As a recreation entrepreneur at heart, you often have one goal: to provide your guests with an unforgettable experience. When they leave your park satisfied, your mission is accomplished. An automated guest journey contributes to guest satisfaction in many ways. We have written a blog series so you can create the ultimate guest journey. In this part, we zoom in on phase 3 of the guest journey: Booking.

Phase 3: Booking

The booking phase is when interest is converted into an actual reservation. For many guests, this is also the first direct contact with your hotel or accommodation. A smooth, intuitive and user-friendly booking process is therefore essential to leave a positive impression and convince guests. In this blog, we discuss how you can provide a seamless booking experience with the right strategies and automations.

Payment methods: Simple and flexible

One of the most important factors in booking is offering a variety of payment methods. Guests from different regions and countries have different preferences: from credit cards and PayPal to iDEAL and other local options. Offering flexibility not only increases the chances of conversion, but also builds trust. That way, the booking becomes reality faster.

Practical tips

• Make sure your booking system supports multiple payment methods.
• Consider letting guests choose between direct payment or payment on arrival.

Always an alternative: Availability and flexibility

A major frustration for guests is determining a suitable date, only to discover that it's not available. By deploying a smart reservation system that automatically offers alternatives, you retain potential guests.

How does this work?

• Automatically show available dates near the selected period.
• Offer similar rooms or accommodations if the desired type is not available.

Upselling: Increase the value of each booking

Upselling plays a key role in maximising revenue during the booking process. By making smart suggestions, you can motivate guests to opt for extras such as breakfast, wellness packages or a room upgrade. This not only generates additional revenue, but also gives guests the option to make their stay their own. By offering this automatically and already during booking, the guest doesn't have to worry about it during their vacation.

Automatic emails: Confirmation emails and payment reminders

Clear communication is crucial to reassure the guest and prepare them well for their stay, especially after booking. Automated emails play a key role in this.

Important emails:

• Confirmation email: Immediately after booking, the guest receives a confirmation with all relevant details.
• Payment reminders: For reservations that are not paid immediately, a friendly reminder is essential.
• Complete guest details: Has the booker not yet supplied all guest information? If so, send an automatic reminder. Whether requested by local authorities or not, record all guest information. Consider date of birth, (first) name, passport number etc.
• Arrival information: Send an email a few days before arrival with practical information, such as check-in details and local tips.
  
  

Group bookings: Make complex reservations simple

Whereas group bookings used to have to be made mostly over the phone, you can now offer them on your website. Let your visitors easily book multiple accommodations at once, giving the guests more freedom and optimising the use of your offer. You can, for example, accommodate larger groups, such as family reunions or associations, with several 4-person accommodations.

Conclusion

The booking process is the foundation of an automated guest journey. By investing in flexibility, personalisation and automation, you can not only make your guests' lives easier, but also increase your own operational efficiency. This has a positive impact on your employees' job satisfaction that they reflect back to your guests.

Did the guest book? Top! Now you enter the pre-arrival phase and it's time to make sure the guest can enjoy pre-arrival fun!