London Heathrow is the UK’s favourite airport while British Airways is the nation’s favourite international airline, a survey of over 3,700 UK travellers by TripAdvisor has revealed.
The annual Air Travel Survey also revealed British holidaygoers’ pet likes and gripes about the experience of booking and taking flights.
More than a fifth (21%) of those polled named London Heathrow as the UK’s best airport. Manchester Airport was a close second, cited by one in six (17%) of those polled, followed by London Gatwick in third (15%).
For the second year running, British Airways was named Brits’ favourite airline with nearly a quarter of the vote (23%). Virgin Atlantic polled 13% to claim second spot, while just over one in 10n (11%) named Emirates as their favourite airline. Ryanair polled just 2% of the votes cast.
The survey also revealed the extent to which smartphones have become synonymous with air travel. Four in 10 Brits (40%) say they have researched flight options on their mobile, while more than a third (34%) have used their mobiles to check into flights and nearly a fifth (19%) have used their phone as an electronic boarding pass.
When asked which aspects of air travel had most improved in the last five years, nearly three quarters of Brits named the ease of booking online (74%), while nearly half (47%) cited comparison shopping options on flight search sites like TripAdvisor.
The survey showed a shift in attitude since last year’s survey, which had revealed that price was the most important factor for passengers when picking flights.This year, fewer travellers named price as a key factor when choosing flights than those citing departure and arrival times or the option to fly direct, suggesting a majority of Brits are now prepared to pay more for convenience.
When asked which added fees they found most annoying, a third of British passengers (33%) named and shamed checked baggage charges. Seat selection charges were second on Brits’ pet hate list, cited by over a quarter (28%) of those polled.
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