Automate Guest Reminders with Yonder’s New Pre-Trip SMS Feature!

Busy tour operators and experience providers know that one of the trickiest parts of the job isn’t the booking itself... it’s making sure guests show up on time, are prepared, and don’t have questions last-minute!

To help with this, Yonder now offers Pre-Trip SMS Messages - a simple, automatic way to send your guests a text message ahead of their experience. Available across North America only.

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Yonder's Pre-Trip SMS Messages lets you automatically send customised SMS reminders to your guests before their booked trip!

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You pick the timeframe (e.g., 24 hours, 48 hours prior), write the message, choose which product(s) the message applies to, and Yonder will handle the rest. Fewer manual follow-ups, fewer guest mishaps, and a smoother guest experience.

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Here are some of the major benefits:

• Better guest preparedness: A well-timed reminder can help guests remember what to bring, when to arrive, where to meet, etc. This means fewer questions, fewer no-shows, and less confusion.
• Time savings for your team: Instead of manually emailing or SMS’ing each guest before every outing, you set it up once and let automation do the job.
• Improved guest experience: Guests appreciate the nudge and the clarity. It sets the tone for professionalism and reliability.
• Reduced stress & mistakes: When you know all your guests are being reminded, you reduce the last-minute scramble or need for check-in phone calls.
• Opportunity to upsell or inform: The reminder message can also include helpful info (weather, meeting point, what to bring) or a gentle upsell (e.g., optional extra gear).

How to set it up:

If you have the Reviews product bundle, you're good to go!

1. In the Yonder sidebar, navigate to Pre-Trip SMS → Setup tab.
2. Click + Add New to create a new template.
3. Give the template a name.
4. Choose when (how long before the booking) the SMS will be sent.
5. Write your message content — you can use variable tags (e.g., guest name) for personalisation.
6. Toggle “Enable this template to start sending SMS messages”.
7. Click “Next: Select Products”. Choose which of your products/trips this reminder will apply to.
8. Click Save, review the legal compliance notice, then Save again.

A few additional notes:

• This feature currently works only for US/Canada (+1) phone numbers.
• If your connected booking system doesn’t support the Pre-Trip SMS integration, Yonder will prompt you to adjust your settings.
• If you’d like replies from guests to be visible in Yonder’s Inbox, you’ll need to set up the SMS Inbox Channel integration. Otherwise, messages are sent from a shared Yonder number and replies won’t come back to your system.

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Things to watch / best practices

Here are some tips to make sure you get the most from Pre-Trip SMS, and avoid common pitfalls:

• Timing is everything: Choose a send-time that’s helpful for the guest (e.g., a day before, or 12 hours before) rather than too early or too late.
• Personalise the content: Use variable tags so the message feels tailored. Something like “Hi [Guest Name], we’re looking forward to your trip tomorrow at [Time]…” is more engaging.
• Include key info: Meeting location, time, what to bring, contact number, weather note - whatever helps reduce guest anxiety.
• Keep it concise: SMS has a limited character count; stick to the essentials and use a clear call-to-action if needed.
• Ensure compliance: Guests must have consented to receive SMS, and your message must comply with regulations (e.g., opt-out instructions). Yonder reminds users this is required.
• Test first: Before enabling the template broadly, test the message, timing, and product selection with an internal booking to ensure it works as expected.
• Monitor usage: Yonder plans include a monthly SMS send allowance (shared across Pre-Trip SMS and other SMS features). For example: Growth plan = 500 SMS sends/month. Once you hit your limit, SMS sending pauses. Yonder sends alerts at 75%, 95%, and 100% usage.
• Use in conjunction with other touchpoints: SMS pre-trip reminders work best when combined with other channels (email, phone, in-app messages) for a seamless guest experience.

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Who this feature is ideal for:

If you’re running tours, experiences, rentals, or any operation where guests book a scheduled slot and you want them to arrive prepared, this is a strong feature! Specifically:

• Operators with moderate to high booking volume (where manual reminders are time-consuming).
• Businesses that frequently see “What time are we meeting?”, “Where do I park?”, “What should I bring?” - and want to proactively reduce those questions.
• Teams keen to elevate their professionalism and guest experience without adding manual workload.
• Operations in the US/Canada region (for now) — note the phone-number limitation.

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The Pre-Trip SMS feature from Yonder represents a smart move: automating a high-value touchpoint (pre‐experience communication) that can save time, reduce errors, and elevate guest satisfaction.

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If you’re not yet on Yonder, request a demo to see what other tricks we have up our sleeve!

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