Surf Cat

Alaska Airlines is offering an innovative fare sale to Hawaii from the US and Canada. Essentially, the bigger the wave the better the deal (from 10% to 30% off, depending on the forecast swells)—and the lower the price. The deals are aimed at surfers, but open to anyone.

“Every airline runs airfare sales,” says Natalie Bowman, Managing Director of Brand and Marketing Communications at Alaska Airlines. “But we want to run “smart sales” based on data.” Alaska has partnered with Surfline.com, popular among surfers for its wave forecasts. Based on wave data, Bowman says, “As the surf goes up our fare goes down from California [and elsewhere] to Hawaii and vice versa.”

Alaska is hoping that the dynamic data (those enticing, hopefully rising waves) and the discount will fuel spontaneous travel among the notoriously mobile surfer population. Dedicated surfers might look at the upcoming waves, the deal and available flights (Alaska offers over 175 weekly nonstop flights to the Hawaiian Islands from the West Coast) and decide, “Hey, I’m going.”

It also doesn’t hurt that Alaska is waiving additional luggage charges on surfboards. On Alaska a surfboard now costs $30 to transport, the same cost as a checked bag. (Other airlines pricing on surfboards as luggage varies wildly, from zero to $200 each way.)

Bowman says Surfline’s forecast is 10 plus days out, with the swell plotted against the discount. So Alaska is offering this promotion for customers who buy between November 4 and 8, and fly by November 20,

How does the sale work? Surfline tracks 14 sites monitoring conditions around the Hawaiian Islands, including data from various areas of Oahu, Hawaii, Maui, Kaui, Lanai and Molokai. Between November 4 and November 8, 2019, Alaska will discount fares based on the following maximum swell heights

•      ≤10 ft. swells: 10% off

•      11-15 ft. swells: 15% off

•      16-20 ft. swells: 20% off

•      21+ ft. swells: 30% off

As waves are measured, the discount will change at noon and 5 p.m. PST daily when Surfline’s forecast API receives updated data. Alaska says that throughout the course of the promotion, the discount level will never drop and can only increase as swells grow.

There will be “landing pages” with a graphic of the swells and the fare on the Alaska website. Passengers can select by market and see the upgraded discount based on the wave heights. Tickets can be purchased at www.alaskaair.com/swell or call 1-800-ALASKAAIR. Bowman notes “You don’t have to be a surfer. Anyone coming through the landing page gets the discount.”

“This partnership with Alaska Airlines opens the door for surfers everywhere to use our trusted surf reports and forecasting for spontaneous adventure,” said Surfline President Ross Garrett. “Surfers are highly traveled wave warriors, and we’re sure they’ll be scooping up these fares.”

Alaska believes the data-based approach underlying the wave height-based sale can drive many other models. “We think it’s a formula we can replicate,” Bowman says. “We might do snowfall in a ski resort.” Alaska, which partners with Seattle Seahawk quarterback Russell Wilson, working to develop a smart sale based on data like Wilson’s total touchdowns or yardage. And in February, Bowman says Alaska will partner with a dating app for a Valentine’s Day-based “smart sale.”

Alaska Airlines may be the 5^th largest airline in the US, flying 46 million people each year, but “This is a way to capture attention with a new audience,” says Bowman. “We want to find ways to disrupt the market. Dynamic discounting is a unique way to deliver a message.”

Obviously, such dynamic discounts will get attention and are a good way to fill seats at the last moment to leisure destinations like Hawaii. Bowman says “The [surfer] audience that is tracking the swell is not huge, but getting recognition is important,” says Bowman. “They’ll think about us.”

Some might call Alaska’s tying fare to wave heights a publicity stunt, but Bowman thinks dynamic pricing has significant potential. “There’s a shift in travel culture. Leisure travel is no longer booked 6 months in advance. People are traveling to have an experience, and they’re not always going to the same places. Sometimes beach, sometimes mountain. It’s aspirational for a lot of people. And we can get you to those leisure destinations, whether its Hawaii for surfing or Boise for snowboarding.”

Promotions based around dynamic pricing for such destinations “will help us fill seats and introduce ourselves to a new audience.”