by James Ruggia
Last updated: 2:26 PM ET, Wed March 12, 2014
Photo via Wikipedia
Lufthansa is moving forward in making its booking interface more and more an online facility. At this time, about 20 percent of the airline's passengers book their tickets at www.lufthansa.com. In Germany, the figure is almost 30 percent. Now Lufthansa is making the site even friendlier and more diversified in what it offers.
The improved site now offers all kinds of travel services beyond simple airline tickets. Customers can now add flights and other optional flight-related services to their virtual shopping cart. This includes seat reservations, travel insurance packages and Deutsche Bahn rail&fly tickets for international flights. The shopping basket, which online shoppers know well from sites such as Amazon, provides online customers with an overview of all the selected services, as well as the total price calculated for these.
Details such as destination and date can now be changed during the individual booking steps, at which point the available flight connections and the shopping cart will automatically be updated accordingly. Up until now, customers had to repeat the booking steps if they made any changes. This means no more starting over at zero, a real online frustration.
The new format is easier to use with a new layout and simpler menu prompts. New icons help customers find their way around when selecting the optimal fare. Using brief descriptions, these icons give a quick overview of the details of the fares available, whether the ticket can be rebooked, refunded or upgraded, as well as information about air miles and free luggage. This will make it possible to compare price and services at a glance. Flight times and the number of stopovers are also displayed more clearly in the new booking interface.
Customers can now reserve seats online for a charge. Customers can reserve their preferred seat from a newly designed seating chart when booking. Seats with more legroom are specially marked on the chart. Existing bookings will be listed in the new "Lufthansa Service Cockpit," under the category "My Bookings" and can be amended there (e.g. ordering special meals, rebooking). In the future, passengers wishing to travel with family or friends can simply send their travel itinerary at any time by email or via Facebook. They also have the option of holding their reservation for 48 hours at a guaranteed price. If they confirm the booking afterwards, this service is free. Otherwise, €30 will be charged. The process for booking tickets for third parties has also been simplified.
Personal assistance via telephone can be accessed during the booking process and is available all around the world. In addition, the customer support team can offer solutions via Live Chat in German and English.
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