India’s digital privacy landscape has entered a new era.

With the introduction of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, and the Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025, India now has its first comprehensive framework governing the collection, use, and protection of personal data.

For the hospitality industry, this is not just another regulatory update or an IT-only concern. Hotels and hospitality brands are directly in scope, and the impact spans the entire guest journey — from booking engines and loyalty programs to Wi-Fi access, guest feedback, and email marketing.

The good news?

This shift is not about sending fewer emails. It’s about sending more relevant, respectful, and trusted communication built on consent and transparency.

Why India’s updated email consent rules matter now

How recent privacy changes affect hotel communication with guests

The updated data protection laws in India introduce clearer expectations around email consent for hotels operating in or marketing to Indian residents.

From pre-arrival upgrades and on-property messaging to post-stay follow-ups and loyalty offers, email remains one of the most powerful channels hotels can use to engage guests. But under the DPDP Act, hotels must now be explicit about why guest data is collected and how it is used.

Hotels and restaurants are classified as data fiduciaries, meaning they are responsible for ensuring that guests’ personal data is collected lawfully, used for defined purposes, and protected with reasonable security safeguards.

This applies not only to local operators, but also to international hotel groups that process personal data that belongs to Indian residents.

At its core, this change reflects a broader shift in guest expectations. Guests increasingly want to understand why a hotel is contacting them and expect their preferences to be respected across every touchpoint. This shift is already visible in India, where research from PwC shows that 82% of consumers consider personal data protection essential to trust, while a majority are willing to share their data when it leads to relevant, clearly explained experiences. In practice, this means consent alone is no longer enough, context and relevance now matter just as much.

What’s changing for hotel marketers

Key shifts in consent, purpose, and guest data responsibilities

For hotel marketing teams, the DPDP Act brings a clear shift in how guest data and email marketing must be managed day-to-day.

Consent must be clear and purpose-driven

Consent can no longer be assumed or implied. Marketing teams need visibility into who they are emailing, why they are emailing them, and whether valid consent exists for that specific communication.

Guest data rights are now operational

Guests now have explicit rights to access, correct, or request deletion of their personal data. These rights require real workflows and systems behind the scenes, not just policy language.

Legacy practices create risk

Static email lists, manual exports, and disconnected tools make it difficult to demonstrate compliance and increase the risk of non-compliant outreach. “We’ve always emailed this list” is no longer a safe or effective strategy.

What this means in practice for marketing teams

How this affects email lists, systems, and daily workflows

In a consent-first environment, marketing teams need systems that make responsible data usage easier, not harder.

Consent needs to be visible and usable within everyday workflows. When consent signals are scattered across booking engines, PMS, CRM tools, and spreadsheets, it becomes difficult to act with confidence.

Disconnected systems also slow teams down. Marketers need to quickly understand where guest data came from, what permissions exist, and how that data can be activated, without relying on assumptions.

Campaigns need to be aligned to guest intent and lifecycle stage, whether that’s pre-stay communication, post-stay engagement, or loyalty marketing.

In practice, faster and more confident marketing now depends on better infrastructure, not shortcuts.

Helping teams apply consent in everyday marketing work

Revinate’s CDP creates the “Single Source of Truth” required by the DPDP Act, merging fragmented data into compliant, actionable profiles.

Send with confidence, knowing consent is respected

Revinate enables hotels to activate guest data based on defined consent status. Marketing teams can confidently segment audiences and send campaigns only to guests who have provided appropriate permissions, while automatically suppressing contacts where consent is missing or withdrawn.

This reduces the risk of non-compliant email marketing and gives teams confidence when hitting send.

Activate guest data with intention, not guesswork

With Revinate, campaigns, segments, and automations can be clearly aligned to purpose, such as pre-stay, post-stay, loyalty, or promotional offers. This aligns with DPDP principles around using data only when needed, helping hotels avoid using guest data more than necessary.

Why this goes beyond a generic CRM

Traditional CRMs are designed to store contacts and track activity. They often treat consent as a static field, separate from how marketing campaigns are actually executed.

Revinate’s CDP connects consent, guest preferences, stay context, and engagement history in a single profile so marketing decisions are made with context, not assumptions. This makes it easier for teams to apply DPDP principles in everyday work, without relying on manual checks or external tools.

The result is fewer workarounds, less risk of overusing guest data, and more relevant communication across the guest journey.

One guest profile, fewer risks, better decisions

Stop guessing, start knowing. Under DPDP, “implied consent is a liability. Revinate automates the verification process so you never hit ‘send’ on a risk. Revinate’s customer data platform unifies guest data from multiple systems into a single rich guest profile. This makes it easier to understand what data is held, keep information accurate, and see how data is being used across channels.

Hotels that centralize guest data often find it easier to move faster — not slower — when launching campaigns, while reducing compliance risk.

Supporting guest data rights

Revinate helps hotels efficiently locate guest profiles, update or correct information, and suppress or remove data when required. This supports timely responses to guest data requests and aligns with DPDP expectations around transparency and control.

Secure data handling and access controls

Revinate applies industry-standard security practices, including encryption, role-based access, and controlled permissions by user and team. This ensures internal access to personal data is limited to what’s necessary and supports requirements for reasonable security safeguards.

Cross-border readiness and accountability

For international hotel groups, Revinate’s privacy and security framework supports lawful cross-border data transfers and clear role definitions. Hotels remain the data fiduciary, while Revinate acts as a data processor, supported by transparent data processing terms and documentation.

How trust and relevance shape guest engagement

Consent-first marketing isn’t just about compliance — it directly improves performance.

When hotels communicate with guests based on consent and relevance, they typically see higher engagement, fewer unsubscribes, and stronger long-term relationships. Guests are more receptive when they understand why they are being contacted and trust that their data is handled responsibly.

Trust and performance are deeply connected. Compliance isn’t separate from results; it helps drive them.

Turning data privacy into a direct booking advantage

To adapt to India’s data protection requirements, hotel marketing teams should focus on a few immediate actions:

• Review how and where guest consent is captured
• Audit existing email lists and remove unclear or outdated contacts
• Ensure campaigns are tied to clear guest intent and purpose
• Use systems that respect consent by design, rather than manual workarounds

These steps don’t just reduce risk; they improve clarity, efficiency, and guest experience.|

Looking ahead

India’s data privacy framework reflects a broader shift happening across hospitality worldwide.

For hotel marketers, the focus going forward will be less on one-off compliance actions and more on building habits around consent, clarity, and responsible data use. These principles increasingly shape how guest communication is planned, executed, and measured.

As expectations continue to evolve, having the right tools and processes in place helps teams adapt without disrupting day-to-day marketing work.