CheapAir.com is an American online travel agency, established in 1989 by Jeff Klee. Based in Agoura Hills, California, with an additional office in Chicago, CheapAir is a privately owned company under the parent company AmTrav. According to Travel Weekly, CheapAir.com, under the parent company AmTrav, is ranked #38 on the 2022 Power List of Travel Agencies in the United States.
| Company type | Privately held company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Software, Travel, Internet, Travel agency |
| Founded | 1989 |
| Headquarters | Agoura Hills, California, United States |
Key people | Jeff Klee (CEO) Craig Fichtelberg (President) |
| Products | Software |
Number of employees | 100+ |
| Website | cheapair |
History
editFounded in 1989 by CEO, Jeff Klee, out of his University of Michigan dorm room, CheapAir.com was originally known as 1-800-Cheap-Air prior to the website launch in 2000. In 1993 Craig Fichtelberg became a co-founder and president and began the nationwide expansion from California to Chicago to NYC.
In 2011, CheapAir.com announced Price Drop Payback, a program that guarantees to reimburse any price difference before a flight.[1]
In 2012, after airlines began adding ancillary revenue, CheapAir.com added amenities like WiFi, movies, Live TV, and power ports, to its online shopping display.[2]
In September 2012, CheapAir.com launched “Easy Search”, which lets users enter natural language to search for travel deals, becoming one of the first travel websites to offer semantic search.[3]
In March 2013, CheapAir.com created the first voice-activated flight search app for iOS devices.[4] The app won a Travel Weekly award and was named one of the best apps and websites for travelers.[5]
In November 2013, CheapAir.com became the first travel agency worldwide to accept bitcoin as an alternate form of payment for flights.[6] In February 2014, CheapAir became the first travel agency worldwide to accept bitcoin as an alternate form of payment for hotels.[7]
In February 2015, CheapAir.com became the first U.S. travel agency to book direct flights from the U.S. to Cuba.[8]
In July 2016, CheapAir.com was the first travel agency to launch a monthly payment option with Affirm allowing travelers to "Travel Now & Pay Later" for flights and hotels worldwide.[9]
In October 2022, CheapAir.com goes green with a new sustainable flight feature called “Green Choice.” [10]
References
edit- ^ "Getting Refunds if the Price Drops". The New York Times. May 6, 2012.
- ^ Schaal, Dennis (February 1, 2012). "CheapAir details flights with Wi-Fi, movies, live TV". Phocuswire.
- ^ "CheapAir Makes Searching For Travel Simpler, More Intuitive". Mashable. September 28, 2012.
- ^ "Digital Traveler: Voice search app gives fingers a rest". USA Today. June 5, 2013.
- ^ RIZZO, CAILEY (April 6, 2015). "50 Apps and Websites to Optimize Your Vacation". Travel + Leisure.
- ^ "Cheapair.com CEO on accepting bitcoin Latest News Videos". Fox Business. November 26, 2013.
- ^ "CheapAir.com adopts Bitcoins to book hotels". Usatoday.com. 2014-02-04. Retrieved 2014-02-18.
- ^ "CheapAir selling direct U.S.-Cuba flights online;". latimes.com. 2015-04-15. Retrieved 2016-04-27.
- ^ "CheapAir.com has teamed up with financial services company Affirm". CNN Money. September 2, 2016.
- ^ "CheapAir Goes Green with New Sustainable Flight Feature". ABC News. October 24, 2022.