# 🚫 Blocked Emails and Public Holidays

> Stop specific emails from booking with you and block official public holidays of a country in one click. Learn how both work in Cowlendar General settings.

Two small features in General settings save you a lot of work: block people who should not book with you, and block public holidays in one click.

**Where to find them:** Shopify admin > Apps > Cowlendar Booking > **Settings** > **General settings**. They are in the cards **Blocked emails** and **Blocked times**.

## Blocked emails

Block emails from booking with you. Use it for customers who repeatedly make fake bookings or no-shows, or to stop spam.

1. Open **Settings > General settings**.
2. Scroll to the card **Blocked emails**.
3. Click **Add a blocked email**. A new row appears with an empty field and a red trash icon.
4. Type the email address in the field. The placeholder shows an example like name@domain.com.
5. Click **Save** in the bar at the top (it shows **Unsaved changes**, **Discard** and **Save**). You will see the message **Settings saved**.

You can add several emails, one per row. A blocked email cannot complete a booking on any service.

To remove one, click the red trash icon at the end of its row (it does not ask for confirmation) and then click **Save**. If you leave without saving, the change is lost.

![The Blocked emails card with the Add a blocked email button](https://orka-chat.fra1.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/prod/help/671a5e245d077ea954b2cd4c/1792169719421-mcp-claude-in-chrome-blob-1792169543379-wngvbs.webp)

![The blocked email form](https://orka-chat.fra1.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/prod/help/671a5e245d077ea954b2cd4c/1792169721778-mcp-claude-in-chrome-blob-1792169553895-oxjz13.webp)

## Public holidays

Import the official public holidays of a country and block them in one click. They behave exactly like blocked dates.

1. Open **Settings > General settings**.
2. Scroll to the card **Blocked times**. When you have no holidays it shows **No public holidays**.
3. Click **Add public holidays**. A window opens: Pick a country and a year, then choose the official holidays you want to block for bookings.
4. Choose the **Country** and the **Year**. A list appears with a checkbox for each official holiday. Past holidays are grey, disabled and marked **Past**. The upcoming ones are selected by default. Untick the ones you do not want to block.
5. Click the button at the bottom of the window, which shows how many you are blocking (for example **Block 3 holidays**).
6. The holidays appear under **Public holidays** with the date in bold, the name, a country tag (for example US) and a red trash icon. Click **Save** in the bar at the top (**Unsaved changes**, **Discard**, **Save**). You will see **Settings saved**.

To remove holidays, click the red trash icon on each one and then **Save**. There is no button to remove all of them at once.

Public holidays behave like blocked dates:

- Customers cannot book on those dates.
- Existing bookings are not canceled or changed. Blocking only affects future bookings.
- The timezone of the card **Blocked times** is used for them.

![The Public holidays section inside the Blocked times card with the Add public holidays button](https://orka-chat.fra1.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/prod/help/671a5e245d077ea954b2cd4c/1792169724308-mcp-claude-in-chrome-blob-1792169543379-fz2mfu.webp)

![The public holidays form](https://orka-chat.fra1.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/prod/help/671a5e245d077ea954b2cd4c/1792169727003-mcp-claude-in-chrome-blob-1792169574156-1n5ajx.webp)

## Other ways to block time

| What you want | Where |
|---|---|
| Block time every day for all services (lunch) | **Break times** in the same card. |
| Block a specific date for all services | **Block specific dates** in the same card. |
| Block only one service | The **Availability** tab of that service, in **Blocked dates** or **Break times**. See [How to Block Dates for One Service](https://help.cowlendar.com/a/how-to-block-dates-for-one-service). |
| Block only one piece of equipment | The **Equipments** page. See [The Equipments Page: Manage Your Bikes, Courts, Tables and More](https://help.cowlendar.com/a/the-equipments-page-manage-your-bikes-courts-tables-and-more). |

## Common questions

**Will blocking a date cancel bookings I already have?**

No. Blocked dates only affect future bookings. If you need to cancel an existing booking, do it from the **Bookings** page.

**Can I remove a blocked email later?**

Yes. Open **Settings > General settings**, go to the card **Blocked emails**, click the red trash icon at the end of the row and click **Save**.