The survey found whilst the airline magazine is the least popular free item on-board, with 57% saying they would be happy to see the back of them if it meant cheaper flights, a whopping 43% said if airlines dropped the prices they would be happy to completely forgo complimentary food and drink during their flight.
British holidaymakers would be happy to see airlines drop on-board entertainment if it meant cheaper flight prices, a survey conducted by leading beach holiday specialist On the Beach has found.
The survey of 1,000 British holidaymakers asked which on-board services they would happily forgo if it meant cheaper prices, with 40% saying airlines could ditch on-board entertainment altogether.
The survey found whilst the airline magazine is the least popular free item on-board, with 57% saying they would be happy to see the back of them if it meant cheaper flights, a whopping 43% said if airlines dropped the prices they would be happy to completely forgo complimentary food and drink during their flight.
Whilst some passengers would be happy with no on-board entertainment for cheaper flights, 27% would accept seats with no recline whilst 5% would be happy with smaller seats if it meant they could grab a cheaper flight.
Perhaps music to the ears of low cost airlines, 3% of British travellers said they would accept plastic seats, whilst 2% said they would be happy with no on-board toilets if it meant cheaper flights.
Top five things Brits would forgo for cheaper flights:
1. Complimentary magazines
2. On-board entertainment
3. Complimentary food and drink
4. No seat recline
5. Smaller seats
Happy to pay more
The survey also asked respondents what they would be happy to pay more for with more than one in three (35%) saying they would splash out a little more on flights if airline seats were made more comfortable and softer.
If airlines do insist on serving complimentary food on-board, British travellers are looking for better quality food with 27% saying they would happily pay more for their flight if the food and drink available was of better quality than the current offering.
Complimentary WiFi is the third most popular choice for travellers, with 22% saying they would splash the cash on flights if free WiFi was made available, whilst 13% said they would like more seat recline before spending any more on their flights.
More than one in 10 British travellers (11%) would prefer the airline to offer complimentary tablets such as iPads, instead of on-board entertainment, to browse at their leisure throughout the flight.
Top five things Brits would pay more for:
1. More comfortable, softer seats
2. Better quality food and drink
3. Complimentary WiFi
4. More recline
5. Complimentary tablets
Alistair Daly, Chief Marketing Officer at On the Beach comments: “Our report suggests that cost really is king as many British travellers would happily forgo complimentary services such as on-board entertainment if it meant cheaper flight prices. Whilst free magazines and food and drink are not high on the priority list for Brits, our survey shows that for many people, comfort during the flight is the most important element.”
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
