Christmas and New Year offer messages on WhatsApp are pre-approved templates that Indian businesses send to opted-in customers between mid-December 2026 and early January 2027, from Christmas sale alerts to New Year's Eve bookings. Every Christmas or New Year wish or offer from a business is a marketing template under Meta's rules, so it needs customer opt-in and template approval, while order confirmations and booking confirmations are utility templates.
Below: 20 copy-ready templates for retail, D2C, cafes, salons, gyms, travel, schools and B2B dealers, plus a send calendar, approval tips and real cost maths. Christmas falls on Friday, 25 December 2026 and New Year's Day on Friday, 1 January 2027, so the year-end sale week runs from Saturday, 26 December to Thursday, 31 December.
Christmas and New Year 2026-27 send calendar
The holiday season in India is long. Gifting and party shopping start in mid-December, the week after Christmas is year-end sale season, and the first ten days of January bring clearance sales and New Year resolutions. The calendar below is our guidance, not a fixed rule.
| Date | Moment | What to send | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 to 14 December | Preparation | Submit and approve templates, collect opt-ins, start corporate gifting offers | All businesses, B2B and gifting |
| 15 to 20 December | Christmas sale lead-in | Sale announcement, gift guides, plum cake pre-orders | Retail, D2C, bakeries and cafes |
| 21 to 23 December | Last shipping days | Delivery cut-off reminder, salon party slots | D2C, salons |
| 24 December (Thursday) | Christmas Eve | Pickup and delivery updates for existing orders, store timings | Cafes, bakeries, retail |
| 25 December (Friday) | Christmas Day | Warm wishes only, no hard selling | All businesses |
| 26 to 30 December | Year-end sale | Sale live, New Year's Eve bookings, year-end trips, dealer schemes | Retail, restaurants, travel, B2B |
| 31 December (Thursday) | New Year's Eve | One last-call offer in the morning, booking confirmations | Restaurants, event venues |
| 1 January 2027 (Friday) | New Year's Day | New Year wishes, brunch offers | All businesses, cafes |
| 2 to 10 January | Clearance and resolutions | January clearance, gym memberships, school admissions | Fashion, gyms, schools |
If you ran Diwali campaigns, reuse what worked. Our Diwali offer message templates follow the same structure, so your festive voice stays consistent from October to January.
20 Christmas and New Year WhatsApp message templates
Copy these into your template manager. Templates 1 to 17 go in the marketing category, and templates 18 to 20 in utility. Variables appear as {{1}}, {{2}} and so on. Each template starts and ends with fixed text, because Meta rejects templates that begin or end with a variable. The last line names the button to add, and every marketing template should also carry a Stop promotions quick reply.
Christmas and New Year wishes
These wishes carry no offer, but a greeting from a business is still a marketing template. Keep them short and warm, and send them only to customers who opted in.
1. Simple Christmas wish (no offer)
Hi {{1}},
Wishing you and your family a merry Christmas full of warmth, good food and time together.
Thank you for being part of the {{2}} family this year.
Tap Store timings to see our holiday hours.
2. Hinglish Christmas and New Year wish
Namaste {{1}} ji,
Aapko aur aapke parivar ko Christmas aur naye saal ki dher saari shubhkamnayein.
Saath bane rehne ke liye shukriya, team {{2}}.
Holiday timings ke liye Tap Store timings.
3. New Year thank-you wish
Dear {{1}},
As 2026 comes to a close, thank you for choosing {{2}}.
We wish you a healthy and happy New Year 2027.
Tap Visit us to see what is new in January.
Retail and D2C: sale, gifting and clearance
4. Christmas sale lead-in
Hi {{1}}, our Christmas sale starts on {{2}}.
Get up to {{3}}% off on gifts, decor and party wear at {{4}}.
Tap Notify me to get the first look.
5. Gift guide for D2C brands
Hi {{1}}, still looking for Christmas gifts?
Our gift guide has picks under ₹{{2}} with delivery before 24 December from {{3}}.
Tap See gifts to shop.
6. Last day to order before Christmas
Hi {{1}}, today is the last day to order for delivery before Christmas.
Orders placed on {{2}} before {{3}} reach most cities by 24 December.
Tap Order now to check your pincode.
7. Year-end sale is live
Hi {{1}}, the {{2}} year-end sale is live.
Flat {{3}}% off on selected styles till 31 December.
Tap Shop sale to see the collection.
8. January clearance
Hi {{1}}, new year, fresh wardrobe.
Our January clearance at {{2}} has an extra {{3}}% off on last season's stock till {{4}}.
Tap Shop clearance to browse.
Cafes, bakeries and restaurants
9. Plum cake pre-order from a bakery or cafe
Hi {{1}}, plum cakes and Christmas cookies are back at {{2}}.
Pre-order by {{3}} for pickup or delivery on 24 or 25 December.
Tap Pre-order cake to book yours.
10. New Year's Eve dinner booking
Hi {{1}}, ring in 2027 with us at {{2}}.
Our 31 December dinner has a set menu from ₹{{3}} per person and live music.
Tap Reserve table to book your slot.
11. New Year's Day brunch
Hi {{1}}, start the new year slow.
{{2}} is serving a New Year brunch on 1 January from {{3}}.
Tap Book brunch to reserve.
Salons, gyms, travel and schools
12. Salon party-ready slots
Hi {{1}}, getting ready for Christmas and New Year parties?
{{2}} has hair, makeup and nail slots open from {{3}} to 31 December.
Tap Book slot to pick a time.
13. Gym New Year resolution offer
Hi {{1}}, planning a fitter 2027?
{{2}} has a New Year membership offer: {{3}} months for the price of {{4}}, valid till 10 January.
Tap Know more to plan a visit.
14. Year-end trip packages
Hi {{1}}, New Year in Goa or the hills?
{{2}} has year-end packages from ₹{{3}} with stays and transfers included.
Tap See packages to check dates.
15. School or coaching admissions with a wish
Dear parent of {{1}},
{{2}} wishes your family a merry Christmas and a happy New Year.
Admissions for 2027-28 open on {{3}}. Tap Enquire now to book a campus visit.
B2B dealers and corporate gifting
16. Dealer year-end scheme
Dear {{1}},
Thank you for your business with {{2}} this year.
Our year-end dealer scheme gives {{3}}% extra margin on orders placed by 31 December. Tap Place order to share your requirement.
17. Corporate gifting hampers
Hi {{1}}, planning Christmas or New Year gifts for your team or clients?
{{2}} offers corporate hampers from ₹{{3}} with a GST invoice and bulk delivery.
Tap Get quote to share quantities.
Utility: confirmations and delivery updates
These three are plain updates about an order or booking the customer already made, so they qualify as utility. Do not add a discount or a "shop more" line, or Meta will treat them as marketing.
18. Order confirmation (utility)
Hi {{1}}, your order {{2}} is confirmed.
Total: ₹{{3}}. Expected delivery: {{4}}.
Reply to this message if you need to change the address.
19. New Year's Eve table confirmation (utility)
Hi {{1}}, your table for {{2}} guests at {{3}} on 31 December at {{4}} is confirmed.
Please show this message at the entrance.
Tap Change booking if your plans change.
20. Out for delivery (utility)
Hi {{1}}, your order {{2}} is out for delivery today.
Our delivery partner will reach you between {{3}}.
Tap Track order to see live status.
Marketing or utility: category and cost of each message
Definition: a marketing template is any WhatsApp template that promotes a product, offer, event or brand, including festive greetings from a business. A utility template is a non-promotional update about a specific order, booking or account the customer already has. Meta reviews every template and can re-categorise one that is labelled wrongly.
Get a 1-minute BSP audit on WhatsApp
Drop your WhatsApp number — we line-item your current invoice against Meta India rates in under 60 seconds. India-hosted, DPDP-compliant.
| Message | Category | Meta charge (approx, check Meta's rate card) |
|---|---|---|
| Christmas or New Year wish from your store | Marketing | approx ₹0.86 per delivered message |
| Christmas sale, gift guide or year-end sale | Marketing | approx ₹0.86 per delivered message |
| New Year's Eve dinner or brunch offer | Marketing | approx ₹0.86 per delivered message |
| Gym membership or school admissions offer | Marketing | approx ₹0.86 per delivered message |
| Order or table booking confirmation | Utility | Meta's lower utility rate; free when sent inside an open 24-hour customer window |
| Your replies when a customer messages you first | Free-form reply | Free inside the 24-hour window, per Meta |
| Delivery update plus a discount line | Marketing | approx ₹0.86 per delivered message |
Do not file offers under utility to save money. Meta can reject or re-categorise those templates, and a pattern of mislabelled templates puts your account at risk. For the full rate breakdown, see our guide to WhatsApp Business API pricing in India.
What a Christmas WhatsApp campaign costs
The maths is customers multiplied by sends multiplied by the per-message price. On RichAutomate Client Pay, Meta bills its own fee to you directly and RichAutomate adds a platform fee of ₹0.10 per message. With Meta's India marketing rate at approx ₹0.86 per message in 2026, a marketing send costs about ₹0.96 in total.
- Example: a cafe with 2,000 opted-in customers sends three marketing messages: a plum cake pre-order on 16 December, a New Year's Eve dinner offer on 27 December and a brunch offer on 1 January.
- Volume: 2,000 customers x 3 sends = 6,000 messages.
- Meta's share: 6,000 x approx ₹0.86 = about ₹5,160, billed by Meta.
- RichAutomate's share: 6,000 x ₹0.10 = ₹600.
- Total: roughly ₹5,760 for the whole season.
Marketing messages are charged when they are delivered, so sends that Meta does not deliver because of its per-user frequency limit are not billed by Meta. Your replies to customers who message you inside the 24-hour window are free. Pay-as-you-go has ₹0 setup and ₹0 monthly, so a small business pays only for what it sends.
Opt-in, frequency and segmenting your festive list
Meta requires opt-in before any marketing template: the customer must have agreed to receive WhatsApp messages from your business. Collect it at billing, with a QR code at the counter, on your website or through a click-to-WhatsApp ad, and keep a record. Meta also limits how many marketing templates one person receives across all businesses in a period, so in December some sends fail with error 131049 even when everything is set up correctly.
Our working rule for the season: three to four marketing messages per customer across 15 December to 7 January, sent to the right segment. Blocks and spam reports pull down your quality rating, and a Red rating can restrict your sends just when the year-end sale needs them. If that happens, follow our WhatsApp quality rating recovery guide. Your number's messaging limit also caps how many unique customers you can reach in a rolling 24 hours; see WhatsApp messaging limits and tiers before you plan a large broadcast.
| Segment | How to tag | What to send | What to skip |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recent buyers | Purchase in the last 90 days | Christmas wish, early access to the year-end sale | Deep discount blasts that undercut what they just paid |
| Lapsed customers | No purchase for six months or more | One comeback offer during the year-end sale | Repeated reminders |
| Gift and corporate buyers | Past bulk or gift orders | Corporate hampers in the first half of December | Single-item consumer offers |
| Local walk-in customers | Opted in through a QR code at the counter | Store timings, New Year's Eve events, brunch | Shipping cut-off reminders |
| Language preference | Asked at opt-in | Hindi, Hinglish, Malayalam or English version of the same template | Sending one language to everyone |
For lapsed customers, the year-end sale is a natural reason to get back in touch; our win-back message templates for inactive customers show how to keep that one message honest and useful.
Getting Christmas and New Year templates approved
- Pick the right category: wishes and offers are marketing; confirmations and delivery updates are utility.
- Give sample values: every variable needs realistic sample text, such as "Priya", "Brew and Bake Cafe" or "20", so reviewers can read the final message.
- Go easy on emojis and capitals: one or two emojis and normal sentence case read better than a line full of symbols or ALL CAPS, both for reviewers and for customers.
- Keep offers honest: avoid invented countdowns, fake stock limits or "guaranteed" claims. State the discount, the date and the condition.
- Use clear buttons: short call-to-action text such as Shop sale or Reserve table, and your full domain in URL buttons rather than a link shortener.
- Add language versions: Meta lets you add more than one language under the same template name, so a Hindi and a Malayalam version can sit beside the English one.
India notes: where and how Christmas and New Year matter
Christmas is a national holiday in India and is celebrated well beyond the Christian community. It is a major festival in Goa and Kerala, along the coasts of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, and in Christian-majority states of the North-East such as Nagaland, Mizoram and Meghalaya. In metros like Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Chennai and Delhi NCR, many customers mark it as a season of cakes, gifts, lights and parties.
- Language: Hinglish in Roman script works well across north and west India; use Malayalam for Kerala, and English for most North-East and metro audiences.
- Tone: for a mixed customer list, "Season's greetings" or "Happy holidays" can sit beside "Merry Christmas" without excluding anyone.
- New Year is commercial: 31 December parties, trips to Goa and hill stations and end-of-season fashion sales make 26 December to early January one of the busiest selling windows of the year.
Mistakes to avoid this holiday season
- Blasting the full list on Christmas morning: 25 December is for family. Send a short wish to engaged customers and keep offers for the days around it.
- Sending at midnight on 31 December: phones are flooded with greetings then. A New Year wish on the morning of 1 January is more likely to be read.
- Putting an offer in a utility template: it is re-categorised or rejected, and repeated mislabelling hurts your account.
- Leaving out the Stop promotions button: unhappy customers then block or report you instead of opting out.
- Ignoring opt-outs and limits: keep messaging someone who asked you to stop and your quality rating falls. No provider can promise that a number will never be restricted; opt-in, relevance and frequency rules are your best protection.
- Approving templates too late: templates submitted on 23 December can miss the Christmas window entirely.
Send Christmas and New Year templates with RichAutomate
- Template manager: submit marketing and utility templates with variables, buttons and language versions, and track approval in one place.
- Segmented broadcasts: send to opted-in tags such as recent buyer, lapsed customer or corporate buyer, and schedule each step of the calendar.
- Opt-out handling: customers who tap Stop promotions are excluded from later campaigns automatically.
Pricing stays simple: pay-as-you-go has ₹0 setup and ₹0 monthly. On Client Pay, Meta bills its own fee directly and RichAutomate adds ₹0.10 per message. Teams that want more automation can choose Starter at ₹499/mo, Pro at ₹899/mo or White-label at ₹1,199/mo. Every account gets a 14-day free trial with 100 credits. To take your WhatsApp Business API number live you need business verification with a GST certificate or an MSME/Udyam certificate. See the full breakdown on our RichAutomate pricing page.
The Christmas sale lead-in opens around 15 December, so templates should be approved in the first week of the month. Start your free RichAutomate trial, load these Christmas and New Year templates and get them approved before the holiday rush.