It’s travel Tuesday, where we check in with travel expert Claire Newell from Travel Best Bets for tips to make your next vacation a breeze.
Do you dread the “airline seat squeeze?” Trying to fit your carry-on and your legs in a space not comfortably made for many of us can be a challenge.
Well, good news. One by one, airlines have been rolling out programs that offer slightly larger main cabin seats and a little extra legroom – for a fee, of course.
You might have heard the terms that have started popping up: Economy Plus, Economy Comfort and Preferred Seating. It seems like just about every airline is joining the “buy added legroom” market and, yes, it’s officially a trend.
Some of the airlines offering extra legroom in economy for a fee now include United Airlines, JetBlue, American, Delta, Air France and Virgin.
If you don’t have elite status and aren’t flying on a full-fare ticket, you’ll have to pay to sit in those enhanced economy seats for fees varying from $50 to $150 per person.
Be careful when you opt to upgrade your seat though. There are some airlines that charge extra money simply to make a seat selection towards the front of the plane that usually doesn’t have extra legroom.
For example, both Delta and American have “preferred seats” that are usually aisle or window seats towards the front of the cabin.
If you don’t want to shell out extra money to get prime seating you still have options.
Look for a good seat as soon as you book your ticket. Check back the week of your flight, as some people may leave a good seat behind if they get upgraded or change their travel plans.
Use the online check-in as soon as possible to get access to seats that may not have been available pre-booking, such as exit rows or bulkheads.
The website Seatguru.com offers comparison charts to help you compare seat options across carriers and different aircraft. Expertflyer.com offers free seat alerts that allow travellers to be notified when a better seat becomes available on their flight.
And Airfarewatchdog.com has a chart of fees charged by airlines for upgraded and preferred seating.