Hospitality Technology
5 Automatic WhatsApp Messages Every Hotel Should Send
Booking received, confirmed, pre-arrival, payment reminder and post-stay: five WhatsApp messages that reduce no-shows and calls — and how to send them automatically.
By 7CRM Team9 min read
Every hotel knows the questions that arrive between booking and checkout. Is my booking confirmed? What time can I check in? How do I get there from the station? Did you receive my payment? Each one is a call or message your team answers by hand — often more than once for the same guest.
Most of these questions can be answered before the guest asks, with a few well-timed WhatsApp messages. This guide covers the five messages every hotel should send, what each should say, when to send it, and how to automate all five so they go out on time without anyone remembering to send them.
HotelBee sends booking messages on your hotel’s own WhatsApp Business number.
Why automate guest messages?
- 📉 Fewer repeat questions. A clear confirmation and pre-arrival message answer what guests usually call about.
- ⏰ Fewer no-shows and late payments. A timely reminder is the simplest way to keep a booking on track.
- 🤝 A more professional experience. Guests feel looked after from the moment they book.
- 🧘 Less pressure on staff. Nobody has to remember who needs which message today.
On WhatsApp, these messages are read quickly and stay in the chat for the guest to find later — far better than an email that lands in a promotions folder.
Message 1: ✅ Booking received
When: immediately after the guest books.
Why: if your hotel confirms bookings manually, there is a gap between the guest booking and you accepting it. Without a message, guests worry the booking didn’t go through — and some book somewhere else “just in case”.
What to include: the guest’s name, dates, room type, the booking reference, and what happens next (“We’ll confirm your booking shortly”).
Hi Priya, thank you for booking a Deluxe Room at Sunrise Grand Hotel for 18–20 Oct. Your reference is SG1024. We’ll confirm your booking shortly.
Message 2: 🎉 Booking confirmed
When: as soon as the booking is confirmed — instantly for hotels using instant confirmation, or when your team accepts the request.
Why: this is the message guests screenshot and forward to family. It should be clear and complete.
What to include: confirmed dates, room, number of guests, total and payment status, plus a link to the booking page where they can see their booking, pay if needed and send requests during the stay.
Message 3: 🧳 Pre-arrival
When: a day or two before check-in.
Why: this one message prevents most of the calls you get on arrival day — directions, timings, parking, what ID to bring.
What to include: check-in time, address with a map link, parking information, ID requirements and a contact number. Keep it short and practical.
We look forward to welcoming you tomorrow! Check-in is from 2 pm. Please carry a government photo ID. Free parking is available at the hotel.
The policies you set up — check-in times, ID and cancellation rules — are the same facts your messages and AI receptionist use.
Message 4: 💳 Payment reminder
When: before arrival for bookings that are unpaid or part-paid.
Why: a polite reminder with an easy way to pay saves awkward conversations at the front desk.
What to include: amount due, a link to the booking page, and how to pay. In HotelBee, guests can pay by UPI straight to your hotel’s own UPI ID (and submit the UTR number), or online through your own Razorpay account — money never passes through HotelBee.
Message 5: 🙏 Post-stay
When: after checkout.
Why: a short thank-you leaves a warm last impression and keeps the conversation open for the next stay — when the guest returns, they can simply message you again.
What to include: thanks, a line inviting them back, and how to reach you directly next time.
How HotelBee automates all five
HotelBee’s WhatsApp automations page lists these messages — booking received, booking confirmed, pre-arrival, payment reminder and post-stay — with the timing for each. You can turn each one on or off, adjust the timing, and add your own messages.
Behind the scenes:
- Your WhatsApp Business number is connected on your own Meta account — the HotelBee team helps set this up.
- Messages use Meta-approved templates, which are synced from your WhatsApp account and shown on the templates page. WhatsApp requires approved templates for messages a business starts.
- Each message is triggered by the booking — when it’s received, confirmed, before arrival, when payment is due, and after checkout.
- Delivery is tracked in the WhatsApp message log, so you can see what was sent and whether it was delivered.
Because the messages are tied to real bookings in HotelBee, details like dates, room and amount come from the booking itself — not from someone retyping them.
Replies to your automatic messages arrive in the same inbox, where the AI or your team can answer.
Setting it up, step by step
- 🔌 Connect WhatsApp. In the setup wizard’s Channels step, request WhatsApp; the HotelBee team connects your own WhatsApp Business number on your Meta account.
- 📄 Check your templates. Open the WhatsApp templates page to see the Meta-approved templates synced from your account, with their language and approval status.
- ⚙️ Turn on automations. On the automations page, switch on the five messages above and set the timing — for example, pre-arrival one day before check-in.
- 🧪 Make a test booking. Book a room for yourself and watch the booking-received and confirmation messages arrive.
- 📊 Watch the log. The WhatsApp page shows each message sent and its delivery status, so you can spot a wrong number or a failed send.
Frequently asked questions
Do guests need to save our number? No. They receive the message because they shared their phone number when booking.
Can I write my own messages? Yes. Alongside the five built-in automations you can add your own, using approved templates.
What if a guest replies? Their reply arrives in the HotelBee inbox, where the AI receptionist or your team can answer.
Best practices
- ✍️ Keep messages short. Two or three lines beat a paragraph.
- 🧭 Always include the next step. A link to the booking page, a map, a payment option.
- 🕰️ Respect timing. Pre-arrival the day before is helpful; three reminders in a day is not.
- 🙅 Don’t use booking messages for promotions. Keep them about the guest’s stay.
- 🔄 Review your templates each season. Update check-in details, parking notes and contact numbers when they change.
Getting started
WhatsApp automations are part of HotelBee’s WhatsApp add-on, and the 14-day free trial includes every feature.
- 🚀 Start the free trial
- 🤝 Request a demo and we’ll help connect your WhatsApp
- 📖 Read how a WhatsApp chatbot answers hotel guests 24/7
