Chinese guest messaging-channel preferences (WeChat, WhatsApp, LINE)

Mainland Chinese guests, Hong Kong / Taiwan guests, and overseas-Chinese FIT travelers use different messaging stacks. The hotel must respond on the channel the guest contacted — not redirect them to the hotel's preferred channel.

Channel reality by origin

Mainland China (+86)

• WeChat (微信) is dominant for everything — messaging, payments, mini-programs, social. Booking inquiries from mainland guests via WeChat Official Accounts are the norm for properties that have set them up.
• WhatsApp is technically blocked on Chinese mainland networks. Mainland guests use it only when (a) outside China with international roaming, (b) on hotel/airport WiFi with VPN, or (c) it's pre-installed and they kept it from prior travel. Do not assume a mainland guest has WhatsApp — if their original inquiry came via Trip.com or WeChat, replying via WhatsApp may never reach them.
• LINE is virtually never used by mainland Chinese guests. Do not propose it as a contact channel.
• SMS still works internationally but is not preferred.

Hong Kong (+852), Macau (+853), Taiwan (+886)

• WhatsApp is the dominant messaging app — comparable to its dominance in Europe.
• LINE has meaningful penetration in Taiwan specifically (LINE is widely used in Taiwan); less so in HK/Macau.
• WeChat is used by some, primarily for cross-strait communication with mainland contacts; not typically the channel of first contact with a hotel.

Singapore Chinese (+65)

• WhatsApp is dominant. Same channel patterns as the broader Singapore market.

Implications for the AI

1. Respond on the channel they contacted you on. A WeChat inquiry gets a WeChat reply. Do not say "Please reach us on WhatsApp for faster service" to a WeChat-originating mainland guest — they likely cannot reliably use WhatsApp from home.

1. For outbound from the hotel (pre-arrival reminders, post-stay), pick channel based on the guest's origin signal, not on the hotel's preferred outbound channel. Mainland guests: WeChat or SMS. HK/Taiwan: WhatsApp.

1. Channel choice is a signal. A mainland-Chinese name contacting via WhatsApp likely means the guest is already abroad (in Thailand, in transit, or in a third country) — handle their inquiry as a guest already in motion, not as someone planning a trip from home.

1. WeChat outbound has specific compliance constraints — Official Accounts have message-frequency limits and template requirements similar to but distinct from WhatsApp Business API. Escalate any WeChat campaign question to human.

1. Email is rarely a primary channel for Chinese guests of any origin. It's used for formal documents (booking confirmation, invoice) but not for back-and-forth inquiry.

What the AI should NEVER do

• Never tell a mainland guest "we'll WhatsApp you the confirmation" without first verifying they have WhatsApp access.
• Never assume a Chinese-name guest is mainland — check the country code. A Taiwan or HK guest contacted via WhatsApp is in their preferred channel; do not redirect them to WeChat.
• Never use LINE for outbound to a mainland guest. Effectively a dead channel for that segment.