United introduces tiered fare categories, giving customers more options for each ticket type | News
United today announced a new tiered fare structure that makes it easier for customers to find the flight experience that best suits their preferences.
United will introduce differentiated fare categories, giving customers more options for each type of ticket.
The airline will offer three fare options in premium cabins for long-haul international flights, US transcontinental flights and select flights to Hawaii: Basic – a new option, standard and flexible, which will join the airline’s existing basic, standard and flexible fares in economy.
The front cabin will also be named United Polaris on select U.S. transcontinental flights and select longer flights to Hawaii. Customers who purchase standard or flexible fares in United Polaris on these flights will receive access to the United Polaris lounge. Customers who purchase the base option for United Polaris will still have access to the United Club.
United has redesigned the shopping pages on its website and mobile app to accommodate this change and expects to launch the new categories in select markets this month, expanding to additional long-haul international flights, US transcontinental flights and longer flights to Hawaii later this year.
“These new tiered options give customers more choice and make it easier to find a rate that delivers the benefits they want most – whether that’s great value, additional benefits or maximum flexibility,” said Andrew Nocella, United’s Chief Commercial Officer.
Overview of rate categories
For domestic and short-haul flights and travel in United Economy cabins on long-haul flights, there will be no change to what is included in the basic, standard and flexible categories – they will simply be displayed in a new, clearer way on United’s store pages.
In premium cabins on long-haul international and transcontinental U.S. flights and flights between the airline’s hubs in Newark, Washington DC and Chicago and Hawaii, the basic category offers customers the lowest price, the standard category offers benefits such as free seat selection, extra checked baggage and the ability to make changes, and tickets in the flexible category are fully refundable and provide all the benefits included in standard tickets.
