Can a WhatsApp bot handle homestay bookings?

It answers rates, minimum stays, house rules and what is included from your notes, checks the availability rules you give it, holds a request, and logs the booking to a Google Sheet with the dates, guest count and deposit status. It does not write into a channel manager or OTA calendar; the host confirms from the sheet.

How does it know if dates are available?

Only from what you tell it. Keep a simple availability note in the knowledge base, or let it take every request as a hold and confirm yourself. Most small homestays prefer the second: no double bookings, and the assistant still saves the back-and-forth.

Can guests ask it for directions and the WiFi password?

Yes. Directions, parking, check-in steps, WiFi, appliances, nearby food: paste them in and the assistant answers at 11pm when a guest is standing at the gate. For a safer setup, keep the door code out of the notes and send it yourself after the deposit.

Does it work on the number guests already have?

Yes. It pairs to your existing WhatsApp number by QR, the same way WhatsApp Web does. By default it answers new conversations only, so guests you are already talking to are not affected.

WhatsApp for hotels, homestays and guesthouses

Quick answer

A homestay assistant on WhatsApp answers nightly rates and minimum stays, what is included, check-in and late arrival rules, directions, parking and house rules, then logs each request to a Google Sheet with dates, guest count and deposit status. It never promises a discount or early check-in, and complaints during a stay reach the host immediately.

It holds a request rather than confirming dates, so no double booking reaches your calendar.
Directions, parking, WiFi and appliance notes are answered at 11pm from your guide.
Keep door and alarm codes out of the notes; send those yourself after the deposit.
Special requests, price changes and complaints go to the host with the thread attached.

At a glance

It answers

Nightly rates and minimum stays
Check-in, check-out and late arrival
Directions, parking and amenities
House rules and deposits

It hands to you

Special requests and events
Complaints during a stay
Refunds and cancellations

10 min

to set up

New chats

only, by default

Any

language

Hotels and homestays

answered by Replai, after hours

3-bedroom unit for 8 people, weekend of 20 Sep? Is there a pool?21:14
The 3-bedroom unit sleeps 8: $240 a night on weekends, 2-night minimum. Shared pool and free parking for 2 cars. 20 to 22 Sep is open. Want me to hold it?21:14
Hold it. Can we check in early? We arrive at noon21:16
Held for 24 hours. Check-in is 3pm; early check-in depends on the previous guest, the host will confirm the day before. A $100 deposit confirms; payment link coming up.21:16

Illustrative exchange. Your bot answers from your own prices, hours and rules.

Replai knowledge base screen with pasted prices, hours and policies — Your prices, hours and rules live here. Paste them once; every answer comes from this.

Replai leads table showing captured customer details — Every enquiry that shows intent lands in a sheet with the name, number and what they asked.

A homestay host's phone is a front desk that never closes. "is this weekend free?", "how much for 8 people?", "can we check in early?", "how do we get in?". Half the messages arrive after 9pm, and the ones that arrive during the day interrupt the cleaning, the day job, or the family. Hotels with a small team have the same problem with a bigger inbox.

Why hospitality WhatsApp is relentless

Evening enquiries decay fast. The MIT lead response study found that calling a web lead within five minutes rather than thirty makes contact 100 times more likely, and qualification 21 times more likely (InsideSales.com/MIT Lead Response Management Study, 2007). A family comparing three listings at 10pm will book the one that answers the rate and the minimum stay while they are still looking.

Guests plan at night and travel on weekends. They ask the same questions in the same order: price, minimum nights, what is included, check-in time, parking, and then the practical ones at arrival. Each question is quick to answer and impossible to keep up with by hand, and every unanswered evening message is a booking that went to the listing that replied.

What can a WhatsApp bot handle for a homestay or small hotel?

Paste your rate card, house rules, check-in steps, directions and the practical guide for the unit. The assistant answers from that on the number your listing shows, in the guest's language.

Guest asks	Answered from
Rate for their dates and group size	Your rate card and minimum stays
What is included	Your amenities list
Check-in and late arrival	Your times and late-arrival rule
Directions and parking	Your directions text and map link
House rules, pets, extra guests	Your rules
Deposit and payment	Your terms and the QR you keep in its notes

A request becomes a row in your sheet: dates, guests, unit, deposit status, special notes. You confirm from the sheet, and the assistant can send the confirmation text you wrote for it.

What should stay with the host?

Special requests, events, anything that changes the price, and every complaint during a stay go to a person immediately, with the thread attached. Refunds and cancellation disputes too. The assistant is told to never promise a discount and never promise early check-in; it says the host will confirm. Door codes and alarm codes should stay out of the notes; send those yourself once the deposit is in.

An evening with it switched on

Friday, 10pm. A family asks about the 3-room unit for the following weekend. The assistant quotes the weekend rate, explains the 2-night minimum, confirms parking for two cars, and takes the hold with a deposit QR. Their dates and guest count are in your sheet. A guest already staying messages that the hot water stopped. That thread is older than the pairing, so it was never handled by the assistant; you see it and call the plumber. Nothing embarrassing, nothing missed.

Set up in 10 minutes

Scan the QR with the phone that holds the listing number. Paste rates, rules, check-in steps and directions. Leave codes out. Set language to auto. Test with a message from another phone, fix what reads wrong, and switch it on. From then on new enquiries are answered; existing guest chats stay with you.

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Frequently asked questions

Can a WhatsApp bot handle homestay bookings?: It answers rates, minimum stays, house rules and what is included from your notes, checks the availability rules you give it, holds a request, and logs the booking to a Google Sheet with the dates, guest count and deposit status. It does not write into a channel manager or OTA calendar; the host confirms from the sheet.
How does it know if dates are available?: Only from what you tell it. Keep a simple availability note in the knowledge base, or let it take every request as a hold and confirm yourself. Most small homestays prefer the second: no double bookings, and the assistant still saves the back-and-forth.
Can guests ask it for directions and the WiFi password?: Yes. Directions, parking, check-in steps, WiFi, appliances, nearby food: paste them in and the assistant answers at 11pm when a guest is standing at the gate. For a safer setup, keep the door code out of the notes and send it yourself after the deposit.
Does it work on the number guests already have?: Yes. It pairs to your existing WhatsApp number by QR, the same way WhatsApp Web does. By default it answers new conversations only, so guests you are already talking to are not affected.

Sources

About WhatsApp, WhatsApp, 2026-09-07
Lead Response Management Study, InsideSales.com and MIT, 2007