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 respond to routine questions automatically. This guide explains how the feature works and answers the questions hosts ask most often.

What is Guest Messaging?

Guest Messaging is a unified communication tool that consolidates all your guest conversations in one inbox. Whether your guests book through Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, Holidu, or direct bookings, every message appears in a single, organized space. The feature includes three main components that work together to make guest communication easier and faster.

The Three Main Components

Inbox: View all messages from your guests across every booking channel in one unified space, with full message history for upcoming, current, and past bookings.

AI Assistant: Automatically answer common guest questions 24/7, such as check-in information, WiFi details, and local recommendations, all informed by your property's local context.

Scheduled Messages: Send check-in details, access codes, and arrival information automatically for every booking, ensuring guests have what they need before they arrive.

Where to Find Guest Messaging

Accessing Guest Messaging is simple. Open the Holidu web app and navigate to the left menu. Click on Messages and then select Inbox. From here, you can view all your guest conversations and manage your messaging settings.

How to Use the Inbox

Viewing Conversations

Each booking appears as a single conversation thread, regardless of which channel the guest booked through. This means you won't have separate inboxes for Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, or direct bookings — everything is in one place.

Sending Messages

To send a message, locate the relevant conversation thread, type your response in the message box at the bottom, and click Send. Your message will be delivered to the guest through the original booking channel.

Viewing Scheduled Messages

Scheduled messages — such as check-in instructions and access codes — are sent automatically by the system and also appear in the thread for full visibility. You can see exactly what was sent and when, giving you complete transparency of all guest communication.

Using Automatic Translation

Guest Messaging includes an automatic translation feature. Simply compose your message in your preferred language, and it will appear to your guest in theirs where possible. This breaks down language barriers and makes communication smoother for international guests.

Understanding AI Assistant Responses

The AI Assistant automatically responds to guest questions on the topics you've assigned to it. Open Manage settings (the gear icon in your Messages header) to see which topics are handled by AI and which stay with you. If you reply to a message yourself, the AI pauses for that reply so you can take over the conversation.

Managing Collaborator Access

Collaboration features let hosts and assigned collaborators access and respond to guest messages. Collaborator access is managed by the host in the Holidu platform.

Staying Notified

You get a notification for every new message in your conversations — the same way you'd receive a WhatsApp message — including messages the AI Assistant sends on your behalf. This ensures you always know what's been said in your name and can step in at any time.

How to Enable Access for Collaborators

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

Using the AI Assistant

What the AI Assistant Does

The AI Assistant automatically answers common guest questions 24/7, such as check-in information, WiFi passwords, directions to local attractions, and property-specific details. All responses are informed by the local context of your property, making them personalized and relevant.

Customizing AI Assistant Topics

You have complete control over which questions the AI Assistant answers. Open Manage settings to see 8 topics: property information questions, points of interest, guest arrival, online check-in and guest registration, property issues and how-tos, special requests, check-out and departures, and invoices, fees, deposits and local taxes. Set each topic to AI Assistant or Host. Your choice applies to all your conversations, existing and new, so you only need to set it once. Use Set all to AI Assistant or Set all to Host to flip everything in one click.

Topics the AI Assistant Never Handles

Some topics always go to Holidu directly because they require Holidu's direct action: bookings, payments and disputes, complaints, safety and legal matters, and platform, account, or pre-booking questions. You can't change this, and you don't need to — it keeps sensitive matters handled consistently and professionally.

When the AI Can't Answer

If the AI Assistant can't answer a question on a topic you've assigned to it, it automatically hands the conversation over to you. Nothing gets stuck or lost.

Changing Settings via Chat

You can change your AI settings directly by chatting with the AI Assistant. Just tell it what you want — for example, "stop the AI from answering property issues" or "turn off the AI everywhere" — and it will update your settings and confirm what changed.

Scheduled Messages

What are Scheduled Messages?

Scheduled messages are automatic communications sent to guests at specific times, such as check-in instructions, access codes, parking details, and arrival information. These messages ensure guests have critical details before they arrive at your property.

Accessing Scheduled Messages

To view or configure your scheduled messages, go to the left menu in the Holidu host portal and select Messages > Scheduled Messages. From here, you can set up, edit, or review the automatic messages sent to your guests for each booking.

Frequently Asked Questions

Getting Started

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.

Is Guest Messaging included in my account?
Yes — Guest Messaging is included for all hosts at no additional cost.

Inbox Features

Which channels are supported?
Conversations with guests from Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, Holidu, and direct bookings are supported in your unified inbox.

Can I view message history?
Yes. You can view messages for upcoming, current, and past bookings for a limited period after checkout.

AI Assistant

What does the AI Assistant do?
It automatically answers common guest questions 24/7, such as check-in info, WiFi details, and local recommendations — all informed by your property's local context.

Can I choose which questions the AI Assistant answers?
Yes. Open Manage settings (gear icon in your Messages header) to set each of 8 topics to AI Assistant or Host. Your choice applies to all conversations, so you only need to set it once.

Are there topics the AI Assistant never handles?
Yes — bookings, payments and disputes, complaints, safety and legal matters, and platform/account/pre-booking questions always go through Holidu directly. You can't change this, and you don't need to.

What if the AI can't answer a question on a topic I've assigned to it?
It automatically hands the conversation over to you, so nothing gets stuck.

Can I change my settings by chatting with the AI Assistant?
Yes. Just tell it what you want — for example, "stop the AI from answering property issues" — and it will update your settings and confirm what changed.

Notifications

How will I know about new messages, including ones the AI Assistant sends?
You get a notification for every new message in your conversations — the same way you'd get a WhatsApp message — including messages the AI Assistant sends on your behalf. This ensures you always know what's been said in your name.

Collaboration and Access

Can multiple people use Guest Messaging?
Yes — hosts and invited collaborators can access the same inbox and respond to guest messages.

How do I add or remove collaborators?
Manage collaborators in your specific property settings. Collaborators must be given access to guest conversations separately for each property.

Support

What if a message needs Customer Service support?
The Holidu Customer Happiness team can join the conversation when needed. Click the support button at the bottom right corner to reach out.

Limitations

Can I message guests for manual calendar blocks?
No — messaging is only available for actual bookings.

Will every guest message appear in Holidu?
All channel-based messages are synced to your unified inbox. Guests may still use email or phone outside Holidu, but those messages won't appear in your inbox.

Key Takeaways

• Guest Messaging unifies all conversations from Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, Holidu, and direct bookings in one inbox
• The AI Assistant answers common guest questions 24/7, saving you time and providing instant responses
• You control which topics the AI handles — customize settings topic by topic
• Scheduled messages send check-in details and access codes automatically
• Automatic translation helps you communicate with guests in their language
• Hosts and collaborators can share inbox access for seamless team communication
• Notifications keep you informed of every message, including those sent by the AI on your behalf
• The Holidu Customer Happiness team is available 7 days a week when you need human support

Guest Messaging is designed to make host-guest communication faster, easier, and more efficient. For further questions or support, contact Holidu Customer Support.