Skyscanner
Redesigning the Skyscanner homepage to inspire, not just search
An independent consultancy project to reimagine Skyscanner's homepage — shifting it from a search utility into a travel inspiration platform that drives hotel and car hire upsell alongside flights.
Skyscanner had a search problem disguised as a homepage problem.
Skyscanner is one of the world's leading travel comparison platforms — known primarily for flights. But the business wanted to grow cross-sell revenue across hotels and car hire, and the homepage wasn't set up to support that ambition. It was a search form first and an experience second — optimised for users who already knew what they wanted, not users who were still deciding.
The brief for this consultancy engagement was to conceive and design a new homepage that would feel more like a travel brand and less like a search engine — while addressing several known product challenges around transparency, inspiration, and cross-sell visibility.
"Redesign the Skyscanner homepage to better upsell hotels and car hire, surface more inspirational editorial content, and integrate a social community layer — without losing the simplicity that makes Skyscanner trusted."
The data confirmed what the brief suspected — users needed more than a search box.
I began with a quantitative research phase, drawing on industry travel trends and consumer behaviour studies to establish the evidence base for the redesign. The findings validated the strategic direction clearly.
User needs research surfaced three core requirements: transparent pricing visible before committing to a search, the ability to carry research across multiple devices, and more editorial content about destinations to support decision-making earlier in the journey.
Product challenge analysis identified four structural gaps in the existing homepage: most users only used Skyscanner for flights despite the broader offering; the homepage didn't encourage exploration; cross-selling was weak; and deals were not surfaced in a way that reflected the user's personal context.
Expedia and Kayak — learning from what worked and what didn't.
I conducted a structured competitor analysis of Expedia and Kayak — the two platforms most comparable in scope — to identify what Skyscanner could learn from and what it should deliberately avoid.
Two problem statements. One user, one business.
With the research complete, I defined the problem from both perspectives — the user's and the business's — to ensure the design solution served both without compromising either.
Task mapping, two user scenarios, and paper sketches before any pixels.
Before moving to the interface, I completed a thorough service design phase — mapping the tasks users perform across four steps, tracing two realistic user scenarios end-to-end through the product, and producing hand sketches to explore layout directions without committing to a visual direction too early.
A homepage that earns the full travel planning session — not just the flight search.
The final concept was built around a single organising principle: every section of the homepage should give the user a reason to stay and explore, not just search and leave. Each module was designed to address a specific user need identified in research, while simultaneously supporting one of Skyscanner's business objectives.
Every change was grounded in something the research said.
| Decision | Rationale | Alternative considered |
|---|---|---|
| Unified search bar — Hotels and Car Hire alongside Flights by default | Most users only used Skyscanner for flights despite the wider offering. Making the other services equally accessible in the primary search form removes the friction of discovering them separately. | Keep flights-first with tabs for other services — preserves existing behaviour but misses the cross-sell moment entirely. |
| Rich photography for category switching — not icon tabs | Flights, Hotels, and Cars represented as images rather than icons creates an aspirational, inspirational feel that aligns with the brand direction — and makes the full offering more visually equivalent. | Icon-based tabs — functional but cold, and implicitly positions Hotels and Cars as secondary to Flights. |
| Prices shown upfront in the destination grid | 74% of travellers report concern about hidden costs. Displaying "From £X" prices prominently addresses this directly — building trust before the user has even begun a search. | Prices revealed on hover or after search — familiar pattern, but actively reinforces the hidden-cost perception the research flagged. |
| Traveller-type filter for offers — not a generic promotions grid | A generic offers grid treats all users the same. Filtering by travel identity (Families, Friends, Solo, Business) makes promotions feel relevant and personal — increasing the likelihood of click-through. | Static promotional cards — simpler to build, but low relevance to most users at any given time. |
| Community social feed as a homepage section | 83% of travellers research destinations before booking — a social feed of real experiences keeps that research on Skyscanner rather than pushing users to Instagram or TikTok. It also gives the brand a human, trust-building layer. | No social layer — cleaner, but cedes the social discovery moment entirely to external platforms. |
| Editorial content section above the fold on mobile | Mobile research confirmed that users take longer to book and value content that helps them decide. Surfacing editorial on mobile — not just a search bar — respects the research-first nature of the mobile journey. | Search-only mobile experience — optimised for speed, but misses the majority of mobile users who aren't yet ready to search. |