# Hotel software for front office and reception

> What front office needs from software: arrivals with wishes and extras, one inbox for guest messages, rooms ready on time and a handover you can trust.

Source: https://getoste.com/en/roles/front-office/
Last updated: 2026-10-17
Language: en

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# What does front office need from hotel software?

## Short answer

Front office needs to see who is arriving, what they booked and what they asked for, whether their room is ready, and every guest message in one place. It also needs to offer the right extra at the right moment and to leave a handover the next shift can trust. The PMS handles the booking; the rest is operations.
Written by the founder of Oste, who is building it with ten founding hotels. Reviewed by the founder. Last updated: 17 October 2026. First published: 17 October 2026.

## Key facts

- Arrivals with wishes, booked extras and guest instructions.
- Room readiness from housekeeping, live.
- One inbox for guest messages across channels (early access).
- Extras offered at online check-in (early access).
- A shift handover that carries open items.

## What does a front office shift look like?

Read the night’s handover, check arrivals for anything special, answer the messages that came in overnight, and keep asking housekeeping which rooms are ready. At check-in, offer what the guest has not booked yet, if there is time.

## How should guest messages be handled?

One inbox for email and messaging channels, each conversation linked to the guest’s profile and stay. Oste is being built to draft replies in the guest’s language; a person reads and sends them. Requests that need another team become a task with an owner.

## What belongs in a front office handover?

- Open guest requests, with the owner and the promised time.
- Arrivals still to come, with anything special.
- Cash and payment points to check.
- Rooms out of order and why.
The free shift handover template gives a paper version of the same structure.

## Questions people ask

### Does Oste replace the PMS at the desk?

No. Check-in, rates and payments stay in the PMS. Oste shows what the PMS does not: wishes, readiness, messages and the handover.

### Are guest replies sent automatically?

No. Guest-facing drafts are sent by a person.

### Is there a free handover template?

Yes, in English, German and Italian, printable and as a CSV.

## Read next

- Guest messages
- Shift handover
- Shift handover template
- Today

## On this page

- What does a front office shift look like?
- How should guest messages be handled?
- What belongs in a front office handover?
- Questions people ask
Oste is in build

## Where to next?

This is the paper version. What front office needs from software: arrivals with wishes and extras, one inbox for guest messages, rooms ready on time and a handover you can trust.

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