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Pre-arrival guest forms for B&Bs and small hotels

Pre-arrival automation sends each guest a short form a week before their stay, asking for arrival time, dietary needs, car registration and anything else you should know. The answers become a daily sheet for reception, housekeeping and the kitchen.

An example of how the studio would build it. No live services are connected.

From a booking confirmation to a team that knows who is coming.

  1. Step 01

    Booking received

    Read the confirmation email from your booking system or channel manager for the guest’s name, dates and room.

  2. Step 02

    Form sent

    A week before arrival, email a short Typeform asking for arrival time, dietary needs, car registration and any special occasion.

  3. Step 03

    Reminder sent

    If there is no answer a few days before arrival, send one gentle reminder and then stop.

  4. Step 04

    Answers collected

    Add the answers to a Google Sheet against the booking, flagging allergies and late arrivals.

  5. Step 05

    Daily sheet shared

    Each morning, give housekeeping, breakfast and reception a sheet of the day’s arrivals and what they asked for.

The result

Guests feel expected, and the team isn’t surprised at check-in.

Each booking gets one form and at most one reminder. Allergy answers are shown in full to the kitchen, and anything that needs a reply goes to a person rather than an automatic answer.

Before we connect it.

Where this is useful

Useful for B&Bs, guesthouses, small hotels, glamping sites and holiday lets where the team learns about allergies and late arrivals only at the door. A sensible first version sends the form and builds the daily sheet, with staff replying personally to anything guests ask.

What we need to connect

  1. 01Access to the inbox where booking confirmations arrive, or to your booking system or channel manager where it offers an API.
  2. 02The questions you want to ask, kept short, and where in the building each answer is needed.
  3. 03A Google Sheet or similar for daily arrivals, and the person who checks it each morning.

What needs careful handling

Guests who book through online travel agents often have relay email addresses, so messages stick to the stay itself and follow that platform’s rules on contacting guests. Bookings change or cancel, so a change email updates the existing row and a cancellation stops any reminder. Some answers need a reply, such as a request for early check-in, so they are flagged to a person instead of being answered automatically.

Questions people ask.

Will guests mind being asked questions before they arrive?

Most pre-arrival questions are ones guests would otherwise be asked at the door, and a short form is quicker for everyone. Keeping it to a handful of questions and one reminder keeps it helpful rather than pushy.

Can the form offer upgrades or extras?

It can mention extras such as a picnic hamper or late check-out, but anything that changes the bill should be confirmed by a person. That keeps pricing and availability in your booking system, where they belong.

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