trend-defying growth expansion 2012 - Edmonton Airports ...

cHEckinG in WHilE cHEckinG out
Airline passengers staying at the Varscona Hotel in
Edmonton’s historic Old Strathcona neighbourhood can
check in for their flight even before leaving their hotel
by using a new web-based service that mirrors the airport’s
self-serve kiosks.
“Guests appreciate the convenience,” says Varscona
General Manager Donica Wilkie-Morrow, who welcomed
the addition of a web-based check-in portal on the homepage
of Varscona’s business centre computers. Airport staff took
the lead in adding the service. “For a hotelier, it’s great not
to have to spend lots of time setting this up,” she adds.
For EIA, web-based check-in offers a cost-effective way
to fulfill passengers’ desire to check in before reaching the
airport. “The self-serve kiosks cost as much as $40,000 each,
so we can’t put one in every hotel,” says Passenger Experience
Manager Kirstin Brown. “This gives us the same outcome,
and the hotels that have bought in love it.”
Web check-in is available at Varscona, sister hotels Metterra
and Matrix and a growing list of other locations including
the Fairmont Hotel Macdonald and the Westin Edmonton.
More than 20 per cent of the guests at the 89-suite Varscona
access the service each day.
nExus tAkEs oFF
Introduced at EIA in mid-2007, NEXUS attracted triple
the expected applicants in its first year and a half. A joint
program between Canada Border Services Agency and
US Customs and Border Protection, NEXUS uses retina
scanners to give pre-approved passengers automatic
clearance to enter the US and Canada. This saves lining
up to speak with a customs agent. Nearly 2,000 travellers
signed up in Edmonton in 2008, at a cost of only $50 for
a five-year enrollment.
“We tie systems together to make passenger
experiences at EIA seamless. NEXUS, along
with US Quick Connect is a great example.
NEXUS members can stay in the passenger
lounge and get faster US Customs and Border
Protection processing – a double benefit.”
[ tim sAk,
mAnAGEr, Airport it ]
Donica Wilkie-Morrow
[ GEnErAl mAnAGEr, VArsconA HotEl ]
HoW did EiA improVE your Airport
ExpEriEncE in 2008?
• US Quick Connect
• New self-serve kiosks in the parkade and the car rental
lobby, raising the total number of kiosks to 28
• Web-based check-in at hotels
• Streamlined Fly Thru queuing area for same-day
frequent flyers to Alberta destinations
• Desks for US-bound passengers to fill out customs
declaration forms
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