WhatsApp for Travel Agencies & Tour Operators in India: Enquiries, Itineraries & Follow-ups

Most agencies do not lose customers because of price. They lose them to silence:

• The 11pm enquiry. A family compares three agencies on a late evening. The first to reply often gets the conversation.
• One salesperson, many chats. Quotes go out and nobody remembers to follow up.
• Quotes sent and never chased. A PDF itinerary sits unanswered because the follow-up was never scheduled.
• Documents buried in a chat. A passport scan sent three weeks ago is hard to find on departure week.

The market behind these enquiries is large. According to IBEF, India's tourism and hospitality revenue is projected to exceed US$59 billion by 2028, and domestic visits are expected to rise from 2.5 billion in 2024 to 5.2 billion in 2030. WhatsApp is also where many of these customers already are; see DataReportal's Digital 2025 India report for reach figures.

A travel quote is rarely read by one person. It gets forwarded to parents, cousins and the whole group before anyone books. Writing the message in the language the family reads makes that forwarding easier.

You can write your template message content in English or Hindi. This applies to the content of the messages you send. This guide does not claim that the GrowOnBot dashboard or inbox is available in Hindi.

Example enquiry acknowledgement template

EnglishHi {{1}}, thank you for your enquiry about {{2}}. Our travel counsellor will share the package details shortly. Reply here with your preferred travel dates.

हिन्दीनमस्ते {{1}}, {{2}} के बारे में पूछताछ के लिए धन्यवाद। हमारे ट्रैवल काउंसलर जल्द ही पैकेज की जानकारी भेजेंगे। कृपया अपनी पसंदीदा यात्रा तिथियाँ यहीं बताएं।

Each language version is submitted to Meta as its own template, so create and get approval for both.

Enquiry to instant reply with your package list

An automatic first reply acknowledges the enquiry and sets expectations, even outside office hours. This works without a CRM, for example from a new row in a sheet.

Quotation follow-up on a date

Put a follow-up date in a column of your enquiry sheet. When that date arrives, a follow-up template can go to the customer.

Example quotation follow-up template

EnglishHi {{1}}, just checking whether you had a chance to look at the {{2}} itinerary we shared. Happy to adjust it for your group.

हिन्दीनमस्ते {{1}}, क्या आपने हमारे द्वारा भेजा गया {{2}} का इटिनरेरी देखा? आपके ग्रुप के अनुसार इसमें बदलाव करने में हमें खुशी होगी।

Document collection into the shared inbox

Ask travellers to send passport, ID or visa paperwork in the chat. Replies land in the GrowOnBot shared team inbox, so any counsellor on the number can see them. Read our shared team inbox guide for how several people work from one number.

Departure reminder before the travel date

A reminder with reporting time, pickup point and your emergency contact helps travellers arrive prepared. The travel date in a sheet column can drive it.

Example departure reminder template

EnglishHi {{1}}, your trip to {{2}} starts on {{3}}. Please be ready at {{4}}. Call us on this number if you need any help.

हिन्दीनमस्ते {{1}}, {{2}} की आपकी यात्रा {{3}} को शुरू हो रही है। कृपया {{4}} पर तैयार रहें। किसी भी मदद के लिए इसी नंबर पर संपर्क करें।

Many agencies track enquiries in a spreadsheet. GrowOnBot's Google Sheets integration supports a new row, an updated row, and a date in a column. See the Google Sheets automation guide for the details.

A new enquiry row sends an acknowledgement

When a counsellor adds a row for a new enquiry, the customer receives the acknowledgement template.

An updated enquiry row sends a revised quote or itinerary message

When an enquiry row is updated, for example with a revised package, a message can tell the customer that the updated quote or itinerary is ready.

A date in a column sends follow-ups, payment-due nudges and pre-departure reminders

Keep separate date columns for follow-up, payment due and departure. Each date can drive its own template. Payment nudges should include an external payment link; there is no native in-chat checkout.

• HubSpot: contact, deal or ticket created or updated (tickets on creation only), with two-way contact sync.
• Zoho CRM: lead or deal created or updated. Requires the Professional plan or above.
• Salesforce: contact, account, opportunity or lead created or updated.

A new lead or deal record sends a template to the customer

When a new lead or deal record is created, GrowOnBot can send a template, and your team can assign the customer to a counsellor in your CRM. Contact and lead records sync; chat transcripts never sync to the CRM.

Visa consultancies spend much of their day asking for the same documents. A checklist template sent when a new enquiry row is added, plus an appointment reminder driven by a date column, keeps applicants prepared. Customers reply with documents in the chat, and the replies land in the shared inbox.

Do not promise approvals or processing times in your messages. Outcomes depend on the issuing authority.

If you sell trip deposits or travel merchandise through a Shopify store, GrowOnBot's Shopify integration can send order placed, cancelled and abandoned-cart messages, along with shipped, out for delivery, delivered and COD placed messages for physical goods. See the order confirmation guide.

GrowOnBot adds 0% markup to Meta's per-message rates. You pay a GrowOnBot plan fee plus Meta's message rate at cost, billed in INR, AED or USD. See the pricing page and our WhatsApp Business API pricing guide.

• Opt-in first. Only send broadcasts to people who agreed to receive them. See the opt-in guide.
• Use approved templates for business-initiated messages outside Meta's 24-hour customer service window.
• Handle passport scans responsibly. Ask only for what you need, limit who on your team can open them, and delete them when they are no longer required.
• Verify your business. Our verification and GST guide covers Meta Business Verification in India.

For capturing enquiries from ads and websites, see the lead generation and qualification guide.

A typical order of work for a travel agency or visa consultancy:

1. Start your free trial. Create your GrowOnBot account and begin the 14-day free trial on the Launch or Growth plan.
2. Register your business number. Connect the business number your counsellors will use.
3. Write templates in English and Hindi. Draft the acknowledgement, quotation follow-up, document checklist and departure reminder, then submit each language version for Meta approval.
4. Prepare your enquiry sheet. Give each enquiry a row, with the phone number including +91 and separate date columns for follow-up, payment due and departure.
5. Collect opt-in. Record each customer's agreement to receive WhatsApp messages.
6. Test with your own number. Add a test row and check each template before going live.