How do guests join the waitlist?
When the service they want is full, the booking page offers the waitlist. Your team can also add guests during service.
A restaurant waitlist that refills cancelled tables.
When a service is full, guests join the waitlist instead of booking somewhere else. When a table frees up, offer it in one tap: the next party gets a text and an email with a link that holds the table for 30 minutes.
- Included from the Service plan
- Offers by text and email
- Each offer holds the table for 30 minutes
1 · The offer
Keller, 4 · 12:30 cancelled
09:14A table for 4 is free at Alpine Lake House on Sat 26 Dec at 12:30. Book it before 09:44: alpinetable.com/w/k3f9
Text message · 09:14
Rossi, 4 · booked from the waitlist
2 · Live service
Live · 20:12Covers 31/44
T1
Moreau · 2Keller · 2
T2
Dubois · 4Ahmed · 3
T4
Martin · 6
T7
Walk-in · 2Lefèvre · 5
3 · Your floor
Dining room
FreeSoonSeated
T1T2T4T7T9T12B1B2B3Terrace →
Why it matters at altitude
Full on the best days. Gaps after a cancellation.
Mountain restaurants fill up on sunny weekends and holiday weeks, then lose tables to the weather. A waitlist keeps the guests you would have turned away, ready for the table someone else gives up.
01
Demand comes in waves
Sunny weekends and holiday weeks fill fast. Without a list, the guests you turn away are gone.
02
Cancellations come late
Wind, snow and lift closures change plans on the morning itself.
03
Phoning round takes time
Calling guests one by one during service isn’t realistic. A text with a booking link is.
How it works
Offer the table. They book it.
The waitlist sits in your live service view, so the team can offer a freed-up table without leaving the service.
Guests join online
When a service is full, the booking page offers the waitlist instead of a dead end. You can add guests yourself too.
One tap to offer
Offer the table to the next party, and they get a text and an email with a booking link straight away.
Held for 30 minutes
The link holds the table for 30 minutes. After that the offer expires and you can offer it to someone else.
Details filled in
The link opens your booking page with the date, time and party size already filled in. No account needed.
Booked from the waitlist
When the guest books through the link, the booking shows it came from the waitlist.
Your choice of texts
Waitlist offers have their own switch in Settings → Notifications.
Waitlist, overbooking or walk-ins?
Three ways to handle a full day.
Each has a cost. A waitlist is the only one that never promises two parties the same table.
Waitlist with offersAlpineTableOverbookingWalk-ins only
If everyone turns up
Waitlist with offersNobody waits: you only offer tables that are free
OverbookingGuests wait, or are turned away at the door
Walk-ins onlyYou seat who you can
If someone cancels
Waitlist with offersThe next party gets a text to book
OverbookingThe extra booking covers the gap
Walk-ins onlyThe table waits for someone to walk in
For the guest
Waitlist with offersClear: a booking, or no booking yet
OverbookingRisky: a promise you may not keep
Walk-ins onlyUncertain: a trip up the mountain for a maybe
For the team
Waitlist with offersOne tap per offer
OverbookingManaging a queue at the door
Walk-ins onlyExplaining wait times at the door
With AlpineTable, offers only go out when you choose to make one.
Fewer gaps to fill
Stop cancellations from turning into no-shows.
A text the day before
Guests get a reminder 24 hours before with a link to cancel, so the table comes back to you in time to offer it.
Alpine Lake House
Text message
Tue 18:03
Alpine Lake House: your table for 4 on Sat 26 Dec at 12:30 is confirmed. Manage or cancel: alpinetable.com/b/7Hq2
Fri 12:30 · 24 hours before
Reminder: your table at Alpine Lake House for 4 on Sat 26 Dec at 12:30. Manage or cancel: alpinetable.com/b/7Hq2
Delivered · no texts between 21:00 and 08:00
Ask for a card on busy days
A card guarantee on larger tables and peak services. Nothing is charged when the guest books.
Add a card to confirm
Alpine Lake House holds your table for 20 minutes while you add a card.
Card guarantee
No payment now. Alpine Lake House may charge €25 per guest (€150 for 6 guests) if you don’t come, or if you cancel less than 24 hours before.
4242 4242 4242 424212 / 28
Confirm with card
Card details go straight to Stripe, the payment provider of Alpine Lake House. AlpineTable never sees your card number.
FAQ
Common questions
Is the next party contacted automatically?
You choose who to offer the table to, and AlpineTable sends the text and the email straight away.
How long does an offer last?
30 minutes. If the guest doesn’t book in that time, the offer expires and you can offer the table to someone else.
Do guests need an account?
No. The link opens your booking page with the date, time and party size filled in.
Which plan includes the waitlist?
The waitlist is included from the Service plan.
Turn a cancellation into a booking.
A waitlist that texts the next party, included from the Service plan.