EasyJet launches U.S. website filled with Britishisms

EasyJet, the UK low-cost carrier, launched a U.S. website, but some things get lost in translation — or the lack thereof.

A new dedicated U.S. homepage enables travelers to search for flights in U.S. dollars, and the calendars have been Americanized, month/day/year.

Fine so far.

But, apart from these nice touches, bring along a translator to navigate the Queen’s English on the new site.

To save you time, here’s our short guide to the homepage, detailing some of the terms used on the U.S. website, and what they actually mean in the 50 states.

• Transport refers to car rentals and airport parking;

• City Breaks are quick getaways to urban destinations;

• Administrative Fee is code for a booking fee;

• Allocated Seating means reserved seats.

• Timescales roughly mean timelines.

And, regarding the site’s section on timescales for rolling out allocated seating, EasyJet says it expects to introduce reserved seating by the end of November 2012.

EasyJet reportedly introduced the U.S. homepage because thousands of travelers from the U.S. were already accessing EasyJet’s UK site even though the airline doesn’t fly to the U.S. The popular low-cost carrier operates more than 600 routes in 30 countries in Europe, Asia and Africa.

Still, if an airline or any other company launches a website in a foreign country, they should take the time to ensure that they really convert the site into the native lingo, and not just go through the motions.

In other words, instead of using terms like “allocated seating,” just allocate more resources into the website launch, and do the job right.