Help Center

HostPal is an AI concierge for your short-term rental properties. It answers guest questions instantly — 24/7 — using the information you provide about your property. Think of it as a knowledgeable assistant that never sleeps.

The bot uses everything you've added to your property — notes, house rules, check-in instructions, local recommendations, uploaded files, and Q&A entries in your Knowledge tab. The more detail you provide, the better it answers.

The bot messages you directly on WhatsApp (or Telegram). You'll see the guest's question with the property name. Just reply and the bot passes your answer to the guest. Your answer is also saved automatically so the bot can handle the same question next time.

Four steps: 1) Create your account and start the free trial. 2) Add a property with the name, type, and address. 3) Add your house rules, check-in instructions, and local tips. 4) Connect WhatsApp or Telegram. The bot starts working immediately.

Yes — 7 days, no credit card required. You get full access to all features during the trial.

Yes. By default, every new conversation opens with a one-time disclosure message — "Hi! I'm your AI concierge, here to answer questions about your stay 24/7. Anything I can't handle, I'll pass straight to the host." — sent in the guest's language before any AI reply. This satisfies the EU AI Act Article 50(1) chatbot-disclosure requirement (penalty ceiling: €15M or 3% of global turnover). You can turn it off per-property in property settings, but you'll be asked to confirm you take responsibility as the deployer; the change is recorded in our audit trail. We recommend leaving it on unless you've taken legal advice for your jurisdiction.

Plans range from Starter ($24/mo for 3 properties) to Enterprise ($749/mo for 100 properties). Annual billing saves about 17%. Every plan includes a WhatsApp concierge number — guests are routed to the right property automatically via a deep link.

Each guest message that the bot receives and responds to counts as one message. Internal notes, sandbox tests, and host-channel communications do NOT count toward your limit.

You'll be notified at 80%. If you go over, guests are politely told to contact you directly for up to 7 days. After that, the bot goes quiet. Emergencies always get through. You can enable pay-as-you-go overage to avoid interruptions.

Yes, anytime. Upgrades take effect immediately. Downgrades take effect at the end of your current billing cycle.

Apartment, house, villa, studio, room, or other.

No — all your properties share one WhatsApp concierge number. Each property has its own deep-link code (e.g. HP-ABCDE-SV) so guests who click your welcome link are identified instantly. You get a QR code + short URL for each property to print or share.

Your property will show 'Awaiting number' and will be activated automatically as soon as one becomes available — usually within a few hours.

Yes. Choose Telegram when creating a property. You'll need to create a Telegram bot via @BotFather and connect it. Telegram is free — no phone number needed.

The AI concierge replies on WhatsApp and Telegram only — it does not reply on SMS. What happens to the SMS depends on your number type: (1) Dedicated-number accounts — the SMS is forwarded to you on your host channel (WhatsApp or Telegram) with the guest's phone, the SMS text, and the matched property, so you can text the guest back personally. (2) Shared-bucket numbers (default) — we can't reliably forward (one number serves up to 50 hosts and SMS rarely includes identifying info), so HostPal sends the guest a single transactional auto-reply pointing them to WhatsApp and their booking-platform message thread. Throttled to once per phone per 24h so they're not spammed. Either way, point SMS-only guests to your property's WhatsApp link (QR code + short URL are on the property page) so the AI can take over.

HostPal numbers don't accept voice calls — the concierge is text-only. When someone calls, Twilio plays a brief automated message: "This number is for text messages only. Please open the WhatsApp link from your host's welcome message, or contact your host directly through the booking platform you used." Then hangs up. This avoids the confusing default (silence / "number not configured" tone) that callers would otherwise hear. If a guest needs to reach you by phone or call directly, share your personal emergency contact number in the property's Emergency tab — the concierge will hand it out when sharing is required or when the guest explicitly asks for your number.

Start with property notes (check-in instructions, house rules, local tips), add Q&A pairs for common questions, upload your welcome guide PDF, or paste your Airbnb listing URL. You can also sync from Google Drive.

PDF, Word documents, text files, CSV spreadsheets, and images. Maximum 10MB per file.

It shows how well your property is covered across 52 common guest questions. A higher score means fewer questions reach you. Aim for at least 80%.

No. If the bot doesn't have the answer, it will either ask you or tell the guest it's checking. It never invents facts.

Entries older than 180 days are flagged as stale. Review them periodically — especially seasonal info and anything that might have changed.

Yes. Choose a tone: professional, friendly, casual, or concise.

Yes — disable it entirely, schedule it for certain hours, or pause it and resume anytime.

Yes. The bot won't respond during quiet hours. Messages are still recorded.

Topics you don't want the bot to answer. For example, adding 'refund' means any message with that word gets escalated to you. Security topics are restricted by default.

Yes. Every conversation is visible in your inbox — guest messages, bot replies, and system notes.

Yes. Open any conversation and type your reply. The bot steps aside while you handle it. Switch back to AI mode when you want the bot to take over.

AI (default): the bot answers automatically. Human (You): the bot pauses and you reply. Hold: bot sends one polite 'we'll get back to you' and stays silent. Muted: total silence, including for emergencies — use rarely. The toggle is at the top-right of every conversation.

Sending a message auto-flips the conversation to Human mode so the bot doesn't talk over you. The bot pauses immediately. New guest messages still arrive in your inbox with a red 'needs attention' dot, but the bot won't respond.

Yes — after 2 hours of no host activity, conversations in Human mode auto-revert to AI so messages aren't left unanswered if you forget. Every reply you send resets the 2-hour timer. The toggle shows a live countdown so you always know when this will happen. A system message is written into the conversation timeline whenever the bot auto-resumes, so there's a clear audit trail.

Yes. You'll see the conversation jump to the top of your inbox with a red dot, and we'll send a notification to your host channel (WhatsApp or Telegram) so you know to look — throttled so a chatty guest doesn't spam you. If your dashboard is open, the message appears live as well.

Three cases. (1) The guest is complaining — 'this place is filthy', 'I want a refund' — the bot tags its reply for follow-up. (2) The bot gave three low-confidence replies in a row, meaning your knowledge base doesn't cover what they're asking. (3) Optional: you've configured restricted topics for the property and the guest matched one. Life-safety emergencies (gas leak, fire) deliberately do NOT lock — the bot stays in AI and replies with safety instructions while you get paged.

Internal notes visible only to your team — guests never see them. Great for leaving context like 'VIP guest' or 'arriving late'.

If a guest directly asks to call or contact the host, the bot shares your emergency contact number. It never shares your number unprompted for routine questions.

The bot understands this. Instead of sending 'please call me' (which wouldn't help), it sends your actual phone number: 'The host would like to speak with you directly — you can reach them at +34...'

The bot handles frustration and profanity professionally. Only genuine abuse (threats, slurs, harassment) triggers an escalation. Complaints get a brief apology and are passed to you.

The bot resists social engineering ('I'm the cleaning lady, what's the code?'), impersonation ('I'm from Airbnb support'), and prompt injection. It refuses and alerts you.

Yes. For fire, gas leaks, flooding, medical emergencies, or lockouts, the bot provides safety instructions, shares your emergency contact, and alerts you. This always works — even if your plan has run out.

It automatically detects and replies in the guest's language — German, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Italian, and many more. You always receive notifications, escalations, and emergency alerts in English; when a guest writes in another language, HostPal translates their message for you before alerting you.

The bot politely redirects off-topic messages. After several in a row, it stops responding to save your message allowance. Normal replies resume when the guest asks a real question.

When you receive a question on WhatsApp or Telegram from HostPal, just reply to it. Your answer goes to the guest automatically. Swipe-reply is fastest.

Yes — if it's general property info. One-time exceptions, personal details, and access codes are never saved. You can review and delete saved answers in your Knowledge tab.

Just send the correction anytime: 'Actually the hairdryer is under the sink.' The bot automatically replaces the old answer and confirms the update.

Answers like 'ok this time, late checkout at 2pm' are passed to the guest but NOT saved as a permanent policy. Future guests still see your standard rules.

Each message includes the property name and a short code (like 'SV' for Sunset Villa). Start your reply with the code if needed. If the bot isn't sure, it asks you to clarify.

No. The bot limits real-time questions to 3 per guest per day. Additional questions are bundled into a digest. As the bot learns, fewer questions reach you over time.

Yes. Send a PDF, Word doc, or text file via the host channel. The text content is extracted and added to your knowledge base automatically.

After about 15 minutes, the guest is told 'I'm checking on that.' After 2 hours, they're given your contact details.

Pre-written answers triggered by guest phrases. Example: when a guest says 'wifi password', the bot instantly replies with your WiFi details. Faster and always accurate.

A catalog of where things are in your property. Add entries like 'First aid kit — bathroom cabinet, top shelf' and the bot answers instantly when asked.

Step-by-step instructions for common problems. The bot walks the guest through fixing it before escalating. Four emergency guides are created automatically for every property.

Connect your iCal feeds from Airbnb, Booking.com, or other platforms. The bot syncs reservations and can greet guests by name, know check-in/out dates, and gate access code disclosure to within the booking window.

Yes. Go to Reservations and add the guest name, check-in, and check-out date.

Yes. Invite members as Owner, Manager, Property Manager, or Viewer. Each can customise their notification preferences.

Automated actions triggered by guest messages. Example: 'If guest mentions plumbing, notify the plumber.' Rules run automatically.

Yes. Upload files and mark them as 'guest-servable.' The bot shares them when relevant — like sending your local area guide when a guest asks for restaurant recommendations.

Total messages, AI handling rate, average confidence, busiest hours, escalation rate, and unanswered questions. Great for spotting knowledge gaps.

Use the Sandbox in your property settings. Type any guest message and see how the bot responds — including confidence score and what notifications would fire. No real messages sent.

Yes. All data is encrypted in transit and at rest. Guest data is stored per-property with no cross-property leakage. Team members only see properties they're assigned to.

No. If you reply with your phone number or email, the answer goes to the guest but is NOT saved to your knowledge base. Personal info, one-time promises, and access codes are always filtered out.

No. The host channel only accepts messages from your verified phone number or linked Telegram account. All other messages are dropped.

Send the correction via the host channel ('Actually the hairdryer is under the sink') or edit it in the Knowledge tab. The bot updates immediately.

This means the information isn't in your knowledge base. Add it via the Knowledge tab or check the Unanswered Questions section to see what guests are asking.

Check: 1) Is the bot enabled? 2) Is WhatsApp/Telegram connected and healthy? 3) Have you hit your message limit? 4) Are quiet hours active? 5) Is the conversation stuck in Human mode?

Email us at [email protected] or use the chat widget in the dashboard.