MCP connector must be authorized before the plugin can do anything.
A mysterious "MCP Server App" appeared in Connected apps
That's normal. It is auto-created by the MCP server's OIDC proxy after your first OAuth connection, and its granted scopes cover the capability areas the tools use. Don't delete it while the integration is active.
Frequently asked
Does Apaleo have an official MCP server?
Yes. Apaleo announced it on September 22, 2025 as the first MCP server from any property management platform in hospitality, initially as a closed alpha. According to Apaleo's developer documentation as of July 2026, it is now in open beta with self-serve access at https://mcp.apaleo.com/mcp, exposing around 230 tools over Streamable HTTP with OAuth 2.0.
Does connecting cost anything?
Apaleo's MCP docs say access is self-serve with no separate sign-up: you connect a client and sign in with your Apaleo user. We found no separate MCP pricing published as of July 2026. You still need an Apaleo account (a developer account with a test property is free) and a Claude plan that supports custom connectors.
Can I limit what Claude can do?
Yes, twice over. Apaleo-side, the MCP Read role is strictly read-only and MCP roles never exceed a user's regular Apaleo roles. Claude-side, the connector's tool permissions panel lets you block tools or require approval per tool. Belt and suspenders: keep writes on Needs approval.
Does it work with ChatGPT or n8n too?
Yes. The same endpoint connects to ChatGPT as a custom connector via Developer mode, and to n8n either with interactive OAuth or a client-credentials bearer flow for headless agents. Apaleo's docs describe it as working with "any MCP-capable client." This guide focuses on Claude.
What's the difference between the MCP server and the Claude plugin?
The MCP server is the pipe: it gives Claude tools. The plugin, in beta, is a packaged workflow layer on top for the Claude desktop app's Cowork: it walks you through setup with /apaleo-setup, remembers your main property, proposes room assignments for confirmation, and can turn recurring processes into SOPs Claude runs. The plugin requires the MCP connector underneath.
Related reading
All Claude guides
PriceLabs, Hostaway, Guesty, OwnerRez, Turno, Seam, and more, one connector at a time.
Hotel PMS open API scorecard
Which hotel PMS platforms have open APIs, and which are actually AI-ready. Apaleo tops it.
The RapidEye API
Feed photo-verified room condition into the same AI stack your PMS now talks to.