Overview

Message templates are reusable, variable-driven messages you attach to checklist steps so the right guest communication goes out at the right time, without you typing it. ArrivHQ ships a starter set under Messages → Templates; you can copy any of them, customise the wording, and add your own from scratch.

A template by itself does nothing. It only fires when a checklist step references it and the step's schedule arrives. Editing the template later changes future sends; in-flight scheduled sends use whatever the template said at scheduling time.

How it works

Find them under Messages

Top nav → Messages → Templates pill. The page is split into:

  • System templates — shipped by ArrivHQ, read-only. Use the "Copy" button to make a customisable copy in your account.
  • My templates — your active customised templates.
  • Archived — collapsed by default; restorable.

Edit a template

Open any of your own templates to edit:

  • Phase — categorises the template (Pre-Arrival, Day-of Arrival, Mid-Stay Daily, Check-Out, Post-Stay, Custom). The picker on the checklist-step editor pre-filters templates by the step's phase, so a step you mark "Pre-Arrival" defaults to your Pre-Arrival templates. Phase does not schedule the message.
  • Name — internal label so you can find it.
  • Subject — used when the channel is email.
  • Body — the message itself; supports {{variable}} placeholders.
  • Variables — sidebar of common placeholders. Click any to append to the body.

The full-width Live preview below the editor renders the template against one of your recent reservations so you see exactly what the guest will read. It updates as you type. Use the picker to render against a different reservation, or pick "Show placeholders only" if you want the raw template view.

Connect a template to a checklist step

This is where the actual sending happens.

  1. Open a checklist under Checklists and add a step of type Send guest message (canned).
  2. The step editor exposes:
    • Phase — usually matches the template's phase, but the template picker accepts any phase.
    • Anchor — check_in or check_out. This is what decides when the message fires.
    • Offset (hours) — how far before or after the anchor. -24 = 24 hours before; +2 = two hours after.
    • Local time — optional. Pins the send to a wall-clock hour in the property's timezone (e.g. always 9 AM local even if the anchor falls mid-morning).
    • Channel — email, SMS, or both.
    • Require approval — if on, the message lands in your outbox and waits for your tap before going out.
  3. Save the step. The worker schedules the send for every new and in-flight reservation that hits the step's status criteria.

So a "Pre-Arrival" template attached to a step with anchor=check_in, offset_hours=-24 becomes a message that goes out 24 hours before the guest's check-in, regardless of the template's phase. The phase classification is just for organising your library.

Auto-attach card on new checklists

When you create a brand-new guest-audience checklist and your plan supports messaging, an Auto-attach the 5 messaging steps card appears. One click stamps the standard five-phase sequence (pre-arrival → day-of → mid-stay → check-out → post-stay) onto the checklist using the matching default templates. You can edit each step afterwards, swap in your own templates, or delete any you don't want.

The card is a UI shortcut — it doesn't auto-attach behind the scenes. You always see and approve each step it creates.

Limits & requirements

  • Templates are available on the Host and Portfolio plans. They are not available on the Comply plan.
  • System templates are read-only — copy them to customise.
  • The live preview requires at least one reservation in your account. New templates surface a "Save once to enable preview" hint until the first save creates the template ID the preview endpoint needs.
  • Variables that don't exist in the resolved variable map render as empty strings. The preview surfaces an "Unknown variables" warning so you can catch typos before the message goes out.
  • Channel + send timing live on the checklist step, not the template. The same template can be attached to multiple steps with different anchors and offsets.

FAQ

If I create a "Pre-Arrival" template, does it automatically send before every check-in? No. A template by itself never sends anything. You have to add a checklist step that references it, and the step's anchor + offset decide when the message fires. The "Pre-Arrival" label only categorises the template and makes it the default in the step's template picker when the step's phase is "Pre-Arrival".

Can I attach the same template to two different steps? Yes. The same template can power a "24h before check-in" reminder on one checklist and a "2h after check-out" thank-you on another. The timing lives on each step independently.

What happens if I edit a template that's already scheduled to send? In-flight scheduled sends use the template as it was at scheduling time. Edits affect future sends only. To reach in-flight runs, edit the checklist step (or wait for the next reservation cycle).

Why does the preview show empty strings where I expected guest data? The preview resolves variables from the reservation you pick in the picker. If that reservation is missing the field (no parking notes set on the property, no check-out time set on the reservation, etc.), the variable renders empty. The preview's "Unknown variables" warning catches misspelled placeholder names; missing data is silently empty.

Can a guest reply to a template-driven message? Yes, the same way they reply to any message. Replies land in the property's message thread under Messages.