ONLINE bookings are proving to be popular among residents in UAE as Swiss International Air Lines registered an increase of 21 per cent in revenues for 2012 following a growth of 34 per cent in online tickets purchased for the whole of last year, both figures compare to the same period in 2011.
With the popularity of online reservations projected to further grow, Swiss has expanded the range of services and options it offers its customers on swiss.com.
Passengers can now make a provisional reservation at a guaranteed fare for up to 72 hours. The carrier now offers online customers the option of selecting their seat and in addition to the classic outward-and-return flights; travellers can now also book ‘open-jaw’ arrangements or multi-stop itineraries conveniently online.
“More and more customers are realizing the convenience of booking their flights online. As such, our passengers from the UAE will be pleased with our new expanded service for online booking as it provides further flexibility, leaving them plenty of room to decide on a specific flight booking as well as assurance on the price they want to purchase their tickets,” said Hazel Saldanha, Swiss International Air Lines marketing, public and customer relations manager for UAE and the Gulf.
Under the new service, for a fee of approximately Dh100 ($27) per booking, the customer can make a reservation at a guaranteed fare for up to 48 hours in the lowest Economy Class fare category and for up to 72 hours in any other fare class. The new option will give travellers more time to plan their journey and/or coordinate it with friends and then cancel the booking if necessary.
The airline is also offering customers booking their flights online greater comfort and convenience by enabling them to select their seat(s) in advance in any seating class on long-haul services and in Business Class on short-haul flights.
Swiss has also enhanced its online booking options for customers with more unusual travel routings. In addition to conventional outward and return flights to a particular destination, swiss.com users can now also book open-jaw flights – flying to one destination and returning from another – or routings including one or more intermediate stops.