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Hotel guest messaging: what to send before, during and after a stay
Good guest messaging means a few useful messages at the right moments: at booking, two or three days before arrival, on arrival, once during the stay, before checkout and after the guest leaves. Many guests reply faster on WhatsApp than to email. Each moment is also the best time to offer one relevant extra.
A guest messaging timeline
| When | What to send | Extra to offer |
|---|---|---|
| At booking | Confirmation with dates, room, price and address | A room upgrade, if you have one |
| 2 to 3 days before | Ask for arrival time and requests. Share directions and what ID to bring | Airport transfer, early check-in |
| Arrival day | Check-in details, Wi-Fi, and who to message for help | Dinner booking |
| Day 2 of the stay | “Is everything OK with your room?” | Spa, tour or experience |
| Day before checkout | Checkout time and how to settle the bill | Late checkout, transfer |
| After the stay | Thank you, and a review link for every guest | A perk for booking direct next time |
Before arrival
The pre-arrival message does the most work. The arrival time helps housekeeping and the front desk plan. Requests such as a cot, a quiet room or a dietary need are much easier to meet when you know a day early. Directions and ID rules save a confused phone call at 11 pm. Keep it to one short message with one question: “What time do you expect to arrive?”
During the stay
Send one message on the second day asking whether everything is fine. It catches the broken air conditioner or the noisy room while you can still fix it, and before it ends up in a review. Answer requests quickly, and pass anything you cannot handle by message to the right team member at once. When the guest leaves, ask every guest for a review, not just the happy ones. Our guide to review gating explains why.
Hotel upselling without being pushy
Upsells work when they help the guest. A few rules:
- One offer at a time, matched to the moment: a transfer before arrival, a late checkout the day before departure.
- A clear price and an easy way to say yes, such as a one-word reply.
- Fit the guest. Families care about breakfast and connecting rooms. Business travellers care about late checkout and transfers.
- Follow your pricing rules. Decide in advance what can be offered and at what price.
Which channel to use
WhatsApp works well for short, two-way messages, and guests can reply in their own language. Get the guest's permission first. On the WhatsApp Business Platform, any message sent more than 24 hours after the guest last wrote must be an approved template. Email still suits receipts and booking confirmations. A QR code in the room helps guests start a chat during the stay.
Hotel groups with several properties
A group with several hotels needs one tone and one set of rules, with the local details right for each property. That is hard when each hotel runs a different PMS, or none. Keep a shared playbook of messages, and a list of details per property: address, check-in time, breakfast hours, parking, the duty manager's number.
Where an AI agent helps
Socavi's Guest Agent handles pre-arrival messages, check-in details, in-stay requests and upsells at every property in a group, whatever PMS each one runs. Your team sets the upsell pricing rules, and requests the agent cannot handle go straight to staff. Serviced apartments, villas and homestays use it the same way. Read how stays can get more direct bookings, or see the agents.