Ten prompts cover the path from enquiry to deposit: turn call notes into a client brief, list the questions still open, sketch three trip directions, write the quote email, summarise the itinerary, compare options, set out inclusions and exclusions, then send two follow-ups and a deposit reminder. Each takes your supplier figures as input, never as output.
That is the rule that makes them safe: ChatGPT writes around your numbers and is never asked to produce them. Prices, flight times, room types and inclusions come from supplier quotes you paste in, with the date you received them. Anything it adds on its own is unverified until a supplier confirms it. Traveller passport details stay out of every prompt, because they belong in your booking system's secure form.
The rules every quote prompt follows
The examples follow one illustrative enquiry at a four-person agency: a family of four, with children aged 9 and 12, ringing about a seven-night beach holiday in the children's school break. All prices are invented for the example, and your own must come from live supplier quotes. The drafts shown are illustrative, written to show the slips to look for, so yours will differ. Each prompt below is the task part. Paste this wrapper above it.
You are drafting client messages for a small travel agency. Use only the figures, dates and facts in the SUPPLIER LINES or the CLIENT BRIEF I give you. Every price, time, inclusion and condition must be copied from a supplier line, never from your own knowledge.
If a fact is missing, write [confirm with supplier: what is needed]. Do not add activities, hotel features, entry rules, visa or health rules, or reassurances.
Never ask for or repeat passport numbers, card details or dates of birth. Leave [first name] as a merge tag.
British English, plain words, no exclamation marks.
After each draft, list "Copied from supplier lines": each figure and the line it came from.
SUPPLIER LINES / CLIENT BRIEF:
[paste here]
TASK:
[paste one of the ten tasks below]Two lines in the wrapper do most of the work. "Never from your own knowledge" stops ChatGPT filling a gap with a typical flight time or a standard inclusion. The "Copied from supplier lines" list means that every number in a draft arrives with its source beside it, so your check is to compare the list with the supplier quote, not to reread the email and hope.
Monday: from a rambling call to a client brief
The first call is long and untidy. These three prompts turn it into a one-page brief, a short list of questions and a set of directions, so the second conversation starts with facts.
1. Call notes into a structured brief
Type your notes quickly, leave out names and anything personal, and let ChatGPT sort them. The one rule: where the notes are ambiguous, it must say so.
TASK: Turn the CALL NOTES into a client brief with these headings: Travellers; Dates and flexibility; Budget; Must-haves; Nice-to-haves; Deal-breakers; Style of trip; Open questions.
Use only what the notes say. If the notes are ambiguous, write the ambiguity under Open questions instead of choosing an answer. 200 words maximum.
CALL NOTES: Family of 4, kids 9 and 12. Wants a week somewhere hot in the kids' school break, not too far, no flight over 5 hours. Budget "about 6k, maybe a bit more for the right place". Dad wants a pool with a slide. Mum wants quiet hours, nothing like a party resort. First time doing all-inclusive; they have used the same self-catering place for 3 years and want a change. Dates: roughly the first week of the break, a few days either side is fine.What came back (illustrative):
Travellers: two adults, two children aged 9 and 12. Dates and flexibility: the first week of the school break, a few days either side. Budget: $6,000 all-in, including flights, with a little more for the right place. Must-haves: hot weather; flight under 5 hours; a pool with a slide. Nice-to-haves: quiet hours. Deal-breakers: party resort; flights over 5 hours. Style of trip: first all-inclusive, a change from self-catering. Open questions: departure airport; exact dates.
The slip is "$6,000 all-in, including flights". The notes say "about 6k" and nothing about what it covers, because nobody asked on the call. This is an easy brief error to make, because budget wording sounds specific. Change it to "about $6,000; [confirm: includes flights?]" and add the question to the open list, where the model should have put it. Everything else came straight from the notes, which is how a brief should read.
2. The questions still open, in the order to ask them
A good second call is short. The prompt turns the gaps in the brief into a numbered list of questions, each with a reason, so you can lead the conversation instead of circling it.
TASK: From the Open questions and any gaps in the CLIENT BRIEF, write the questions I should ask on a ten-minute call, in the best order, each with a one-line reason. Seven questions at most. Do not ask anything the brief already answers. Ask for passport validity as a yes or no only, never for numbers. Health, dietary or mobility needs: ask one open question and tell me to record the answer in our booking system, not here.A typical result:
- Does the $6,000 include flights and transfers? (Decides the whole shortlist.)
- Which airport do you leave from, and is another acceptable? (Changes flight times and prices.)
- How many days either side of the first week could you move? (Flexible dates can lower the fare.)
- What did you like and dislike about the self-catering place? (Shows what to keep and change.)
- What does "quiet hours" mean to you: an adults-only area, a late pool closing, or a calm dinner? (Gets a concrete requirement.)
- Does anyone have needs that affect the choice of resort? Please record the answer in our booking system. (Safety and suitability.)
- Do you want to avoid flights over 5 hours?
Question 7 repeats a limit the brief already contains, which the prompt forbade. Delete it. The rest are well ordered, and the budget question comes first because everything depends on it. Question 5 is the best of the set: a vague preference becomes something a resort can be checked against. Notice what is missing too: the model correctly kept passport numbers out, and it handled health as "record this in our system", which is the instruction it was given.
3. Three trip directions, with no hotels and no prices
Before you spend an hour pricing, it helps to decide what kind of trip to price. This prompt stays at the level of concept so there is nothing to fact-check yet.
TASK: From the CLIENT BRIEF, outline three different directions for this holiday, in 40 words each, with one trade-off for each. Describe the type of trip only. Do not name any hotel, airline, resort or destination, and do not state any price, flight time or distance.What came back:
A. All-inclusive family resort week. Meals and drinks in one price, a kids' club and pools with slides, quieter adult areas. Trade-off: less freedom to eat out, and resorts can feel busy at peak times.
B. Two-centre trip. A few nights in a city, then a few on the coast. More variety for a 12-year-old. Trade-off: an extra transfer, and less time to settle.
C. Self-catering villa with a pool. Closest to what they know, with more privacy. Trade-off: the same cooking duties, and fewer on-site activities for the children. Flight time is about three hours.
"Flight time is about three hours" slipped through despite the ban. It is a number nobody supplied and it would anchor the client's expectations before you have chosen a destination. Strike it. The three directions are otherwise useful, and the trade-offs are the part to bring to the client: choosing between them takes five minutes on a call and saves pricing two trips that were never wanted.
Tuesday: the quote, written around your supplier figures
By now you have supplier quotes in hand. These four prompts present them clearly without adding anything. If you want the finished trip as a branded PDF, building a client-ready trip proposal with AI picks up where the last of these ends.
4. The quote email with the totals and what is held
TASK: Write the quote email for the family. Set out each line with its price, then the total, the price per person, a 20% deposit and the balance. Say what the suppliers are holding the prices until, and that prices can change after that or if availability changes. 170 words maximum.
Do not use "guaranteed". Do not say anything is included unless a supplier line says so.
SUPPLIER LINES (each from a supplier quote I hold):
Flights, return, 4 passengers: $1,716 in total. Fare includes taxes and carrier charges. Held until [date].
Resort, family room, 7 nights, all-inclusive: $3,290 in total. A local resort charge is payable at the property; amount [to be confirmed by the resort]. Held until [date].
Return airport transfers: $120 in total.
Our service fee: $150.A typical draft:
Subject: Your family beach week: quote and next steps
Hello [first name],
Thank you for the call. Here is the quote for the seven-night holiday, built from the supplier quotes we hold.
- Flights, return, four passengers: $1,716 (fare includes taxes and carrier charges)
- Resort, family room, seven nights, all-inclusive: $3,290
- Return airport transfers: $120
- Our service fee: $150
The total is $5,276, which is $1,319 per person. A deposit of 20% ($1,055.20) secures the booking, and the balance of $4,220.80 is due on [date]. All taxes and fees are included, and the price is guaranteed until [date]. The resort has a local charge payable at the property, and we are confirming the amount.
Copied from supplier lines: flights $1,716; resort $3,290; transfers $120; our fee $150.
The arithmetic holds: $1,716 + $3,290 + $120 + $150 = $5,276; ÷ 4 = $1,319; 20% of $5,276 = $1,055.20; $5,276 − $1,055.20 = $4,220.80. Two statements do not. "All taxes and fees are included" is true of the flight fare only, as the supplier line says, and the next sentence contradicts it by mentioning the resort charge. "Guaranteed" is the banned word and it is a stronger promise than the supplier's "held until". Replace both with: "Flight taxes and carrier charges are included in the fare. The suppliers are holding these prices until [date]; after that, or if availability changes, they may change." The source of truth is always the supplier's own wording.
5. A day-by-day summary from confirmed bookings
Clients like to see the shape of the week. The prompt builds it from the confirmed times and nothing else, and marks free days as free.
TASK: Write a day-by-day summary for the client from the CONFIRMED SCHEDULE. One line per day. Show times as given. Mark any day with nothing booked as "free day" and add nothing to it. Do not suggest activities, restaurants or sights.
CONFIRMED SCHEDULE: Day 1: outbound flight departs 09:40, arrives 14:05 local time; transfer to resort, about 45 minutes. Days 2 to 7: resort, all-inclusive. Day 8: transfer to airport 11:00; flight departs 15:30, arrives 19:55.What came back:
Day 1: Fly out at 09:40, arriving 14:05 local time, then a transfer of about 45 minutes to the resort. Day 2: free day. Day 3: free day, perhaps a stroll to the old town. Days 4 to 7: free days at the resort. Day 8: Transfer to the airport at 11:00, with your flight at 15:30, arriving at 19:55.
"Perhaps a stroll to the old town" is the model's idea, not the schedule's, and nothing in your supplier lines says there is an old town. It is the first step towards a promise. Remove it, and note a more subtle point: the draft treats Days 2 to 7 as "free days" although the resort is booked and all-inclusive. Reword to "at the resort, all-inclusive" so the client does not think nothing is arranged. A summary like this is the kind of document that needs a second reading against the supplier confirmations, and what a travel agent must check before sending an itinerary lists what to look for.
6. Good, better, best, compared line by line
Offering three options lets clients choose instead of leaving. Give ChatGPT the supplier totals and have it set out the differences. It must not recommend or embellish.
TASK: Compare the three OPTIONS in a table: option, what changes from Option A, total, price per person, difference from Option A. Then give one sentence per option on who it might suit, based only on the CLIENT BRIEF. Do not recommend one. Do not describe any room or feature that is not in the option line.
OPTIONS: A: family room, 7 nights, total $5,276. B: suite, 7 nights, suite price $550 a night instead of $470, total $5,836. C: family room, 6 nights instead of 7, total $4,806.What came back:
| Option | What changes | Total | Per person | Difference from A |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | Family room, 7 nights | $5,276 | $1,319 | None |
| B | Suite with a private plunge pool, 7 nights | $5,836 | $1,459 | +$560 |
| C | Family room, 6 nights | $4,806 | $1,201.50 | −$470 |
The sums are right: 7 × ($550 − $470) = $560, and one fewer night at $470 saves $470. But "with a private plunge pool" appears in no option line. It would be the first thing the client asks about, and it is exactly the kind of feature a resort either has or doesn't. Strike it unless the supplier confirms it. The sentence on who each option suits is where your judgement comes in, and the prompt rightly stops short of choosing for you: the call with the client is where the choice gets made.
7. Included, not included and what the client arranges
A client who thinks something is included will blame you when it is not. The prompt lists inclusions only from supplier wording and puts the rest where the client can see it.
TASK: Write three lists for the client: "Included" (only items a supplier line says are included, each with the supplier's wording in brackets); "Not included"; "What you will need to arrange". Do not state any entry, visa, health or passport rule. For travel documents, say only that they should check official government information for their destination and passports, and that we can send links.
SUPPLIER LINES: Resort: all meals and house drinks included; kids' club included. Insurance: available on request, not included. Transfers: return airport transfers included. Flights: hold luggage not included on the lowest fare [confirm].What came back:
Included: all meals and house drinks ("all meals and house drinks included"); kids' club ("kids' club included"); return airport transfers ("return airport transfers included"); travel insurance.
Not included: hold luggage on the lowest fare [confirm]; local resort charge, payable at the property.
What you will need to arrange: passports valid for at least six months after your return date, and any entry documents.
Two errors, both consequential. "Travel insurance" under Included is wrong: the supplier line says "available on request, not included", so it belongs under Not included. And "valid for at least six months after your return date" is a specific entry rule that the prompt banned and that the model cannot know for this trip, since rules differ by destination and by traveller. Replace the whole line with: "Please check your passports and any entry requirements against official government information for your destination; we will send the links." Because each included item has its supplier wording in brackets, the insurance error is easy to spot: there was no quote to put beside it. For the document side in full, see pre-departure document packs with AI.
Thursday onwards: follow-ups and the deposit
Plenty of quotes go quiet, and the cure is rarely a chaser. Each message should give the client something: a fact that answers a likely worry, a real deadline or a simpler option. The timing, the stop rule and a longer sequence are in chasing silent quotes with AI; these three prompts draft the individual messages.
8. The first follow-up adds one useful fact
TASK: Write a follow-up email, 70 words maximum, to send two days after the quote. Add one useful fact from the SUPPLIER FACT, answer the client's biggest stated wish with it, and ask one easy question. No "just checking in". No pressure.
SUPPLIER FACT (resort confirmation): Two pools; one has a water slide. Kids' club covers ages 4 to 12. Adults-only pool area open from 18:00.
CLIENT WISHES (from brief): a pool with a slide; quiet hours.What came back:
Hello [first name], just checking in to see whether you have had a chance to look at the quote. One thing you asked about: the resort has two pools, and one has a water slide, which covers the pool on your list. For quieter time, the adults-only pool area opens from 18:00. Would it help if I sent two or three photos from the resort's own site?
"Just checking in to see whether you have had a chance to look at the quote" is the sentence the prompt banned, and it is the kind of opener readers skim past. Delete it and open with the fact. The question at the end is good: easy to answer, and it offers a small next step. Notice the facts used are all from the resort confirmation, and the kids' club ages (4 to 12) were left out because they did not answer a stated wish; the 12-year-old is at the edge, which is worth saying on the call, not in an email.
9. The second follow-up carries a real deadline
TASK: Write a second follow-up email, 80 words maximum, to send six days after the quote. Say that the flight and resort prices are held until [date] and that after that we would need to re-quote. Offer to hold nothing and promise nothing. Offer one simpler option from OPTIONS if the total feels high. Do not say prices will rise.
OPTIONS: Option C: 6 nights instead of 7, total $4,806.What came back:
Hello [first name], a quick note on timing: the flight and resort prices are held until [date]. After that, we would need to re-quote, and prices are likely to be higher. If the total feels more than you planned, there is a six-night version at $4,806, which is $470 less. Happy to talk it through whenever suits you.
"Prices are likely to be higher" is invented urgency, and the prompt forbade it. A re-quote might come back lower, the same or higher, and you don't know which. Say only what you know: the hold ends on the date, and a new quote would be needed. Pressure that turns out to be false costs trust on the next enquiry from the same family. The simpler option, with the saving worked out, is the useful part of this message and it is accurate: $5,276 − $4,806 = $470.
10. The deposit reminder that keeps passports out of email
TASK: Write a deposit reminder, 110 words maximum. State the deposit ($1,055.20), the date it is due [date] and how to pay [payment method]. Ask them to enter traveller details in our secure form [link]. Do not ask them to email, photograph or message any passport or card information. Do not repeat any traveller detail.What came back:
Hello [first name], great news that you are ready to go ahead. Your deposit of $1,055.20 is due on [date], and you can pay by [payment method]. To prepare your bookings, please enter the traveller details in our secure form [link]. If it is easier, you can also reply to this email with a photo of each passport's photo page.
The last sentence is the dangerous one. It invites four passport scans into an inbox, and nothing in the prompt asked for it; the prompt said not to. Delete it. "Great news that you are ready to go ahead" is also a little ahead of the facts if they haven't confirmed, so check where the message sits in the conversation. This is the prompt where the rule matters most: the details travel in your secure form or portal, and neither the chat with ChatGPT nor the email thread should ever hold them.
The same prompts for a couple's city break and a group of eight
The family quote is one shape. Changing the inputs, not the prompts, covers the others, and each change shows what a quote has to carry.
- A couple's city break. Add "Occasion" and "Pace" to the brief headings in prompt 1, because an anniversary and a "no early starts" rule drive the choice more than the budget does. In prompt 6, compare hotel locations rather than room grades. In prompt 7, spend the words on what couples ask about: breakfast, airport transfers and late check-out, each with the supplier's wording beside it.
- A group of eight friends. The quote is split by traveller, so ask for a payment table with the sums shown. Suppose the supplier lines give $1,090 per person: that is $8,720 for eight. A 25% deposit is $2,180, or $272.50 each, with $817.50 each to follow ($1,090 − $272.50). Keep the rooming list and every traveller's details in your booking system, not in the chat, and name one contact for the group.
- A re-quote after the hold date passes. Start a fresh chat with fresh supplier lines. Never ask ChatGPT to "update the earlier quote", because it will carry old figures into the new one, and an old number inside a new email is the hardest error to see.
Whatever the shape, the order stays the same: the supplier's numbers go in, the model writes around them, and a list of what it copied comes out for you to tick.
Six ticks before any quote leaves
- Every figure traced. Compare the "Copied from supplier lines" list with the supplier quotes, one by one.
- Every sum redone. Totals, per-person figures, the deposit and the balance, on a calculator or in a sheet.
- Every date real. The "held until" dates match the suppliers' own quote dates.
- Nothing added. Search for features, activities, rules and reassurances that appear in no supplier line: "private", "stroll", "usually", "guaranteed", "included".
- Inclusions quoted. Each included item has supplier wording beside it, and each excluded item is visible.
- No personal data in or out. No passport, card or date-of-birth detail in the prompt, the draft or the email.
For a quote of this size, about $5,000, the checks take roughly ten minutes. A mistake in the quote is a dispute at the final payment, so that is time well spent.
From Monday to the stop rule, in one table
| When | Prompt | What the message adds | What to check |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday, after the call | 1 to 3 | A brief, questions and directions for you (not sent) | Ambiguities kept as questions |
| Tuesday | 4 to 7 | The quote, itinerary, options, inclusions | Every figure traced to a supplier line |
| Thursday (2 days later) | 8 | One confirmed fact that answers a stated wish | No "just checking in" |
| The next Monday (6 days later) | 9 | The real hold date and a simpler option | No invented urgency |
| About two weeks in | None | Stop, and note the lead as cold | Three touches only |
| On "yes" | 10 | Deposit, due date, secure-form link | No passport data in email |
Keep the prompts and the checks in one place so a colleague can use them the same way. Over a month, the edits you keep making will show you what to add to the wrapper, such as a standing list of banned words. And when the other kind of message is needed, because a flight is cancelled or a supplier changes terms, writing delay, cancellation and refund messages with ChatGPT covers that, with the wording checks an agency owner needs.
Questions travel agents ask about these prompts
Can ChatGPT look up flight prices and hotel availability for a quote?
Treat it as unable to give figures you can honour. Even where a chat can search the web, prices and availability change by the minute, and the supplier's own quote is the only number you can stand behind. Use ChatGPT to organise and word what the supplier confirmed, never to produce the figure itself.
Can I upload a supplier's PDF quote instead of typing the lines?
Yes, but check every figure ChatGPT pulls out against the PDF, because tables and small print are where extraction slips. Redact personal details first, since supplier quotes often carry traveller names and dates of birth. Then paste the checked lines into the wrapper as SUPPLIER LINES, with the date you received them, so the hold date travels with the price.
Should the quote email include our booking terms?
Link to them, and set out the two terms clients ask about most, cancellation and payment dates, in the exact wording of the supplier or your own terms. Don't ask ChatGPT to summarise your terms unless you compare the summary with the original line by line, because a softened deadline in a summary becomes the client's version of the deal.
Further reads
- How a One-Person Travel Agency Can Reply to Enquiries Instantly — Reply to new enquiries within minutes, before the brief.
- Travel Agent Commission Tracking: Match Supplier Payments With AI — Match supplier payments to bookings once the deposits arrive.
- What AI Costs a Small Travel Agency and What It Saves — What AI costs a small agency and what it saves.
- Best AI Tools for Travel Agents: Itineraries, Emails and Research — Which tools suit itineraries, email and destination research.
- Travel Agency CRM: What a Small Agency Needs and Where AI Helps — The CRM minimum for a small agency and where AI fits.
- AI Chatbot for a Travel Agency: What to Collect Before Hand-Over — What a website chatbot should collect before handing to you.
- AI Marketing for Travel Agents: A Month of Posts and Emails — A month of posts and emails to bring enquiries in.
- ChatGPT for Travel Agents: Group Trip Info Packs and Departure Emails — An agency owner's pipeline: supplier documents to a facts table, a sourced group pack, a liability check and eight pre-departure emails, with no visa advice.
- How to Get Clients for a Travel Agency: Niche Content, AI Follow-Up — A niche scoring grid, a monthly content plan, lead capture and an AI-drafted five-email follow-up sequence for a small travel agency.
- Travel Agency Advertisement Examples: Write and Test Variants — Four ad angles for one holiday offer, AI-written variants under strict claim rules, and a two-week split test that tells signal from noise on a small budget.
- AI Tools and AI Development: The Complete 2026 Guide — the AI hub, including every tutorial in the AI-for-business series.
Sources: figures in the examples are illustrative supplier quotes, not real prices; no external vendor claims are made. Check every price, time and condition against the supplier's own confirmation.