Airport Check-In Kiosks On The Rise
If you fall into the category of people who prefer dealing with staff when you hit the airport, it looks like you’re out of luck. A new survey from airline IT specialist SITA suggests that check-in kiosks — already the default option for the major Australian airlines — will continue to flourish. The press release boasts:
Nearly 49% of airports believe that self-service could become the primary means for passenger check-in in two to five years and only 27% stated that they would not have self-service as their primary channel in the check-in area.
For myself, I’d rather check-in online and skip as much of the process as possible, but that does rather presume you have access to a printer. Failing that, I’d rather use a kiosk than stand in a queue, presuming there’s enough of them around (Australian airports are relatively generous in this department compared to some in the US). What’s your preferred check-in approach? Tell us in the comments.
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Comments
kiosks are fantastic for domestic flights. Love them. Quick, easy, done. I agree that doing your boarding pass at home or the office before you even get there is easier, but nothing beats the simplicity of sticking your frequent flyer card in a slot, hitting a couple of buttons and you’re on your way.
International travel is a different story. I was recently on my way back from Europe and was ushered to a shiny new kiosk where I managed to side step the attendant and headed for a real person behind a counter with a counter in front of her. My ticket was great – had all my luggage checked all the way through back home, but I had a flight from Shipol, Heathrow, Hong Kong to Brisbane and I wanted to tweak my seating arrangements and adjust flight times and things in Hong Kong. You can’t do this with a kiosk with multiple hops – so much easier to sort it out at a counter. Even if I didn’t want to change things it’s so much better to double check and confirm things such as luggage transfer and all that with a real person.
In Australia I use online check in & failing that the kiosk. Going to the counter to check in is now a last resort!
In Joburg South Africa I mercifully head for the Qanats CLub chekc in & avoid the crush in the economy line