Take Hotel Bookings on WhatsApp with Cloudbeds

This recipe turns “do you have a room for 2 adults on the 14th?” into a confirmed direct booking in the same chat. It reads availability and rates from Cloudbeds, offers the options, takes a deposit and creates the reservation in Cloudbeds. Part of the Cloudbeds integration.

What happens today

A guest messages at 11pm from another time zone: “hi any room 14 to 16 for 2 adults, how much?”. The night auditor is busy, or the desk is closed. In the morning someone opens Cloudbeds, checks the dates, types out two room types and prices, and waits. The guest has already looked at an online travel agency, where the same room was one tap away. You pay the commission on a guest who came to you first.

The flow that works

The guest asks in their own words. AeroChat works out the dates and the number of guests, and asks only for what is missing.
It checks Cloudbeds for room types free on every night of the stay and reads the direct rates.
It offers up to three options with the total price and what the rate includes.
The guest picks one and gives their name, email and phone number. AeroChat sends a deposit link.
When the deposit is paid, it checks the room is still free and creates the reservation in Cloudbeds with a note of the payment. The guest gets the confirmation in the chat.

The recipe

Copy this into AeroChat

When a guest asks about a room, follow these steps.

Find out the check-in and check-out dates and how many adults and children are staying. Ask only for what they have not told you.

Check Cloudbeds for room types available for every night of the stay and their direct rates for those dates.

Offer up to three options. For each, give the room type, the total price for the stay, and what the rate includes, for example breakfast or free cancellation up to 48 hours before arrival (example).

When they choose, collect their full name, email and phone number.

Send a deposit payment link. Example amount: the first night. Tell them the booking is confirmed once the deposit is paid.

When the payment is confirmed, check the room type is still available. Create the reservation in Cloudbeds with the guest details, dates, room type and rate, and add a note: “Deposit paid in chat” with the amount. If the room has gone, offer the closest alternatives and keep the deposit for the new booking.

Send a confirmation with the reservation number, dates, room type, total price, check-in time and our address.

Only quote rates and room types that Cloudbeds returns. Never give a discount or promise a specific room number. If the guest asks for a group of more than three rooms, collect the details and hand over to the front office. Reply in the guest’s language.

Change the deposit amount, the rate terms and the group size rule to your own before you paste it.

What to connect

Cloudbeds. Create an API key under Account, Apps and Marketplace, API Credentials. AeroChat asks for it by name, and you enter it in the dashboard.
Your fact sheet. Upload check-in times, address, parking, breakfast and your cancellation policy to the AeroChat knowledge base.
Payments. Airwallex is built in: connect your Airwallex account and AeroChat sends the payment link and confirms the payment. AeroChat never sees card numbers. If you already take payments with HitPay or Stripe, both connect through their APIs with your API key. Payment links are included from the Growth plan.

Using a different system? If it has a public API, it connects to AeroChat the same way: describe what you want, paste in its key, and it runs.

Can’t find your tool? Message us in the chat on this page and we’ll tell you how it connects.

What you still decide

Which rates are offered in chat, and whether any are kept for the front office.
The deposit amount, and when it is refundable.
Group size limits and what goes to a person.
Whether children’s ages change the price or the room type.

AeroChat follows these as written. It does not quote a rate Cloudbeds has not returned.

The result to expect

Guests who ask outside office hours get a price and a booking that night. More of them book direct instead of moving to an online travel agency. Measure it with your own numbers: direct bookings created from chat, and bookings made outside office hours, for a month before and after you start.

Next: booking changes and pre-arrival requests with Cloudbeds. See also the hotel recipe for room availability questions.

Take your first booking in chat

Paste the recipe, add your Cloudbeds API key and connect Airwallex, then message your own number asking for a room next weekend.

Start your 7-day free trial. No credit card needed.

On Shopify? Install AeroChat from the Shopify App Store.