Paxbird vs Janet: which AI front desk fits your travel business?
Janet runs enquiry intake for catalogue-led travel brands on web chat and voice. Paxbird runs the whole enquiry-to-quote loop on WhatsApp, Instagram and Gmail. Here is how they differ and who each one suits.
Paxbird team4 min read
The short answer
- Janet handles the first step of a travel enquiry for curated, catalogue-led businesses: web chat and voice intake, a Request Card, lead scoring, routing to sales reps and follow-ups.
- Paxbird is built for agencies whose enquiries arrive on WhatsApp, Instagram and Gmail. It goes past intake to pricing: it emails your DMCs, reads their replies and drafts a priced quote for you to approve.
- Choose Janet if most enquiries come through your website or phone and you have a sales team to route them to. Choose Paxbird if enquiries arrive in chats and the slow part is getting prices back.
- Neither publishes prices. Janet sells through demos and advertises a free one-month pilot; Paxbird is in early access with pricing not yet announced.
Janet and Paxbird both put AI at the front of a travel business, where enquiries arrive. They stop at different places. Janet structures the enquiry and hands it to your team. Paxbird carries it on until there's a priced quote waiting for your approval.
What each product is
Janet calls itself an "autonomous decision system for travel enquiries". It handles what it calls the first mile of a request: a traveller starts on web chat or a call, and Janet asks questions that adapt to the trip. It answers only from your approved inventory and produces a Request Card with the details, the gaps and the next action. It then scores the enquiry, routes it to the right relationship manager with a response-time target, and follows up when the traveller goes quiet. Its site lists adventure agencies, boutique operators, wellness retreats, DMCs and small hotels as the businesses it's built for.
Paxbird is an AI front desk for travel agencies. It replies to travellers on WhatsApp, Instagram and Gmail within seconds and asks the questions you set for each trip type. It then sorts each lead into hot, warm or browsing. Fixed packages are priced on the spot from your rate sheets. For custom trips, Paxbird emails your DMCs, chases them, and reads the PDF quotes they send back. You get two or three options with your markup to approve. Once you approve, the quote goes to the traveller on the same channel as a PDF and a link.
Side-by-side comparison
| Janet | Paxbird | |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | Curated, catalogue-led travel brands with a sales team | Travel agencies selling packages and custom trips, from solo agents to small teams |
| Where enquiries come in | Web chat embedded on your site, and voice calls | WhatsApp, Instagram and Gmail (Messenger planned) |
| What it does first | Adaptive questions, answers from your approved inventory | Replies in seconds, asks the questions you set per trip type |
| Lead handling | Scoring by intent and urgency, routing to reps with SLAs, stalled-deal reasons | Sorts every lead into hot, warm or browsing |
| Getting prices | Not stated; prepares a "hold/quote-ready pack" | Prices fixed packages instantly; emails your DMCs, chases them and reads their PDF quotes |
| Quote output | Request Card and decision pack for your team | Two or three priced options with your markup, sent as a PDF and a link |
| Human control | "Janet standardizes intake. Agents make decisions." | Every quote waits for your approval; Paxbird pauses when you reply yourself |
| Follow-ups | Chat and call follow-ups when travellers go quiet | Follow-ups for quiet travellers and slow DMCs |
| Integrations | Website embed (WordPress, Wix), CRM, Slack, email, webhooks | Your WhatsApp number, Instagram and Gmail; keep using the WhatsApp Business app |
| Pricing | Not published; demo-led, free one-month pilot advertised | Not announced; early access |
Where Janet is stronger
- Voice. Janet takes phone calls as well as chat and keeps both in one request. Paxbird starts with messaging and email.
- Your website. Janet drops into WordPress and Wix sites as a widget. If your enquiries start on your own website, Janet meets them there.
- Sales teams. Routing to relationship managers with response-time targets, plus a record of why each deal stalled, is useful when several people sell.
- Fixed catalogues. Janet answers only from your approved inventory and keeps a decision trail. That suits operators selling a defined set of trips, retreats or departures.
- A free trial. Janet's LinkedIn page advertises a free one-month pilot.
Where Paxbird is stronger
- It lives in the chat apps. Most agency enquiries start as a WhatsApp message or an Instagram DM, not a website form. Paxbird answers there, on your own number, and you can keep using the WhatsApp Business app on your phone.
- It gets the price. The slowest part of a custom trip is waiting on DMC rates. Paxbird emails your DMCs, chases them and reads their PDF replies. Fixed packages are priced straight from your rate sheets.
- It drafts the quote. You review two or three options with your markup already applied, approve them, and the traveller gets a PDF and a link in the same chat.
- It steps back when you step in. If you reply from your phone, Paxbird pauses in that conversation, so the traveller never gets two answers.
Which should you choose?
- You run a boutique operator, retreat or DMC with a fixed catalogue, and enquiries come through your website or by phone: Janet fits that workflow.
- You run an agency where enquiries arrive on WhatsApp and Instagram, trips are custom, and you wait on DMCs for prices: Paxbird is built for that.
- You have a sales team and need routing and response-time targets across reps: Janet covers more of that today.
- You're a solo agent or a small team losing night-time enquiries: Paxbird answers round the clock and leaves you only the approval.
What we couldn't confirm
Janet's LinkedIn page says it handles WhatsApp, social and portal enquiries, but its website shows only web chat and voice. We've described what the website shows. Janet doesn't publish prices or say whether it can produce priced quotes, so ask for both in a demo.
Frequently asked questions
Does Janet work on WhatsApp?
Janet's LinkedIn page says it handles enquiries from WhatsApp, web, social media and calls, but its website only shows web chat and voice intake. If WhatsApp matters to you, ask Janet for a WhatsApp demo before deciding.
Does Janet create priced quotes?
Janet's website says it prepares a hold or quote-ready pack once a traveller picks an option, and it recommends only from the operator's approved inventory. It does not say it generates priced quotes, PDFs or itineraries, or contacts suppliers for rates.
How much does Janet cost?
Janet does not publish prices. Its contact page offers a custom demo to explore plans and pricing, and its LinkedIn page advertises a free one-month pilot.
How much does Paxbird cost?
Paxbird has not announced pricing. It is onboarding agencies in small batches from a waitlist, and agencies will see the price before they are asked to pay.
Which is better for a small agency that sells custom trips over WhatsApp?
Paxbird is designed for that case: it answers on WhatsApp, Instagram and Gmail, gets rates from your DMCs and drafts the quote. Janet is designed for operators with a fixed catalogue, a website and a sales team.
From “hi” to a priced quote, while you sleep.
Paxbird is in early access and onboarding agencies from a waitlist. Pricing has not been announced.
Join the waitlist