Seats, Plugs, Entertainment, and Connectivity are King when booking a flight: Expedia.ca now offers Flight Scores

What is the first thing you consider when booking a flight? For most it is likely price, for some it may depend on the number of connections along the way or the amenities provided onboard. What if travellers had access to a simple, user- friendly review system that could help enhance flight shopping with unbiased flight scores, amenity data, and rich content?

Expedia.ca recently partnered with Routehappy, creators of the definitive, unbiased Flight Score, to offer Canadians just that for more than 225 airlines worldwide. The data is continuously researched from hundreds of sources and validated to offer a reliable and personalized measure of flight quality. What this means for travellers is that Routehappy flight scores appear on Expedia.ca flight listings, providing customers with a new tool to leverage when choosing their next flight. Routehappy scores are based on a data-driven algorithm and comprised of aspects of the flight experience that flyers care most about, including:

• Aircraft – what type of plane will you be flying on?
• Seat Type and Layout– will your seat be wide or narrow, how much legroom will you have, and will the layout of the seats enhance or diminish your comfort?,
• Amenities – Will there be inflight entertainment? What about power outlets, internet access, and/or streaming movies and music?
• Fresh Food – will fresh snacks or meals be offered, and are they free or served for a fee?
• Trip duration – How does your flight stack up against the shortest route you could take?

Flights are provided a score out of 10, as illustrated below:

Flight scores tend to skew lower when a trip comprised of multiple segments is meaningfully longer than faster options, such as a trip with an especially long layover or two stops. Category weightings are based on extensive market research and testing, and are tailored by economy cabins (economy/premium economy) and front cabins (business/first class) and other factors such as flight length and region, as applicable. To achieve a high score, a flight or trip needs to index above average in many or all aspects of the flight experience and have elapsed timing that compares favorably to the fastest option on the given route. Basic flights without amenities or with compact seating, and significantly longer trips than other options, score on the lower end of the rating system, with scores less than 7.0.

Routehappy scores are currently applied to 225 airlines sold on Expedia.ca. The addition of Routehappy data to Expedia.ca brings useful information to flight shoppers worldwide and helps airlines highlight their differentiated product enhancements and offerings.  It’s just another way Expedia.ca helps Canadians book their trip, their way.