Hotel guest messages: ready-to-copy WhatsApp templates for hotels and inns

What are hotel guest messages, and when do you send each one?

Guest messages are anything a hotel, inn, hostel or vacation rental host sends to someone who booked or has already stayed. Most now go out on WhatsApp in the markets where guests read it first. People who search for this usually want two things: text they can copy, and confidence that the text will not cause trouble with Meta or with the law.

The guest journey has seven moments: booking confirmation, pre-check-in, welcome, during the stay, check-out, thanks with a review request, and an offer to return. The first six are about a booking that exists. The last one tries to sell another booking, and that changes the message category, the permission you need and what happens if the guest complains.

Three rules decide what can go out at each moment. The template category, utility or marketing. The 24-hour window, which opens when the guest writes. And opt-in, the permission the guest gave to receive your messages. The templates below show the category and the window status for each case, and variables appear in double braces.

One caveat covers the whole article. We checked the rules at the source on 4 November 2026 and say where we could not confirm something. The legal reading here is CCX Messages' own and is a starting point. Your specific case needs a lawyer in the country where you operate.

Utility or marketing: how Meta classifies hotel messages

Meta's Template categorization page says utility has to meet two conditions at once: no promotional intent, and being specific to the person, tied to their order, service or transaction, or else essential to them. Everything else goes to marketing, including mixed content. A booking confirmation with an upgrade offer is marketing. Our guide to template categories covers the rule in detail.

The page has no example involving a hotel or a check-in. The closest is in the utility templates documentation, which uses a restaurant reservation with buttons to change and cancel. On the marketing side, Meta lists a getaway suggestion for a new resort, a cabin upgrade, birthday wishes and a discount as thanks for a purchase. The classification of the templates below is our own reading by analogy.

Meta decides, based on content. Since 9 April 2025, a template submitted as utility that Meta considers marketing gets approved as marketing instead of rejected. The category can also change after approval, when the messages being sent do not follow the guidelines. So check the category that came back approved, not the one you asked for. Treat every template in this article as a suggestion until you have done that check.

The window is the other half. When a guest writes, you have 24 hours to reply with free text, media or buttons, with no template. Each new message from the guest restarts the clock. Outside it, only approved templates can go out. The WhatsApp policy, in its version of 23 September 2026, allows automation in the window as long as there is a clear path to a person.

A worked example. A guest who asks about breakfast at 10 pm opens the window, and the reply needs no template. The check-out reminder at 8 am the next morning fits in that same window. If the guest has not written in the last 24 hours, the same reminder needs an approved utility template. Have both paths ready, because both will happen.

Booking confirmation and pre-check-in templates for WhatsApp

Template 1, booking confirmation. Utility; template, because the guest usually has not written yet. “Hi {{name}}. Your booking {{code}} at {{hotel}} is confirmed: arrival on {{arrival_date}} from {{arrival_time}}, departure on {{departure_date}} by {{departure_time}}. To change anything, use the button below or reply to this message.” Buttons: Change booking, Talk to reception.

Template 2, change to a booking. Utility; template. “Hi {{name}}. Booking {{code}} at {{hotel}} was changed at your request: arrival is now on {{arrival_date}} and departure on {{departure_date}}. If anything looks wrong, reply to this message and reception will check.” Leave out upgrade invitations and tour offers. Meta says order and account messages must not promote or upsell.

Template 3, pre-check-in. Utility, in our reading, because it concerns a step in the guest's own booking. “Hi {{name}}. Your arrival at {{hotel}} is {{days}} days away. To speed things up at reception, you can complete your registration form in advance through the secure link on the button. Please do not send photos or ID numbers here. Documents are checked on arrival.” Button: Complete form.

A link button needs a fixed address, with the variable part at the end. Point it to the secure form in your own system or to the official platform in your country, which the next section covers. If local rules make the step optional for the guest, do not call it mandatory in the text. Whoever skips it does everything at the desk.

Inside the window, the same content can go out as free text. If a guest writes asking how to complete check-in early, the agent replies with the link right away, with no template. For bookings made far ahead, one reminder close to the date is usually enough. Too many messages about the same booking can become a reason to block your number.

Guest registration: why pre-check-in must not ask for ID in the chat

Lodging businesses often have to record guest details, and the rule changes by country. We checked two on 4 November 2026. In Spain, Royal Decree 933/2021, in the consolidated text on the BOE site, requires an entry form signed by every guest over 14, with the establishment answering for its accuracy against identity documents (art. 4).

The same decree requires an electronic register kept for three years after the service ends (art. 5) and sending data to the Interior Ministry within 24 hours of the booking or cancellation, and of the start of the stay (art. 6). The ministry's platform for this is SES.Hospedajes. Annex I lists the ID number, type and support number. So you do need that data. The question is where it gets collected.

The WhatsApp policy, version of 23 September 2026, answers that. Section 3 bans sharing or asking for full card and financial account numbers, plus “personal ID card numbers, or other sensitive identifiers”. A photo of a passport carries the same number. The ban applies to the agent, the template and the AI agent. The pre-check-in message carries only a link to a secure form. Train reception: asking for a passport in the chat out of habit puts the company's number at risk.

If a guest sends a document anyway, do not repeat the numbers in the chat. Thank them, point them to the secure form and follow your internal retention rule for the attachment. For children, say what to bring without asking for copies on WhatsApp. In Spain, the accompanying adult provides the data of guests under 14 (art. 4), and that belongs in the same secure flow.

In Brazil, the national guest record (FNRH) went digital under Portaria MTur 41/2025, which by our count took effect on 20 April 2026, the date the hotel association ABIH Bahia also cites. There, pre-check-in is optional for the guest, the hotel can share a QR code or link, and check-in still happens on site with a document check (arts. 28 and 38). We read the consolidated text on the IOB database, without opening the official gazette.

The practical effect on your wording is the same in both countries. Do not promise a check-in that skips the front desk unless your local rule and your system allow it. Do not call an optional step mandatory. We have not checked other countries, so ask your tourism or police authority what has to be collected, and how, before you write the template.

Vacation rentals need their own check. In Spain, non-professional hosts are exempt from the register and its retention (art. 5.4) and may report by non-electronic means (art. 6.4), but they still have to report. In Brazil, we could not confirm whether a private host falls under the FNRH: the ordinance defines lodging by a daily rate and does not mention short-term rentals. The tourism authority or a lawyer can settle your case.

Welcome messages for hotel guests: templates to copy

A guest welcome message comes in two formats. If the guest wrote first, it is a reply in the window, in free text. If not, it is a template. In our reading it is utility as long as it carries only information about the stay: Wi-Fi, breakfast hours, how to reach reception. Add “enjoy a discount at our spa” and it becomes marketing.

Template 4, hotel welcome. Utility; template or free text. “Hello {{name}}. Welcome to {{hotel}}. Your room is {{room}}. The Wi-Fi network is {{network}}, breakfast runs from {{start_time}} to {{end_time}}, and reception answers here and on extension {{extension}}. If you need anything, just reply.”

Template 5, inn or guesthouse welcome, in a warmer tone. Utility; template or free text. “Hi {{name}}, so glad to have you at {{inn}}. Breakfast is from {{start_time}} to {{end_time}}, the gate closes at {{gate_time}} and the Wi-Fi password is in your room. Want a tip for dinner or a day trip? Reply here and we will help.” If the tip involves a partner on commission or a purchase link, treat it as marketing.

Template 6, vacation rental arrival. Utility; template. “Hi {{name}}. You arrive at {{property}} today, from {{time}}. The address and entry instructions are at the link on the button. Trash goes out on {{trash_day}} and quiet hours start at {{quiet_time}}. If there is any problem, reply here.” Button: See instructions. Prefer delivering the door code through the link, because the chat stays stored on the guest's phone.

Automated, but with people nearby. Someone who writes “I'm here” at 11 pm expects a person on the other side. If there is no night reception, say so in the first line and give an on-call number. Our guide to greeting and away messages shows how to write that notice without promising a reply that will not come.

Templates for the stay, check-out, reviews and getting guests back

Template 7, notice during the stay. Utility; template. “Hello {{name}}. Notice from {{hotel}}: {{notice}} from {{start_time}} to {{end_time}}. We apologize for the inconvenience. If you need help, reply to this message.” Use it for a water outage, elevator maintenance or a change of breakfast room. Do not offer credit as compensation in the text: Meta classifies an apology that comes with account credit as marketing.

Template 8, how the stay is going. Utility; template. “Hi {{name}}. Is everything fine with room {{room}} at {{hotel}}? If something is not as you expected, reply here and reception will take care of it.” Send it once, the day after arrival. For a one-night stay, skip this step.

Template 9, check-out reminder. Utility; free text with the window open, template with it closed. “Good morning {{name}}. Your check-out from {{hotel}} is today, by {{time}}. To settle your bill, stop by reception. If you need more time, reply here.” Offering paid late check-out in the template pushes it to marketing. Let the guest ask, and reply in the window with the price and that day's availability.

Template 10, thanks and review. Utility, if it stays tied to the stay. “Thanks for staying at {{hotel}}, {{name}}. How was your stay on {{date}}? Your opinion helps us improve our service. Tap the button to answer a short survey.” Button: Rate my stay. Meta requires the survey to refer to the specific interaction. A generic request for feedback does not pass as utility, and a survey with a coupon is marketing.

Asking for a rating on a review site is a separate case. The documentation does not cover it, and in our reading an invitation to review publicly has the intent of promoting the hotel. Treat it as marketing, or run your internal survey first and invite later, in an open conversation. The satisfaction survey in the inbox measures service, and our CSAT guide explains how to read the result.

Template 11, offer to return. Marketing; template; only for people who accepted marketing. “Hi {{name}}. There are special dates at {{hotel}}: {{offer}} for stays between {{start_date}} and {{end_date}}. Book direct with the button. To stop receiving offers, reply STOP.” Buttons: See dates, No more offers. Meta itself gives a getaway suggestion for a new resort as an example of marketing.

Template 12, birthday. Marketing; template. “Happy birthday, {{name}}. The team at {{hotel}} wishes you a great day. Whenever you want to celebrate with us, just message here. To stop receiving messages like this, reply STOP.” Meta lists birthday wishes as marketing, even with no discount. Keep this template for people who gave marketing opt-in, and only use a date the person gave you for this purpose.

A booking email is not opt-in: what GDPR and Meta ask for

The WhatsApp policy, section 1, only allows contacting people who gave their number and agreed to receive messages from the business. Meta's Get opt-in page accepts consent gathered outside WhatsApp: website, SMS, phone or paper. But you have to state clearly that the person is agreeing to receive communications, and from which business. A booking email does not say that, and neither does a phone number on a form. Having a contact is different from having permission.

Data protection law looks at it from another side, and both apply. In the EU, the GDPR covers booking messages under contract performance (art. 6(1)(b)). For marketing, you need consent (art. 6(1)(a)) or legitimate interest (art. 6(1)(f)), which recital 47 says can cover direct marketing, and people can object at any time (art. 21(2)). In Spain, LSSI art. 21 requires prior authorisation for electronic commercial messages, except similar products for existing customers, with an opt-out each time. Our opt-in guide goes further.

Two shortcuts need care. Guest registration data exists to meet a legal duty, and the GDPR bars reuse that is incompatible with the original purpose (art. 5(1)(b)). In Spain, the decree's files at the Interior Ministry can be processed only by the security forces, with access for courts and prosecutors (art. 7). In our reading, that ID and phone data should not feed your marketing list. A phone number from a booking site may also carry limits in your contract with that site. Read it before importing the list.

Collect consent where the guest already is: on your own booking site, in the pre-check-in form or at reception. Leave the box unticked and separate from the booking itself. Text that works: “I want to receive offers and news from {{hotel}} on WhatsApp. I can cancel at any time.” Meta recommends separating opt-in by message category. Keep the date, channel and accepted wording on the contact record.

Template 13, opt-in confirmation. Utility, because Meta lists opt-in management among utility goals when consent was gathered on another channel. “Hi {{name}}. We have confirmed your request to receive news from {{hotel}} on WhatsApp. To cancel, reply STOP at any time.” People who did not give consent do not get this template: it confirms a permission that already exists.

In CCX Messages, anyone who replies STOP, CANCELAR, SAIR, PARAR or PARE is unsubscribed on all channels, while transactional messages keep going out. Opt-in status is a segment filter, and the Scheduling screen refuses, at the moment of saving, a recipient who asked out. Even so, the WhatsApp policy leaves responsibility for opt-in with the business that sends.

Is there a time limit for sending marketing messages?

In the WhatsApp policy, version of 23 September 2026, we found no time-of-day limit. The timing rule it does have is the 24-hour window. We also found no general law in Spain or Brazil, or federal rule in the US, that names WhatsApp marketing hours. We searched legislation and trade publications up to 4 November 2026. That is the result of our search, and a specific rule may have escaped us.

The rules we did find cover calls. In Spain, the consumer law (art. 96.2) bars commercial calls before 9 am, after 9 pm and on weekends and holidays. In the US, FCC rule 47 CFR 64.1200(c)(1) bars telephone solicitations before 8 am and after 9 pm at the recipient's local time, and the same section treats text messages as calls. We found no decision applying either one to WhatsApp, and we did not check other countries.

With no clear rule, use hospitality common sense. Operational messages go out when the guest needs them, including at night if the notice is urgent. Marketing stays within business hours for the person receiving it. Our starting point, which is a suggestion and not a rule, is 9 am to 8 pm, with no Sundays or public holidays. A guest in another time zone deserves the same calculation on their own clock.

CCX Messages journeys have quiet hours: anyone reaching a send step during that interval waits until it ends. Quiet hours follow Brasília time, so convert them if your guests are elsewhere. There is also a per-contact frequency cap, which counts messages across all journeys and skips the send past the limit. Our guide to automatic messages has more on this.

A CRM for hotels and inns: what to keep about each guest

A hospitality CRM answers one question when a guest writes: who is this person, and what has already happened with them? The Contact 360 record holds the conversation timeline, notes, tasks, up to 50 custom fields and 20 tags per contact. The CRM adds pipelines with stages, and our WhatsApp CRM guide shows what changes compared with a spreadsheet.

Preferences are the most useful field: high floor, quiet room, extra pillow, crib, always arrives by car. Create fields for what reception can use on the next stay and leave the rest in notes. Be careful with health: an allergy or dietary restriction for medical reasons is special-category data under the GDPR (art. 9), and sensitive data under Brazil's LGPD. Record it only with a clear reason and the right legal basis, and limit who can see it.

Birthdays call for a decision. The record has an encrypted date-of-birth field, but we checked the code on 4 November 2026 and journeys have no built-in birthday trigger. You can solve it with a birthday-month field and a segment, or with an event your system sends on the day. Ask for day and month only, along with marketing consent. A date of birth from a guest registration form is not for this purpose.

Returning guests become a segment. With tags such as direct, corporate or holiday-2026, and filters for last interaction, channel and opt-in, you can list people who have not returned in over a year and accepted marketing. A segment takes up to 20 filters and can put a contact straight into a journey. By default, each contact enters a journey only once, so set up re-entry for guests who come back.

Groups and events fit in their own pipeline: request received, proposal sent, room block, contract, won or lost with a reason. Each stage has a probability and a maximum time, and the pipeline shows total and weighted value. Weddings, retreats and company trips tend to involve several people, and an internal note with a mention keeps the request from stalling between reservations and events.

Direct booking is the shortest pipeline. The question “any rooms for the long weekend?” arrives on WhatsApp or Instagram, becomes a deal in one click and runs through to won or lost. The loss reason, such as price, no availability or a slow reply, shows where bookings slip away. The CRM does not check availability or create the booking: that stays in your system. The agent checks there and records here.

Hotel customer service: WhatsApp, Instagram and other channels in one inbox

The same booking question arrives from several sides. A couple sends a DM after seeing a story, a parent writes on WhatsApp, a company asks for a quote by email. If each channel has its own phone or tab, two agents quote different prices, or nobody replies. People searching for a customer service platform or a multichannel system for a hotel are trying to fix this. Our omnichannel guide explains the concept.

In the CCX Messages inbox, WhatsApp, Instagram and Telegram enter the same queue, live. Distribution is round-robin by workload, with rules by tag, Brazilian area code and priority. Teams have their own hours, so reception, reservations and events can run different shifts. The deadline runs per reply turn, and the risk shows before it expires. There are no per-agent fees, and our team inbox guide shows how to set up the queues.

Each channel has its limits. On Instagram, DMs, story replies, mentions and comments reach the queue. Activation is done with the CCX team, the conversation starts with the customer, there are no mass sends, and replies from the panel are text only. On Telegram, you connect a bot or your own account. Email and SMS are for notices more than conversation, and SMS is only for Brazilian mobile numbers.

Messages inside booking sites do not enter the queue. As of 4 November 2026, CCX Messages has ready-made connectors only for VTEX and OpenCart, none for booking sites. The record brings together what passed through the connected channels. What the guest wrote inside the booking site stays there, and your team has to decide who watches that inbox.

Daily work gains from small things. Saved replies under a slash for breakfast, parking and pet policy. An internal note at shift change: “Room 204 asked for a crib, housekeeping knows.” A snoozed conversation that returns when the guest replies. A satisfaction survey on resolving. A WhatsApp call is answered in the browser, with no PBX, and the platform does not record the audio.

Hotel chatbot: an AI agent for breakfast, parking and pets, with handoff

After-hours questions are nearly always the same: what time is breakfast, is there parking, are pets allowed, can I arrive early, is there a crib. The AI agent answers 24 hours a day on WhatsApp and Instagram, from the knowledge base you upload as PDF, Word, text or web pages. It says it is AI at first contact. The CCX Messages AI is processed in the US by contracted sub-processors listed in the Trust Center.

An example at 11:40 pm. Guest: “Do you allow dogs?” AI: “I'm the AI assistant at {{inn}}. We allow dogs up to {{weight}} kg, with notice on the booking. Would you like me to pass this to reception to record the request?” If the guest says yes, the conversation goes to the reception queue with its history. In the morning, whoever opens the shift already knows what to answer.

Decide what never stays with the AI. Subjects you list go straight to the team: complaints, billing errors, accessibility, groups, safety, lost property, emergencies. For emergencies, the knowledge base has to include the on-call number and the emergency services numbers. Handoff also happens when the guest asks for a person or when confidence is low. The WhatsApp policy requires that clear path to a human. After someone on the team replies, the AI does not talk over them in that conversation for 24 hours.

Availability and prices depend on your system. With no integration, the AI says what is in the knowledge base and calls someone to confirm the room. If your PMS has an API, a read-only HTTP tool can fetch data during the conversation, and actions that write anything go through a person's approval. The knowledge base needs an owner and reviews, because breakfast hours change in high season. Our AI agent guide shows how to test before going live.

Tell the AI never to ask for an ID, card or password, under the same section 3 rule. No conversation is used to train a model, and retention is configurable. Outside reception hours, it has to say when someone will reply, with no promise of an immediate answer. If your website chat also gets questions, AI Assist puts the same agent there, and the team takes over from the panel.

Hotel software and hotel management systems: does CCX replace your PMS?

No. People searching for hotel software or a hotel management system are usually after a PMS: room map, rates, reservations, guest folio and links to booking sites. CCX Messages is neither a PMS nor a booking engine. It handles the conversation with the guest and works alongside the system you already use, through API and webhook. If you do not have a PMS yet, pick one first.

The integrated path has three steps. Your system sends an event, such as booking_confirmed, with name, dates and code. The API puts the contact in the journey, and the template variables can come from that event's data. The journey sends, waits and decides by delivery, read, click or reply, and buttons such as Confirm arrival return to your system through a signed webhook. A developer connects this, yours or your PMS vendor's.

One detail changes the project. A journey waits from 1 minute to 90 days after entry, or until a weekday and a time. It does not work out “3 days before check-in” from a date field by itself. The PMS knows the date, so it fires the event on the right day, or you schedule the message. We checked this in the code on 4 November 2026. There is no ready-made PMS connector either: the link goes through the API.

It also works without a developer, with more manual work. The scheduling screen keeps a queue with one line per person, template and time, and checks approved template, variables, opt-out and future time on saving. For a batch, a campaign accepts a CSV with variables. A small inn can export the week's arrivals from its system, if it exports them, and schedule the sends each Monday.

Little changes in your PMS. It remains the owner of the booking, and CCX Messages keeps contact, conversation, opt-in and pipeline. Decide which system owns each field, to avoid two numbers for one person. Conversations, contacts, files and backups are in São Paulo and the AI is processed in the US, so if you are in the EU, have your data protection officer review those transfers. The exceptions are listed in the Trust Center, and connection options in integrations.

Hotel marketing on WhatsApp: how to use it without burning your number

Hotel marketing by message starts with one question: who agreed to receive it? The calculation is the same for a large hotel and a small inn: low season, long weekends and the dates past guests already chose. With campaigns, you send WhatsApp and email to lists, tags or a CSV, plus SMS to Brazilian mobile numbers only. You see the estimated cost before sending, and duplicates and people who opted out stay off the list.

Number quality is the real limit. Meta says it limits sending for businesses whose quality stays low over time, and blocks and reports weigh on that. Start with your most recent guests, with an offer tied to the stay they had. Separate leisure guests from business guests. Test two versions in a journey, with up to 4 branches, and roll out the one that brings more bookings, rather than the one with more clicks.

Three Meta rules matter here. There is a per-person marketing limit that blocks delivery with error 131049, so part of your list may not receive the message. Since 1 April 2025, Meta has not delivered marketing to WhatsApp users in the United States, so US guests are out of reach for offers, though utility still arrives. And Meta announced on 13 October 2026 that in 2027 marketing leaves the Cloud API and moves to another Meta route. Do not plan a season as if every send arrives.

What CCX Messages does not do, and when it is the wrong choice

CCX Messages has no room map, booking calendar, rate manager or channel manager. It does not sell room nights, charge guests, post folio items, or fill in or submit guest registration forms for you. If that is what is missing, you have a PMS problem. It does not read messages inside booking sites either. Debt collection stays out too, because the WhatsApp policy prohibits that service.

It is not the best choice in three cases. A small inn with one person answering and a volume that fits in that person's attention: the WhatsApp Business app, with greeting and away messages, may be enough for a good while. A chain that wants everything in one contract, with a messaging module inside its PMS: compare that module first. And anyone who wants to send promotions to people who did not agree: it does not work here, and the WhatsApp policy does not allow it on any platform.

Weigh the channel too. In some markets guests do not use WhatsApp at all, and email remains the formal record of the booking in many cases. That message can keep coming from your PMS. Questions about cost belong on the pricing page, because prices vary by country and message type, and any figure worked out here would age quickly.

If your current tool asks you to scan a QR code to connect the number, your whole front desk depends on a connection that WhatsApp's terms do not accept. CCX Messages uses only the official WhatsApp API, with no phone in the middle. What happens when a number goes down is in our guide to banned WhatsApp accounts. In high season, losing the number costs more than changing vendors calmly.