The questions guests ask at 2 AM, and how to answer them on your website

Jerry Ching, InnReply · October 27, 2026

Picture a guest planning a weekend away. It's late, the kids are in bed, and they've narrowed it down to two or three inns. They have one or two questions left. If your website answers them, they book. If it doesn't, they either send an email and wait, or they book the place that did answer.

You can't be awake at 2 AM. Your website can. Below are the questions that come up for almost any small inn, with plain wording you can adapt for your own pages. None of this needs any software. It just needs the answer written down where a guest will find it.

"Do you have anything free on these dates?"

This is the big one, and it's the hardest to answer with a static page. At minimum, make your booking button easy to find on every page, including on phones. If your booking page lets guests pick dates, say so near the button: "Pick your dates to see which rooms are free."

This is also where a chat helps most. A guest can ask "anything for two adults next Friday and Saturday?" and get the rooms that are free, then land on your booking page with those dates already filled in.

"What time can we check in? Our flight lands late."

Give the window and the late-arrival plan in the same sentence.

Check-in is 3 to 8 PM and check-out is 11 AM. Arriving after 8? No problem. Let us know your rough arrival time and we'll leave your key and a note at the front door.

"Can we bring our dog?"

Guests travelling with pets ask before anything else, because the answer rules you in or out. Say which rooms, which animals, how many, and the fee. If you don't take pets, say that kindly and clearly. We wrote a whole guide on pet policies and fees because it's so often missing.

"Is breakfast included? I'm gluten-free."

A full breakfast is included with every stay, served 8 to 9:30 AM in the dining room. We're happy to cook gluten-free, vegetarian or dairy-free. Just tell us when you book.

If you can't handle a particular allergy safely, say so. Guests would much rather know up front.

"Is there parking?"

Say where, whether it's free, and anything awkward: a steep driveway, a tight gate, street parking only on weekends, room for a trailer or not.

"Can we bring the kids?"

If there's a minimum age, give it. If only certain rooms work for families, name them. If you have a crib or a rollaway bed, mention it and whether there's a charge.

"What if we have to cancel?"

Cancellation rules often live only in the booking step, where guests see them after they've already committed. Put a short version on a normal page too.

Cancel up to 14 days before arrival for a full refund, minus a $25 fee. Within 14 days, we refund what we can rebook.

"Is there a minimum stay?"

Two-night weekends and holiday minimums surprise people. A guest who tries to book one Saturday night and fails at the last step may just leave. One line on your rooms page saves that.

"Are there stairs? My mother uses a cane."

For each room, say which floor it's on, whether there are stairs to reach it, and anything about the bathroom (step-in shower, tub only, grab bars). This is the question guests feel shy asking, so answering it in writing matters.

"How far are you from the wedding venue / the trailhead / the town?"

Name the two or three places your guests actually come for, with rough driving or walking times. "Ten minutes' walk to Main Street, 20 minutes' drive to Ridge Vineyards" is more useful than "conveniently located."

Where to put all this

One honest FAQ page with short, direct answers beats the same facts scattered across five pages. Link to it from your menu and from your booking page. Then check it once a season, because a wrong answer (an old check-in time, a pet fee that went up) is worse than none.

If you use a chat on your site that answers from your pages, this same FAQ page is what it reads. The clearer the page, the better the chat's answers. And for the questions that aren't written anywhere, a good chat should say so and pass the question to you by email, rather than guess.