Booking Rooms by Phone (Pilot)

With voice booking, your Voice AI Assistant does more than quote rates: it books the room in your property management system (PMS) while the guest is still on the phone. You can also have it secure each booking with a card. The assistant texts the guest a secure link, stays on the line while they enter their card on their own phone, and confirms the booking once the card is saved. The card number is never spoken aloud, recorded, or written to a transcript.

Pilot program. Voice booking is open to a small group of pilot properties, and we're adding PMS and payment providers based on demand. Whatever systems you use, tell us — we'll work with you directly to get you set up. The HelloShift team switches it on for you; there is no self-serve setting yet. To join, see Joining the pilot below.

How a phone booking works

1. The caller asks about a stay. The assistant checks live availability and rates from your PMS and reads out the options (labeled A, B, C so they are easy to pick by voice).

2. The caller chooses an option. The assistant takes their first and last name and email address, and confirms the phone number.

3. Right before booking, the assistant re-checks that the room is still available at the quoted price.

4. The reservation is created in your PMS, and the assistant reads the confirmation number back digit by digit.

The assistant only says "booked" once your PMS has accepted the reservation. If something prevents the booking (the room just sold, the price changed), it tells the caller and texts them your booking link instead, so you don't lose the sale. If your PMS is slow to answer, the assistant says it is still confirming and doesn't read out a confirmation number; HelloShift finishes the check in the background, and if the booking didn't go through, the guest gets the booking link. That fallback uses the Request Booking automation with the Send Booking Link action; see AI Automations.

Securing the booking with a card

You choose whether phone bookings need a card:

Card guarantee, step by step

1. The assistant creates the reservation in your PMS and tells the caller how long the room is held.

2. While the caller is still on the line, they get a text like: "Hi Ana, your room at The Grand Hotel is held until 3:45 PM. Secure it with a card here: [link] Never reply with your card number." The text is sent in English, Spanish, Portuguese or French, matching the guest's language.

3. The link opens a secure, mobile-friendly page with your property's branding. The guest reviews what they are authorizing (Reservation Guarantee Only), signs, and enters their card in your payment provider's secure card field. The card is saved, not charged.

4. As soon as the card is saved, the booking is confirmed.

5. If the card isn't saved before the hold ends, HelloShift cancels the reservation in your PMS and the room goes back on sale. The link stops working.

Hold length: 30 minutes by default; we can set it anywhere up to 24 hours. For same-day arrivals, the hold always ends by 11:00 PM property time, and calls after 11:00 PM for that night aren't held. The assistant texts the booking link instead.

Mid-call card capture

Mid-call capture is an optional add-on to the card guarantee. Instead of leaving the guest to finish later, the assistant:

• Tells the caller the secure link has just been texted, and offers to stay on the line while they fill it in.

• Checks in now and then while the guest types ("Take your time — I'm still here").

• When the guest says they're done, checks the card status and says the booking is secured and confirmed. It never says this until the card has actually been saved.

• If the card was declined or couldn't be saved, tells the caller the front desk will follow up. If the guest would rather do it later, it reminds them when the hold ends.

Without mid-call capture, the link is still texted during the call; the guest just completes it after hanging up.

Good to know: to give guests time to type, a property with mid-call capture keeps a silent line open for up to 5 minutes before the assistant hangs up. This applies to every call at that property, so an abandoned call can run a few minutes longer than usual.

Card security (PCI)

• The assistant never asks for a card number by voice. If a caller starts reading one out, it stops them and points them to the texted link.

• The card is entered on the guest's own phone, in your payment provider's hosted, encrypted card field. Card details never pass through the phone call, the AI, or HelloShift's servers.

• HelloShift stores only the masked card (brand and last four digits), a payment token from your provider, and the guest's signed authorization.

• If a caller reads a card number aloud anyway, it is removed from the call transcript and summary and the recording is withheld. See Card Numbers Are Removed From Transcripts in Voice AI Assistant.

What your team sees

• Guest conversation: booking updates appear in the guest's thread, for example "Room held by phone until Nov 2, 3:45 PM pending guarantee" and "Booked by phone: Deluxe King, 2026-11-02 to 2026-11-04, confirmation 1234567, $340.00 total."

• Your PMS: the reservation appears right away. Where your PMS supports it, it is labeled as a HelloShift voice booking, so phone bookings are easy to find and report on.

• Authorizations page: the guest's signed card guarantee with the masked card, the same record used for Credit Card Authorization Forms.

• Voice Call note: the full transcript and summary of the call.

Front-desk tasks

When a booking needs a person, HelloShift creates a front-desk task:

Charging a no-show

The guest's card is saved with your payment provider as a card on file. It isn't charged when it is saved. To charge a no-show under your cancellation policy, charge the saved card from your payment provider's dashboard. Charging no-shows from inside HelloShift is on our roadmap.

Limits and safeguards

• The assistant only offers rooms your PMS shows as available at your rates, and re-checks both right before booking.

• One booking per call, and one booking in progress per phone number at a time; anything more goes to the front desk. Up to 10 phone bookings per hour per property (adjustable); past that, callers get the booking link.

• Callers with a withheld (blocked) number can't book by phone, because the confirmation and card link need a number to text.

• One room per booking. Group and multi-room bookings, and changes or cancellations to existing reservations, still go to your staff.

• HelloShift doesn't send a separate confirmation email or text yet, and where possible we turn off the PMS's own confirmation email for phone bookings, so a guest isn't confirmed for a hold that may be released. The guest hears the confirmation number on the call; send your usual confirmation once the booking is confirmed if you want one.

Pilot requirements

• The Voice AI Assistant switched on (Guest+ plan).

• Your PMS connected to HelloShift.

• For the card guarantee: a payment provider connected to HelloShift.

• The Request Booking automation with Send Booking Link switched on, as the fallback when a booking can't be completed by phone.

Using a different PMS or payment provider? We're adding systems now, prioritized by pilot interest. Get in touch and we'll tell you what your setup needs and work with you to bring it on. Some systems need a quick one-time setting on your side, such as a booking source for HelloShift in your PMS.

Joining the pilot

Email support@helloshift.com with your property name, the PMS and payment provider you use, and these choices:

1. Card guarantee: no card required, or card guarantee.

2. Hold length if you use the card guarantee (30 minutes by default).

3. Mid-call capture: on or off.

We'll set it up, walk through a test booking with you, and then switch it on for your callers. You can ask us to switch voice booking off at any time; callers will get the booking link again.

FAQ

Does it work with my PMS and payment provider?

We're rolling voice booking out system by system, and pilot interest decides what comes next. Email us with your PMS and payment provider. We'll tell you where yours stands and work with you directly to get it running.

Is the guest's card charged when they secure the booking?

No. The card is saved on file with your payment provider to guarantee the reservation. Nothing is charged unless your team charges it.

What if the guest never enters a card?

The hold ends at the deadline, HelloShift cancels the reservation in your PMS, and the room goes back on sale.

Can the assistant take the card number over the phone?

No, and it never will. Taking cards by voice would put card numbers into the recording, transcript and AI. The texted link keeps card entry on your payment provider's secure page.

Does it work for callers who don't speak English?

Yes. The assistant speaks the caller's language, and the card link text is sent in English, Spanish, Portuguese or French.

What if the guest calls from a landline or wants the link on another phone?

The link is texted to the number they called from. If they give a different mobile number, or the text can't be delivered, the hold still stands and your team gets a task with the link to send another way.