IHG Turbo Availability Redesign

Client Background

IHG Product Management

An undisputed leader in the hospitality industry, Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG) employs approximately 375,000 people and manages 6,300 hotels globally.  The company’s brands include well-known names such as Crowne Plaza, Intercontinental, and Holiday Inn. Holiday Inn, one of IHG’s most iconic brands, is a cornerstone of its portfolio, catering to cost-conscious travelers seeking comfortable accommodations at affordable rates.

Challenge

A product called "Turbo Availability" resulted in collection of pages on Holiday Inn’s website aimed to attract cost-conscious travelers by providing a calendar-based tool showing daily low rates across hotel properties. However, the site’s outdated design was not tablet-friendly and struggled to generate revenue. Given market research findings that tablet users often spent more on hotel bookings, Holiday Inn needed to update the site for tablet compatibility and improve conversion. The existing design, which featured a calendar view with hotel listings and map integration, lacked appeal and usability—especially on smaller screens.

Solution

As part of a cross-functional design team—including myself as UX Architect, a Product Manager, and a Visual Designer—we identified that the existing page's layout and visual presentation, combined with its technical incompatibility with tablets, were likely hindering conversions. Specifically, the listings were overly tall and packed with excessive information, making them unsuitable for tablet screens. To address this, I conducted a competitive analysis of over 25 travel websites using Google Docs, enabling the team to benchmark key listing elements. This informed our priorities and guided the redesign of the Holiday Inn listings for improved usability, visual appeal, and tablet compatibility.
Picture
Previously Existing Page
Picture
Competitive Analysis of Listings

Key design changes included:

  • Restructuring Information: Modified the hotel listings to emphasize key details—price, brand, and property photo—while de-prioritizing less relevant information.
  • Tab-Based Navigation: Moved the map to a separate tab, creating a cleaner, tablet-friendly interface that maintained visibility of essential information without clutter.
I constructed wireframes, facilitated collaborative design sessions, and used iRise to create a clickable prototype that served as the basis for further visual design.
Picture
Revised Listing
Picture
Sketches of Page Components
Picture
Sketch of Page Layout
Picture
Wireframe of Page Before Map
Picture
Wireframe of Page with Map
Picture
Interactive Prototype
Picture
Visual Comp in Landscape Format
The Visual Designer used Adobe Photoshop to create a final design that complied with Holiday Inn's brand standards.

Project Scope

We completed the redesign over three months. My initial research and wireframes paved the way for detailed design discussions and helped us advance into a collaborative design phase. The interactive prototype I built helped the Visual Designer complete the final design. Our innovative approach to moving the map and refining the listing display was key to optimizing the experience for tablet users.

Results

The redesigned website received praise from executive management, who anticipated that the improvements would significantly increase conversion rates. While I was not able to confirm the financial impact of the project, as my contract with the company ended shortly after its completion, the updated site clearly demonstrated enhanced usability and aesthetic appeal. It offered a more intuitive and appealing browsing experience that aligned with user expectations and business goals.
Additionally, the collaboration with the Visual Designer fostered a strong working partnership, and the project was recognized internally as a successful step toward modernizing the Holiday Inn digital experience.