How to Get More Hotel Reviews (Ethically): QR + Email/SMS Templates

If you want more bookings, you need trust. And in hospitality, trust is often built through recent, credible hotel reviews.

The goal isn’t “more reviews at any cost.” The goal is a repeatable, ethical process that increases review volume without breaking platform rules or damaging guest trust.

This guide includes practical placements and copy/paste templates.

If you’re building a full workflow (monitoring + responding + improving), start here: Hotel Review Management: Complete Guide

The 3 rules that keep your review strategy policy-safe

1. Ask everyone (not only “happy guests”).
2. Don’t offer incentives (discounts, gifts, upgrades for reviews).
3. Don’t gate reviews (more on this below).

If your team has ever said “Let’s only send the link to satisfied guests,” read: Review Gating for Hotels: Why It’s Risky + What to Do Instead

Timing: when to ask for a hotel review

Best moments:

• At checkout: a light ask with a QR code (low friction).
• 2–24 hours after checkout: email or SMS while the stay is fresh.
• After a positive moment: e.g., great service recovery or a special request delivered.

Avoid:

• asking mid-stay when issues aren’t resolved
• asking too late (memory fades)

Channel #1: Post-stay email (templates)

Keep it short: 2–4 sentences, one clear CTA.

Template A (simple + warm)

Subject: Thank you for staying with us

Hi {{first_name}},
Thanks again for choosing {{hotel_name}}. If you have a moment, we’d appreciate a quick review—your feedback helps our team improve.
Leave a review: {{review_link}}

Warm regards,
{{signature}}

Template B (service recovery follow-up)

Subject: Thank you—quick follow-up

Hi {{first_name}},
Thanks for staying with {{hotel_name}}. If our team helped with {{topic}}, we’d love to hear how we did. Your feedback helps us keep improving.
Leave a review: {{review_link}}

Best,
{{signature}}

Channel #2: SMS / WhatsApp (templates)

SMS works best when it’s extremely short and permission-based.

Template (short)

Hi {{first_name}}—thanks for staying at {{hotel_name}}. If you have 30 seconds, would you leave us a review? {{review_link}}

Channel #3: Reception QR code (what to write)

At the desk, you want one simple prompt:

• “How was your stay? Leave a quick review.”
• “Your feedback helps our team improve.”

Important: don’t say “only if you were happy”.

Make it frictionless: generate the review link once

For Google specifically, create and reuse your direct “write a review” link: Google Reviews Link: Generate & Share (Hotels)

Then:

• generate a QR code that opens the link
• use the same link in email/SMS
• add it to a thank-you page if you have one

Show social proof on your website (without slowing pages)

Displaying reviews on your site can increase direct bookings—but only if it’s fast and source-linked.

Best practice (hotel-friendly): Add Google Reviews to Your Website

What to avoid (the mistakes that backfire)

• Incentives: can violate platform rules and reduce trust.
• Review gating: looks manipulative and can create long-term issues.
• Over-automated spam: too many requests will annoy guests and reduce response rate.
• Ignoring negatives: a growing review volume is only helpful if you respond consistently.

If you want a fast response workflow: How to Respond to Every Google Review in Seconds

Track the right metrics

If you want this to become a repeatable system, track:

• review volume per week (by platform)
• response rate and response time
• top recurring themes (what to fix)

Dashboard guide: Hotel Review Management KPIs: What to Track

How ReviewAgent helps

ReviewAgent doesn’t replace your guest experience—it helps your team execute review operations consistently:

• centralize reviews across platforms
• draft replies quickly (human-edited, approval-friendly)
• keep tone consistent across properties
• surface themes so operational fixes happen faster

If you want to see the workflow: - Try the interactive demo - Book a demo

Read next

• Review Gating for Hotels: Why It’s Risky + What to Do Instead
• Hotel Review Management: Complete Guide
• Google Reviews Link: Generate & Share (Hotels)