STAR ALLIANCE redesigns website

New Look and Feel

Following the recent introduction of its booking engine, “Book and Fly”, Star Alliance has transformed its online presence from an informational site into a distribution channel. The new www.staralliance.com is available as of today, with its look and feel being the most obvious change.

“The introduction of the ‘Book and Fly’ functionality called for a redesign of our online presence, as our website has now enabled customers to actually book and purchase tickets, rather than just obtain information”, said Christopher Korenke, Vice President Commercial at Star Alliance.

“At the same time, we used this opportunity to incorporate some of the technological advances which have become available over the last years.”

A more personalised touch in the interactive area is one of the main additions to the look and feel of the site, with several bona fide customers greeting the users and also proposing areas where the user could navigate to next.

The link to the individual Star Alliance member carriers has also been modified. Instead of statically being displayed, the member airline logos are now found in a rolling display on the right hand side of screen. By clicking on the logos more information about that member carrier will become visible. This new format will allow an easy addition of future member carrier logos.

The site will continue to be available in nine languages – Chinese (simplified and traditional), English, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese and Spanish.
The overall navigation has been clearly defined and is split into several categories: About, Benefits, Fares, Booking, Services, Business Solutions and Press.

The “About” section encompasses general information on the alliance and its member carriers. “Benefits” groups the customer propositions such as Frequent Flyer Programmes, Lounges and Star Alliance Connection Centres. “Fares” provides details on the 13 different fare products currently being offered by the Star Alliance network. The “Booking” button leads to the “Book and Fly” section where customers can plan, book and buy a Star Alliance Round the World ticket. The same section also includes the Fare Products Calculator which allows customers to plan their journey using any of the Star Alliance Circle Fares or Airpasses. Moreover, general flight availabilities can also be found in this section, allowing customers to search for flights on any of the member carriers and then being linked directly to the respective carrier’s booking engine. The “Services” section includes all the information on destinations, visas and health requirements as well as up to date flight and baggage tracing information and a selection of downloadable tools. “Business Solutions” regroups all the products for the business-to-business customer, such as Corporate Plus, Company Plus, Conventions Plus and the recently launched Meetings Plus. The “Press” section has all the information for the media.

The latest redesign is part of an ongoing transformation of the alliance’s online presence. The original website launched in 1997 was largely a static informational site. Over the years, the site has been upgraded with various interactive functionalities and tools, aimed at providing information to the global traveller. With the recent launch of its first ever booking tool, Star Alliance Book and Fly, transforming the site into a distribution channel has started.