Guest Messaging Guide and FAQ

Guest Messaging brings every conversation with your guests into one place — across all your booking channels — and uses an AI Assistant to help you manage inquiries efficiently. This comprehensive guide explains what Guest Messaging is, where to find it, and how to use each feature to streamline your guest communication.

What is Guest Messaging?

Guest Messaging is a unified communication platform that consolidates all guest conversations from multiple booking channels into a single inbox. Whether your guests book through Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, Holidu, or directly with you, every message appears in one place for easy management and response.

The feature includes three main components designed to save you time and improve guest satisfaction:

• Inbox — A unified messaging center for all your guest conversations across all booking channels
• AI Assistant — An intelligent system that automatically answers common guest questions 24/7
• Scheduled Messages — Automated messages for check-in details, access codes, and arrival information sent automatically for every booking

Where to Find Guest Messaging

Accessing Guest Messaging in Holidu is straightforward:

1. Open the Holidu web app and log in to your host account
2. In the left navigation menu, click Messages
3. Select Inbox to view all your guest conversations

From the Messages section, you can also access your Scheduled Messages settings to configure automatic messages for your properties.

How to Use the Inbox

The Inbox is your central hub for managing all guest communications. Here's how to use it effectively:

Accessing Your Conversations

When you open the Inbox, you'll see all your guest conversations organized by booking. Each booking appears as a single conversation thread, regardless of which channel the guest used to book (Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, Holidu, or direct booking). This unified view makes it easy to maintain context across all your properties.

Sending Messages

To send a message to a guest:

1. Locate the relevant conversation thread in your Inbox
2. Type your response in the message box at the bottom of the conversation
3. Click Send to deliver your message

Your message will be delivered to the guest through the same channel they used to contact you, ensuring they receive it where they expect it.

Viewing Message History

You can view messages for upcoming, current, and past bookings. The full conversation history appears in each thread, giving you context about previous communications with the same guest or property inquiries.

Using Automatic Translation

Guest Messaging includes an automatic translation feature to help you communicate with guests in different languages:

1. Compose your message in your preferred language
2. The system will translate your message to the guest's language automatically
3. Incoming messages from guests will similarly be translated to your preferred language

This feature helps you provide excellent service to international guests without language barriers.

Scheduled Messages

Scheduled messages are sent automatically by the system for important booking information. These include:

• Check-in instructions and details
• Access codes and lock information
• Arrival information and property welcome details

All scheduled messages appear in the conversation thread, so you have complete visibility of all communications your guests receive. To configure scheduled messages, go to Messages > Scheduled Messages in the left navigation menu.

How to Use the AI Assistant

The AI Assistant is designed to handle routine guest inquiries automatically, freeing up your time for more complex requests. The AI responds 24/7 to common questions such as:

• Check-in and check-out procedures
• WiFi passwords and connection instructions
• Directions and local recommendations
• Parking information
• House rules and policies

The AI Assistant is informed by the local context of your property, ensuring responses are relevant and accurate to your specific listing.

How the AI Assistant Works

When a guest asks a question in the Inbox, the AI Assistant automatically analyzes the inquiry and provides an appropriate response if it's a common question it can answer. The AI response appears in the conversation thread for full transparency.

Pausing or Disabling the AI Assistant

You maintain full control over the AI Assistant. If you want to take over a conversation and handle it manually:

1. Send a message in the conversation thread — the AI will automatically pause to let you take over
2. Alternatively, click on Manage settings in the conversation and disable the AI manually

Important: Currently, you can only pause the AI Assistant for individual conversations. A global setting to disable the AI across all conversations is not yet available. If you need to pause the AI for a specific property or booking, you'll need to do this on a per-conversation basis.

Collaborator Access to Guest Messaging

Multiple people on your team can access Guest Messaging to manage guest communications together. However, collaborator access is not automatic and must be configured by you.

How do I enable access for collaborators?

Collaborators are not included automatically. To give a collaborator access, go to the specific property in Holidu, go to "collaborators" to adjust that person's access, and enable access to guest conversations. This needs to be done separately for each individual property.

Frequently Asked Questions

Getting Started

Is Guest Messaging included in my account?

Yes — Guest Messaging is included for all hosts at no additional cost. You have immediate access to the Inbox, AI Assistant, and Scheduled Messages features.

How do I access the Guest Messaging Inbox?

Go to the left menu in the Holidu host portal and select Messages > Inbox.

How do I access and configure scheduled messages?

Go to the left menu in the Holidu host portal and select Messages > Scheduled Messages. From here, you can create and customize automatic messages for your properties.

Inbox Features

Which channels are supported in the Inbox?

Guest Messaging consolidates conversations from all major booking channels: Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, Holidu, and direct bookings. All messages appear in your unified Inbox regardless of booking source.

Will every guest message appear in Holidu?

All channel-based messages are synced to your Holidu Inbox. However, guests may still contact you outside the platform through email or phone. To ensure you don't miss important communications, encourage guests to use the messaging system within their booking platform.

Can I message guests for manual calendar blocks?

No — Guest Messaging is only available for actual bookings. You cannot initiate messages for dates blocked on your calendar without a confirmed reservation.

AI Assistant Features

What does the AI Assistant do?

The AI Assistant automatically answers common guest questions 24/7, such as check-in instructions, WiFi passwords, local directions, and property amenities. Responses are informed by the local context of your property, ensuring accuracy and relevance.

How do I pause or turn off the AI?

You can pause the AI in two ways: click on Manage settings in a conversation and disable the AI, or simply send a message in the conversation and the AI will automatically pause to let you take over. Note that this setting applies to individual conversations only — there is currently no global setting to disable the AI across all conversations.

Can the AI Assistant handle complex inquiries?

The AI Assistant is designed for common, straightforward questions. For complex or unusual requests, it will pause, and you can respond directly. You can also manually pause the AI at any time to take over a conversation.

Notifications and Alerts

How will I know if there's a new message?

Notifications are sent via push notification, email, or SMS based on your account settings. You'll be alerted whenever you receive a new message or when the AI Assistant needs your input to respond to a guest inquiry.

Can I customize my notification preferences?

Yes — you can adjust your notification settings in your Holidu account to receive alerts via push, email, SMS, or a combination of these methods.

Collaboration and Multi-User Access

Can multiple people use Guest Messaging?

Yes — hosts and invited collaborators can access the same Inbox and respond to guest messages together. This is ideal if you have a property management team or family members helping with guest communication.

How do I add or remove collaborators?

Collaborators are not included automatically. To give a collaborator access, go to the specific property in Holidu, go to "collaborators" to adjust that person's access, and enable access to guest conversations. This needs to be done separately for each individual property.

Support and Assistance

What if a message needs customer service support?

If a conversation requires assistance from the Holidu Customer Happiness team, click the support button at the bottom right corner of the Inbox. The support team can join the conversation and help resolve the issue. Holidu support is available 7 days a week in your language.

How do I report a problem with Guest Messaging?

Contact Holidu support directly through the help button in the platform, or reach out to the Customer Happiness team. They're available 24/7 to assist with any technical issues or questions about the feature.

Summary

Guest Messaging is a powerful tool designed to simplify your guest communication:

• Unified Inbox consolidates messages from Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, Holidu, and direct bookings in one place
• AI Assistant answers common guest questions automatically, 24/7
• Scheduled Messages automatically sends check-in details and access codes to guests
• Automatic translation helps you communicate with international guests
• Collaborator access allows multiple people to manage guest conversations together
• You maintain full control and can pause the AI at any time to respond manually
• Notifications keep you informed of new messages and when manual input is needed
• Holidu support is available 7 days a week to assist with complex inquiries

By using Guest Messaging effectively, you can provide excellent guest service while saving time on routine inquiries. Start by exploring your Inbox, configuring your Scheduled Messages, and inviting collaborators if needed.

For further questions about Guest Messaging or other Holidu features, contact Holidu support through the help button in your host portal.