Guest Communication Templates for Short-Term Rentals (Steal These)

Every experienced host has a collection of messages they've refined over dozens of stays. The wording that gets check-in questions answered before guests ask them. The mid-stay note that catches problems while there's still time to fix them. The checkout message that generates reviews without feeling like a solicitation.

If you're newer to hosting — or if you've been winging it and want to systematize — this post gives you a working set of templates to start from. They're direct, practical, and built around what guests actually need to know at each stage. Customize the specifics for your property, but the structure holds.

Why templates beat improvising

Speed is the obvious benefit. A guest who books at 11 PM and gets a confirmation in under two minutes feels more confident about their choice than one who waits until morning. But consistency is equally important.

When you improvise, you forget things. One guest gets check-in instructions in the booking confirmation; the next gets them the morning of arrival. One guest is told about the parking quirk; the next finds out when they're circling the block. Templates ensure every guest gets the same quality of information regardless of how busy you are or who on your team sends the message.

There's also a review angle. Guests who feel well-informed and cared for leave better reviews. It's not about being effusive — it's about reducing the friction points that generate mentions in 3-star reviews: "couldn't find the lockbox," "didn't know about the parking," "no one checked in on us."

Booking confirmation

Send this within a few minutes of booking confirmation. The goal is to make the guest feel good about the booking and set the expectation that information will keep coming.

Hi , thanks for booking ! We're looking forward to having you from to .

A few quick details:

Check-in: — we'll send full access instructions 3 days before arrival.

Checkout:

Address:

In the meantime, feel free to reply here with any questions. We're responsive and happy to help.

—

What to personalize: If the property has a specific quirk worth noting up front (difficult parking, stairs, a strict quiet-hours policy), mention it here. Better to set the expectation now than have it become a complaint later.

Pre-arrival (3 days out)

This is the most important message in the sequence. Three days out is enough time for the guest to plan, but recent enough that the details are top of mind. Include everything they need to get in and get settled.

Hi , your stay at is coming up on — can't wait to have you!

Getting in:

The property is at .

Access code for the front door: (active from on your arrival day).

Parking:

Good to know:

WiFi name: | Password:

The full house guide is at — it has everything from appliance instructions to local restaurant recommendations.

If anything comes up between now and your arrival, reply here and I'll get back to you quickly.

See you soon,

What to personalize: The "good to know" bullets should be the two or three things that first-time guests always ask about or struggle with at your specific property. Think about the messages you've received after check-in and work backward.

Check-in day

Send this on the morning of arrival, ideally around 8–9 AM. It's a short confirmation that things are ready, with a quick path to reach you if anything goes wrong.

Morning, ! Your stay at starts today — the property is ready for you.

Check-in is anytime after . Your door code is .

If you hit any snags with access or anything looks off when you arrive, text or reply here and I'll sort it out right away. Have a great stay!

—

Keep this one short. The guest already has the full details from the pre-arrival message. This is just a human touch that says "we're ready and paying attention."

Mid-stay check-in

Send this on day two or three of the stay (for stays of 4+ nights). For shorter stays, skip it or send it on the second morning if it's a two-night booking.

Hi , hope the first couple of days at have been great!

Just checking in — is everything working well for you? If there's anything we can do to make the rest of your stay better, reply here and we'll take care of it.

—

Why this message matters: Most maintenance issues and guest complaints go unmentioned until checkout — and then they show up in the review instead of being resolved. A mid-stay check-in gives the guest an easy opening to raise something small before it becomes a grievance. Guests also consistently rate hosts who check in mid-stay higher on "communication" in OTA reviews, even if they have nothing to report.

Checkout

Send this the morning of checkout, a couple of hours before the checkout time. It covers the logistics and plants a gentle seed for the review — without being transactional about it.

Good morning, ! Just a reminder that checkout is by today.

Checkout is easy — just:

Make sure the front door is locked when you leave (the code will deactivate at ).

Leave used towels in the bathroom and dishes in the sink or dishwasher — the cleaning team will handle the rest.

It was a pleasure having you. If you have a moment after your trip, we'd really appreciate a review — it helps a lot and we always read them.

Safe travels,

What to personalize: The "any_specific_checkout_step" placeholder is for things like "put the trash by the curb if it's Monday" or "leave the pool gate latched." Keep it to one item — a long checkout checklist feels punitive.

Make them automatic

Writing good templates is the first step. The second step is making sure they actually go out — consistently, on time, even when you're managing eight properties and someone just texted about a maintenance emergency.

Manual sending works until it doesn't. A missed pre-arrival message means a guest shows up without a door code. A skipped checkout note is a review you didn't prompt. The more properties you manage, the more these gaps compound.

See Pomello's features for how automated message scheduling works alongside your existing Hostfully setup — including variable substitution for guest name, property name, dates, and access codes, so the messages feel personal even when they go out automatically.

For more on why this kind of systematic communication is part of a larger operational pattern, see our post on what hosts still do in spreadsheets — and how to close those gaps.