When can I message my guide?

Messaging between a traveler and a guide only opens up once a booking has moved past a request and become a real, paid tour.

Chat unlocks once your booking is confirmed

You'll see "Messaging will unlock once this booking is paid" on a booking that's still Pending or Payment Required. As soon as payment goes through and the booking is Confirmed, a chat thread opens automatically and stays open through Completed as well.

Why chat is locked until then

Keeping chat closed until a booking is confirmed protects both sides. It means every conversation is tied to a real, paid booking rather than an open-ended request, and it keeps early planning — pricing, availability, requests — on the record in your booking rather than scattered across messages.

What to do before chat unlocks

Before a booking is confirmed, everything you need to arrange should go through the booking request itself: your requested meeting time and location, and any notes in the Special requests field. See Request and confirm a tour if you haven't sent your request yet.

Once you can message

Once chat is open, it's the right place to confirm final details — exact meeting spots, timing for later days on a multi-day tour, or anything else that's easier to sort out directly. See On the day of your tour for what to expect around meeting up.

Keep payments on the platform

If anyone asks you to pay — or to be paid — outside Rainbow Tour Guides once you're chatting, that's against our terms and isn't protected by our support team. You can flag a specific message directly from the chat window if something feels off. See Scams and off-platform payments for more on spotting this.

Still need help?

If you believe someone is behaving inappropriately in chat, see Report a safety concern.