The cold weather can be overwhelming, especially when it comes to buying a ticket. Just getting one out of town is likely a hurdle you haven’t tackled yet. To ease the anxiety, one of the most luxurious travel companies has revealed the secrets of their empire, from caviar and Champagne to tailoring their trips to fit every traveler’s taste.
Delta Air Lines, which traces its history back to 1924, serves nearly 700,000 passengers a day on over 300 domestic and international flights. The company is currently growing and continues to redefine the traveling experience, incorporating ever more new features into the experience from back-to-front service to even food tailored to the cuisines of the various country’s. Here are seven lessons learned from Delta’s travel guide:
1. Travel in style.
While Delta’s motto is “Always Connected,” its business class sections offers them plenty of opportunity to personally connect to their customers. Delta has partnered with Bulgari to create the Delta GoldBerghese Suite and in China, you’ll find the Delta luxury suite with a yang restaurant.
2. Treat staff with care.
In March, Delta conducted a survey of their frontline workers, who are responsible for making Delta’s aircraft ready for the next flight, both inside and out. On every flight, Delta crew make sure to deliver their A-game with smiles, and hang their head high to express their pleasure. In fact, in order to empower staff to do their best, Delta offers the chance to earn their trip to the front of the plane, a $2,000 Hilton Worldwide award every year. The company also offers Team Delta membership for $20,000. It provides the opportunity to take advantage of multi-city flight awards as well as membership in the Thank You Worldwide fan club.
3. Adapt well.
Delta is constantly evolving the traveling experience, with their “SmartRide” and “SmartRide Collection” allowing you to pick up their luggage for a fee. If your bags are lost or stolen, Delta assigns someone to help get your luggage back. They are constantly improving with programs like Delta Connection, which provides first-class hotel rooms at each terminal to book your fare through Delta. They’ve also modified their selection of free food options so they better meet the gastronomic preferences of their customers. They now offer items like Emmental cheese, foie gras and for teetotalers there’s even a women’s sports package for a glass of wine with your workout.
4. Go big or go home.
Delta continually adds new features to their domestic aircraft, which are then spread to their international fleets. Recently, they have opened a 10-storey lounge named the Delta Sky Club as a first-class travel experience. This is in addition to a dedicated crew lounge called Delta-Deliver Bed after Delta’s top priority for safety. They are also developing Sky Club Lounges for select international airports, with priority access to free meal or drinks during the flight and lounge access at 24 hours in advance for a set price.
5. Innovate for every region.
Delta has further applied their ingenuity across the world. For example, in China and India, their Delta Blue program will offer Delta customers complimentary access to the airline’s entire domestic fleet via the airline’s website. Delta also encourages their customers to bring their own comforts, so wherever they travel, they’ll have the resources they need.
6. Add new features.
If the sky is the limit, check out Delta’s initiatives in the sky, such as in-flight entertainment. There are full-flight and ground-to-sea movies from Paramount, Paramount Animation, Rovi, Fox, Sony, and Warner. And with high definition, customers will be able to change the channel with on-demand entertainment.
7. Snag upgrades.
Delta’s in-flight experience is an upgrade from other airlines, yet there are lots of opportunities to get even more. With more than 60 percent of seat miles now served as Economy Flights, Delta adds new amenities such as inflight ordering or satellite-based entertainment with its Delta Select program. With upgrades like these and their most recent pilot program, jet-loaders can now take less airtime but still save on ticket cost, according to Delta.