Shipping: Blockout Dates

Block specific dates (or date ranges) from the shipping calendar. Prevent customers from selecting holidays, closed days, or unavailable dates for shipping.

Table of Contents

• What Blockout Dates Do
• Step-by-Step Configuration
• • Step 1: Access Blockout Date Settings
  • Step 2: Choose Blocking Method
  • Step 3: Select and Add Dates
• Max Available Days
• Common Use Cases
• • Holiday Closures
  • Seasonal Breaks
  • Partial Day Closures
  • Limited Booking Window
• Quick Reference

What Blockout Dates Do

What this feature does:

• Prevents selection of specific calendar dates
• Allows you to block holidays (e.g., Christmas, New Year)
• Allows blocking of temporary closures
• Sets maximum advance booking window (how far ahead customers can book)
• Supports blocking entire days or specific time ranges

What this feature does NOT do:

• Does not set preparation time or lead time (configured separately in Preparation Times)
• Does not control operating hours or time slots (configured separately in Configure Availability)
• Does not automatically reschedule orders - customers simply cannot select blocked dates

Step-by-Step Configuration

Step 1: Access Blockout Date Settings

1. Go to Bird Settings > Shipping
2. Scroll to Blockout dates section

Step 2: Choose Blocking Method

Option A: Single Date

Use this to block one specific day (e.g., a holiday).

1. Click the Single Date tab
2. You'll see a calendar picker for selecting one date

Option B: Date Range

Use this to block a continuous period (e.g., vacation closure from July 1 to July 15).

1. Click the Date Range tab
2. Block a range of consecutive dates

Step 3: Select and Add Dates

1. Click on the calendar to select the date(s)
2. (Optional) Set Start Time and End Time if you only want to block part of the day

• Example: Block only morning hours (8:00 AM - 12:00 PM) on a specific date
• Leave blank to block the entire day

3. Important: Click Add button to save the blocked date
4. The date will appear in the list of blocked dates to right of the calendar
5. Click Save at the bottom of the page to apply all changes

Note: You can delete blocked dates by clicking the delete/remove icon next to each entry in the list.

Max Available Days

Limit how far into the future customers can book shipping.

What it does:

• Controls the booking window for customers
• Prevents booking too far in advance
• Helps manage capacity planning

Configuration:

1. Find Max Available Days field in the Blockout dates section
2. Enter a number (e.g., 30 for 30 days)
3. Click Save

How it works:

• Max Available Days set to 30: Customers can only select shipping dates within the next 30 days
• Left blank: Customers can book indefinitely into the future (no limit)

Example scenarios:

• Set to 14 > Customers can book up to 2 weeks ahead
• Set to 30 > Customers can book up to 1 month ahead
• Set to 90 > Customers can book up to 3 months ahead

Use cases:

• Prevent far-future bookings when shipping capacity is uncertain
• Limit advance orders during seasonal periods
• Control booking window for promotional shipping offers

Common Use Cases

Holiday Closures

Scenario: Business closed for Christmas and New Year

Configuration:

• Use Date Range to block December 24-26 for Christmas
• Use Date Range to block December 31 - January 1 for New Year
• Result: Customers cannot select these dates for shipping

Seasonal Breaks

Scenario: Warehouse closed for two-week summer maintenance

Configuration:

• Use Date Range to block July 15 - July 29
• Result: No shipping available during maintenance period

Partial Day Closures

Scenario: Early closure on a Friday (close at noon)

Configuration:

• Use Single Date to select the specifc Friday
• Set Start Time: 12:00 PM, End Time: 11:59 PM
• Result: Customers can only book Friday morning slots, afternoon is blocked

Limited Booking Window

Scenario: Only accept shipping orders up to 2 weeks in advance

Configuration:

• Set Max Available Days to 14
• Result: Customers see only the next 14 days in the calendar

Quick Reference

Blocking Methods:

• Single Date: Block one specific date
• Date Range: Block a continuous period

Time Restrictions:

• Add start/end times to block only part of a day
• Leave blank to block the entire day

Max Available Days:

• Limits how far ahead customers can book
• Leave blank or set to 0 for unlimited advance booking

Navigation: Bird Settings > Shipping > Blockout dates

Updated on: 01/18/2026