Create a Pre-Arrival Guest Message
A warm pre-arrival email that reduces queries, sets expectations and opens the door to upsells.
The gap between booking and arrival is where a stay quietly goes wrong: the guest can't find the property down a winding road, arrives before the room is ready, or floods the front desk with the same questions about parking, wifi and check-in time. None of it is the guest's fault — the information they needed was sitting in the owner's head, never sent.
A good pre-arrival message closes that gap and does more besides. For a hotelier it cuts day-of stress and support queries, sets expectations that prevent bad reviews, and hits the single best upsell window there is — the guest is excited, hasn't spent anything on-site yet, and a gentle offer of airport pickup or a home-cooked dinner lands as helpfulness rather than a sales pitch.
Use this prompt when guests routinely arrive confused or you're leaving easy upsell revenue on the table. It's the front half of the guest-communication arc that the post-stay message completes, and it pairs naturally with the upselling-strategy prompt.
You are a guest-experience specialist. Write a pre-arrival message that makes guests feel welcome and reduces day-of questions. Context: - Hotel: [HOTEL NAME] in [LOCATION], a [PROPERTY TYPE] - When it's sent: [TIMING, e.g. 2 days before arrival] - Practical info guests need: [CHECK-IN TIME, DIRECTIONS, PARKING, WIFI, ETC.] - Upsells I could gently offer: [UPSELLS, e.g. airport pickup, early check-in, dinner reservation] - Tone: [TONE] Deliver: 1. A warm pre-arrival email: subject line, greeting, the essential info, and a friendly close. 2. A gentle upsell paragraph offering [UPSELLS] as helpful options (not a hard sell). 3. A one-line prompt inviting them to share any special requests. 4. A shorter WhatsApp/SMS version of the same message. 5. The single most important line to include to prevent the most common pre-arrival question. Keep it genuinely useful — guests should finish it feeling looked after, not marketed to.
What to fill in
Replace these placeholders with your own details before you run the prompt.
[HOTEL NAME]- Your property's name.
[LOCATION]- City / area.
[PROPERTY TYPE]- Type of property.
[TIMING]- When the message goes out.
[CHECK-IN TIME, DIRECTIONS, ...]- The practical details guests need.
[UPSELLS]- Extras you can offer helpfully.
[TONE]- Your brand tone.
How to use this prompt
- 1List the questions guests always ask before arrival and make sure the message answers them.
- 2Frame upsells as helpful options (airport pickup, early check-in), not a sales pitch.
- 3Ask for a WhatsApp version too — many guests read that faster than email.
Example input
Hotel: Coorg Hilltop Homestay. Sent 2 days before. Info: 1pm check-in, winding road directions, free parking, wifi code at desk. Upsells: airport pickup, home-cooked dinner. Tone: warm and homely.
What you'll get
A warm pre-arrival email with subject, essential info, a gentle offer of pickup and dinner, an invitation to share requests, a short WhatsApp version, and the key line (directions for the tricky final road) that prevents the most common question.
Pro tips
- •A good pre-arrival message quietly kills day-of stress — fewer front-desk questions, fewer late arrivals lost on the road.
- •Pre-arrival is the best upsell window: the guest is excited and hasn't spent anything on-site yet.