Creating the future of the vacation experience

The Ask
Define the new end-to-end digital guest experience for WestJet Vacations.

Client
WestJet

My Role
Associate Experience Director

Project Date
Oct 2019

Platform
iOS, Android, and Responsive Web

Our Vision

Remove all hurdles between a guest & their perfect vacation.

Experience Principles

Focusing only on how much something costs will result in a race to the bottom. Our consumers are willing to pay more to guarantee they get the experience they want. We have to showcase why spending a little more can go a long way.

Show value beyond price

Give guests control

Give guests the ability to customize their stay in a way that makes them feel valued

Planning a vacation can be stressful, so the more we can help reduce that stress, the more likely they are to choose us. We need to utilize our expertise to help our guests make decisions.

Reduce cognitive load

Set guests up for success

Often a WestJet vacation might be a guest’s first vacation in a new country, Making sure they have the right information at the right time is key to ensuring their trip goes smoothly so they choose us next time.

Elevating the search experience.

The existing search experience was crowded, overwhelmed with discounts, and wasn’t inspiring for our users. We chose to simplify the search, highlighting only the best value deal for users, while inspiring them with beautiful photography, hand-picked excursions, and a clear view of the rooms and properties where they would stay.

Creating new ways to vacation

The fastest-growing customer segments were solo travellers and those looking to work remotely, but WestJet’s current offerings were geared mostly toward families. We introduced two new concepts, WestJet Work From Away and WestJet Masterclasses. Work From Away would guarantee remote workers a co-working space and strong Wi-Fi, while Masterclasses offered once-in-a-lifetime trips to solo travelers seeking cultural enrichment through learning new skills.

Making every vacation accessible

For many customers, a vacation is a luxury that only happens every few years. We wanted to lower the barrier towards taking a vacation by introducing the ability for guests to pay in installments over time or to be able to split payment directly with friends or loved ones so no one has to put up a lump sum upfront.