Aer Lingus Booking Flow

Overview

The booking flow on the Aer Lingus website is responsible for accepting over 3 million bookings per year and generates over 60% of annual business revenue. In my 8+ years as a Product Designer at Aer Lingus, I’ve redesigned each step of the booking flow on large rebrand, responsive web and accessibility projects, as well as regular updates as part of ongoing optimisation and BAU work.

Below is a high-level summary of the redesigned booking flow stages. (You can learn more about how I solved these problems by clicking through to the individual case studies).

Step 1 – Search details

The booking process begins with the user entering their search details to a search component. To conduct a search, we need to capture the following information:

I designed this ‘search bar’ component in 2018 as the initial step of a new booking flow. The objective of this component is to collect information quickly, allowing passengers to input their preferences and move to the next step. You can take a closer look at the complexities and considerations involved in the design of this component in a separate case study.

Learn more about how I solved this problem ›

Step 2 – Flight Search Results (FSR)

After entering their preferred travel information, users are presented with a list of available flights that match their search criteria. The search results include essential primary information such as flight times and price, and secondary information such as flight duration, flight number, aircraft type etc.

This step of the flow has come through several years of optimisation, making this the most finely-tuned page of the website. Many of the tests we run do not out-perform my original designs, which have proven to be extremely robust over time.

Learn more about I solved this problem ›

Step 3 – Passenger Information

Once flights are selected, the user is asked to enter personal information for all passengers. This step requires details such as names and contact information, and any special requirements (e.g. special assistance needs, loyalty programme details etc.).

*This is a basic form but these form styles (and our speed of delivery) resulted in these form styles being selected by IAG for a group-wide US Contact Tracing Form during the pandemic (to be used by co-op’s British Airways, Iberia, Vueling and Level airlines).

View IAG Contact Tracing project ›

Step 4 – Select Seats

In this step, passengers have the option to choose their preferred seats. Some fare types include seat selection, but for basic fares, choosing a seat involves an additional cost. The seat selection interface displays a representation of the aircraft layout, allowing users to see available seats and any associated costs for premium seating options.

This is a lot of complicated login on this page due to:

· The number of different aircraft types in the fleet
· Short haul (European) versus Long haul (North America) routes
· Business versus economy cabins
· Defined seat sections
· The rules for selecting seats for multiple passengers – e.g. Traveling with an infant etc.

Learn more about how I solved this problem ›

Step 5 – Add Bags

In this step, users are given the opportunity to add checked baggage to their booking. This step includes a clear breakdown of baggage fees and allowances, helping passengers make informed decisions about their luggage needs. The design of this step aims to minimise confusion around baggage entitlements and ensure passengers understand the costs involved if they need to add baggage at the airport.

Step 6 – Add Travel Extras

Aer Lingus offers a range of travel extras to enhance the passenger experience, such as travel insurance, airport lounge access, and priority boarding.

This step allows presents users with optional extras to add to their booking. The presentation of these options can be personalised based on the route, the fare type, booking history and the customer’s propensity to purchase.

Travel extras information needs to be concise and informative, making it easy for passengers to clearly see the benefits and costs.

Step 7 – Review and Payment

In the payment step, users review a booking summary, which includes the flight details, passenger information, selected seats, added bags, and any travel extras. They then proceed to enter their payment details securely. Aer Lingus supports various payment methods to accommodate different preferences. At this stage the user can also use vouchers, Avios points from our loyalty scheme, Revolut and Apple Pay options, which adds complexity to the page.

Step 8 – Confirmation

The final step provides users with a booking confirmation. The primary objective of this step is to reassure passengers that they have successfully concluded their booking and educate them on next steps or where they can go to manage their booking in the future.

The user has just come through a complex booking flow so the opportunity to upsell here is low. This stage provides a text summary of the key information – travel dates, origin and destination, a booking reference number and a link to ‘Manage Booking’ functionality where the user can edit or make changes to their booking.

Results

The Aer Lingus booking flow is designed to be user-friendly and efficient, guiding passengers through each step with clear information and intuitive interfaces. By breaking the booking process into distinct stages, monitoring performance and conducting ongoing testing, we can try to provide the optimal experience for customers.

You can learn more about the individual projects in these case studies ›

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