Key points
- It does not sync your calendars across platforms. That is a channel manager.
- These terms overlap in marketing copy, so here is a plain split.
- Tokay is an AI front desk built in Bangkok by a host who still runs apartments there and was its first customer.
On this page
An AI front desk for short-term rentals is software that reads every message a guest sends through Airbnb, Booking.com or Vrbo, answers the routine ones on your behalf, and hands the rest to you with a suggested reply. It works around the clock, in the guest's own language, from a set of facts and rules you give it. The guest keeps writing in the booking app they already use. The host keeps the final say on anything the software is not sure about.
The name comes from the hotel front desk. A good front desk clerk answers "what time is check-in", "where do I park" and "the wifi password please" without calling the manager. The clerk calls the manager for a refund request, a complaint or a problem they have never seen. An AI front desk is built to behave the same way.
What an AI front desk does
Answers routine questions on its own. Check-in time, wifi, the door code once the booking is confirmed, how the aircon works, where the nearest 7-Eleven is, whether there is a pool. These are the questions that make up most of a host's inbox.
Drafts replies for you to approve. When a question is a little unusual, or a request involves money or an exception, the software writes a reply and waits. You read it, tap approve, edit it, or deny it. The reply goes out as you, from your account.
Escalates what it should not touch. A guest who is upset, a question about a refund, a safety issue, a message it cannot understand. These go to you with no reply sent. A good AI front desk knows the difference between "which floor is the apartment" and "I want my money back".
Keeps your knowledge in one place. Most tools hold a knowledge base: facts about the building, the apartment and your house rules. The better ones let you write one answer for a building and have it apply to every unit in that building.
Reports back. A daily note of what happened overnight, what was answered and what needs you.
What an AI front desk does not do
It does not sync your calendars across platforms. That is a channel manager.
It does not take bookings or payments or build a direct booking website. Some vendors bundle these, and some front desks add smart locks and WhatsApp; the front desk itself is about conversations.
It does not know what you have not told it. If the hot water switch is behind the bathroom door and nobody wrote that down, the software should ask you rather than guess. If it guesses, it is not a front desk, it is a liability.
It does not replace your judgement on policy. Prices, exceptions, late checkouts, refunds: the software applies your rules, it does not set them.
AI front desk vs PMS vs chatbot vs AI co-host
These terms overlap in marketing copy, so here is a plain split.
| Term | What it is | Where the guest messages live | Who decides on tricky cases |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property management system (PMS) | Calendar, channel sync, pricing, cleaning schedules, sometimes messaging templates | Inside the PMS inbox | The host, usually with templates and scheduled messages |
| Chatbot | Scripted or keyword answers on a website or in an app | Usually a separate widget | Nobody; unknown questions get a generic reply |
| AI co-host | A marketing term, often used for a messaging add-on inside a PMS | Inside the PMS | Varies; some draft only, some send |
| AI front desk | Reads the live guest conversation, answers routine questions, drafts or escalates the rest | On the booking platform the guest already uses | The host, on anything unusual |
A PMS is about operations. A chatbot is about deflecting questions. An AI front desk is about holding a real conversation with a real guest and knowing when to stop. Some PMS vendors now add an AI layer and call it a co-host; that can be a good fit if you already run on that PMS. The full comparison is at /resources/ai-front-desk-vs-pms-vs-ai-co-host.
What to look for
Does it send, or only draft? Some tools only suggest text. That saves typing but not the night shift. Ask whether it can send on its own, and whether you choose which kinds of questions it may send.
How does it handle what it does not know? Ask the vendor what happens when a guest asks something that is not in the knowledge base. The right answer is "it asks you". The wrong answer is "it does its best".
Which platforms? Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo cover most hosts. In Southeast Asia many hosts also list on Agoda, so check whether that is included.
Languages. Bangkok guests write in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Russian and German as well as English. The front desk should answer in the guest's language without you switching anything on.
Does it need a PMS? Several messaging tools sit on top of Hospitable, Hostaway or Guesty and cannot run without one. Others connect to the platforms directly. Neither is wrong, but it changes the total cost.
Pricing shape. Per listing per month is the common shape. Watch for per-message metering, commissions on upsells, or a share of bookings.
How it starts. A tool that sends from day one, before it knows your rules, will embarrass you. Look for a supervised period where every reply comes to you first.
How Tokay fits this definition
Tokay is an AI front desk built in Bangkok by a host who still runs apartments there and was its first customer. Pam, the front desk agent, answers guests on Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo in more than ten languages. For the first two weeks every reply comes to the host to approve, edit or deny; after that the host switches on auto-send one kind of question at a time. If a fact is not on file, Pam asks the host rather than guessing. On our own apartments the Airbnb communication rating went from 4.81 to 4.97 and the guest work left for the host is about two taps a day. It costs $29 per listing per month as of October 2026, with the full team of six agents included; prices are at /#pricing.
Short glossary
Auto-send. The software sends a reply without a human reading it first.
Draft mode. The software writes a reply and waits for approval.
Escalation. The software hands a conversation to the host without replying.
Knowledge base. The facts and rules the software answers from.
Channel manager. Software that syncs calendars and prices across Airbnb, Booking.com and others. Not a front desk.
PMS. Property management system. The operational back office.
Supervised period. The first weeks when every reply is approved by a human before it goes out.
Questions hosts ask
Is an AI front desk the same as Airbnb's own AI replies? No. Airbnb's auto-replies, free since May 2026, answer only from your listing facts and only on Airbnb. An AI front desk works across platforms, answers from a fuller knowledge base you control, and hands unusual conversations to you with a draft.
Will guests know they are talking to software? Replies go out from your account, in your voice, based on your facts. Many hosts tell guests in the house manual that an assistant helps answer messages. What matters more is that anything personal or sensitive reaches a human, which is what a good front desk is built to do.
Do I need a PMS to use an AI front desk? It depends on the tool. Some are add-ons that only work on top of a PMS. Others, including Tokay, connect to Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo directly. If you run fewer than about 20 listings and do not already pay for a PMS, a direct connection is usually simpler and cheaper.