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WhatsApp Booking Notification Roll-Out

Everything you need to know about how WhatsApp booking notifications work, how they replace SMS, and what it means for your restaurant.

Published 16 February 2026 | WhatsApp rollout to all restaurants happening over the next 5 weeks

What will the diner experience be?

Nothing changes in how guests make a booking. Your guests will still reserve a table through your Dineplan widget, the Dineplan website, or the Dineplan app, and they’ll still receive the same booking updates they do via SMS.

The main difference is that these notifications will now be delivered via WhatsApp instead of SMS.

This update also applies to queue notifications.

Who will the message come from?

All messages will come from Dineplan, using an official Dineplan-branded WhatsApp profile picture.

Are the WhatsApp messages different from the SMS messages?

The wording is slightly different in some cases, but the meaning stays the same. These small changes are required to meet Meta’s message template rules for WhatsApp Business messaging.

Is this feature plan-specific?

No. WhatsApp booking notifications will be available to all Dineplan clients, regardless of plan.

What does the WhatsApp roll-out look like?

Dineplan will be moving all restaurants onto WhatsApp booking notifications over the next 5 weeks, in a phased roll-out. This helps ensure a smooth transition for both restaurants and diners.

Will this impact all communication with guests?

No. This change only applies to transactional booking communication (essential booking updates). There is no impact to SMS Marketing, which will remain unchanged for now.

As a restaurant user, what do I need to do?

Nothing, there’s no setup needed on your side. Dineplan will manage the rollout automatically.

If you have important custom text in your existing SMS notifications, our Customer Success team can assist with migrating this across to the new WhatsApp templates.

Costing

How will costing differ from the current SMS credit system?

WhatsApp booking notifications will continue to use Dineplan’s credit-based system. For now, the cost is the same as SMS:

1 WhatsApp message = 1 SMS credit (1:1)

You’ll still only pay based on successful message delivery.

Your SMS Marketing credits and pricing remain unchanged.

Will purchasing credits work differently?

No. Credits will continue to work exactly as they do today. Your current credit balance will cover both SMS and WhatsApp usage.

What happens to SMS auto top-up?

Auto top-up will still work as normal, and will apply to WhatsApp messaging using the same existing flow.

What happens to my existing credits?

Your existing credits will remain available and will automatically be used when your restaurant transitions to WhatsApp. There is no disruption or change to your credit balance.

Delivery

What happens if a WhatsApp message doesn’t deliver?

We’ve built in a fallback to ensure guests still receive critical booking information. If Dineplan does not receive a delivery report within 24 hours, a fallback SMS message will automatically be sent to the guest.

Who pays for the fallback SMS?

The restaurant will cover the cost of the fallback SMS (using your credits), as you would have for the original WhatsApp notification.

Guest Responses

Can restaurants have conversations with guests via WhatsApp?

No, this isn’t a chat feature. Each notification includes the relevant call-to-action buttons for guests to respond.

Guests can still reply to booking messages, but it works the same way as SMS:

  • The restaurant receives an email notification

  • The guest’s reply is included in that email

What happens if a guest replies “cancel” instead of using the Cancel button?

If a guest replies with a message that isn’t recognised (including “cancel”), they’ll receive an automated response advising them to contact the venue directly.

The restaurant will also receive an email notification showing the guest’s reply.

What happens if a guest replies with a random word?

The same process applies. The response won’t be recognised, the guest will be prompted to contact the venue, and the restaurant will receive an email notification.

WhatsApp Content

Can restaurants edit the WhatsApp templates?

No. WhatsApp booking notifications are sent using Meta-approved Utility message templates. Because these are transactional system messages, the templates cannot be edited.

Can restaurants add important venue-specific information?

Yes. We’ve introduced a field called “Additional Details”, which allows you to include critical information that your guests need to know before their booking. Dineplan Support can assist you in adding or updating this message.

Please note, it has a 120-character limit and is an optional, single message that, if added, will apply to 4 WhatsApp templates:

  1. Booking Confirmation

  2. Payment Request

  3. Payment Confirmation

  4. Booking Reminder

 

If this field is left empty, the following default message will display:

Please contact the venue {your restaurant contact number} for any queries related to your reservation.