China Eastern will now be available for travelers directlyverable through Ask AI, KAYAK’s conversational travel planning experience that helps travelers search, compare, and book trips
With KAYAK’s reach spanning over 60 countries and territories, the partnership will broaden China Eastern’s visibility and help the airline showcase its global route network, services, and products to travelers abroad
Metasearch: A Strategic Channel for Airline Direct Sales and Brand Exposure Abroad
“Metasearch engines aggregate real-time flight and pricing data from hundreds of airlines and online travel agencies worldwide, serving as a high-frequency entry point for overseas users planning their trips. By connecting directly with KAYAK, China Eastern can present accurate, real-time flight and fare information to travelers at the moment they’re actively searching, comparing options and ready to book,” says Xin Yang, Director of Digital Transformation and Business Management Department, from China Eastern.
The direct connection gives users the added benefit of being able to book directly with China Easternce
AI Empowerment: An “Intelligent Travel Advisor”
Building on KAYAK’s traditional metasearch capabilities, Ask AI creates a new conversational travel discovery channel for China Eastern Airlines
“When travelers ask open-ended questions like “How can I fly through Shanghai to get to Australia?” or “I want to fly from Los Angeles to Shanghai in September”, KAYAK’s Ask AI feature immediately understands user intent across multiple languages. It then lets travelers start planning their trip in a chat while flight results update live alongside the conversation and guides users to complete their bookings,” says Masahiro Yamashita, KAYAK Senior Director, Commercial Partnerships
“For airlines, that’s where metasearch and AI really come together,” Yamashita continues. “Travelers no longer have to keep adjusting filters or running new searches to find the right flight. Ask AI surfaces complete, bookable itineraries in real time. And an airline’s network strengths and service offerings can be woven right into those recommendations, so travelers build familiarity and trust with the airline throughout the entire planning journey, not just at checkout.”
Advancing Global Growth Strategy
In recent years, China Eastern Airlines has steadily expanded its international route network with a growing number of intercontinental and regional flights. Its partnership with KAYAK brings together comparison search and intelligent, conversational discovery in one platform, giving the airline a unified channel for reaching overseas travelers throughout their planning journey
Looking ahead, China Eastern Airlines stated it will continue to explore collaborations with leading global metasearch engines and AI travel platforms, leveraging new technologies to continuously strengthen its overseas direct sales capabilities and international brand presence, and ultimately win a larger share of the global travel retail market for Chinese airlines
