H and I are flying (gulp) basic economy on United for a red eye to Europe. We can’t afford business class, and I’m desperate for us to get some sleep on the flight. I was thinking about upgrading to premium economy for a bit more room and comfort, but then it occurred to me it might be more cost effective to just buy one more seat to give us a little more room and have the whole row to ourselves. Has anyone ever done this, and if so, is it a good alternative to slightly upgrading to PE?
I assume I would need to call the airline for this purchase, as I can’t buy two seats under on passenger name, right? TIA for any guidance/advice.
Personally I would use the money to upgrade to economy plus so you have more leg room to stretch out. IMO, that’s more important than having an empty adjacent seat. Plus you’ll exit the plane earlier so you’ll get through customs faster.
I’m not sure an extra seat provides more comfort, especially if you’re looking to get better sleep. Upgrade to Premium Plus if you can afford it. It’s not just “a bit more room” (you’re probably thinking of domestic premium economy) — the seats in Premium Plus are much wider and recline significantly more than in economy. It’ll make for a far more comfortable flight and you can actually get some sleep.
I’m a coach flyer. Premium economy is a luxury we have done a couple of times to/from Europe, but those times I don’t recall it being $$$ than buying an extra seat? Have you priced that?
Do you know if your plane has 3 seats on the sides? Sometimes they have 2, and that’s what we will get. If it’s 3, then I get us two aisle seats. I prefer the aisle anyway, as I have very long legs and always have the backpack under my seat. I agree with those that say it’s better to do the premium economy vs 3 seats. The leg room is what gets me the most.
I’m a terrible, terrible public sleeper, but ear plugs definitely help me. I would also say Benedryl, but I’m immune to it now. Great for acute allergy attacks during the day at work. Not so good on planes or when I need sleep. With the ear plugs, I tend to lightly dose here and there, and that’s usually enough to keep me going once I’m there. If you stress about sleeping, you’ll struggle more. Remind yourself that just being quiet with your eyes shut is a lot better than nothing. You’ll be OK!
A lot of the times, the overseas flights have better leg room than other planes - though not always. My worst flight was our first trip to Europe - the return flight. For some reason my mom thought it was a great idea to have us all together lined up in the big middle aisle. So I was stuck in the of a 5-6 seat row all squished with a crying baby behind me for 8 hours - and I hadn’t yet learned about ear plugs. I’m surprised I’m still sane. Or maybe that’s my problem
I would opt for premium economy. If you are going to be in economy I would get bulk head or emergency exit rows(pay up for seat choice).
I have traveled back in business with some cheaper airlines, like TAP or ITA.
I agree with other posters that you wouldn’t be better off with one empty seat. You get more perks for being in Premium economy.
We just came back from a European trip and flew premium economy on American – thought it was worth the extra money. Seats were 2-4-2 versus 3-4-3 in economy. On American premium economy is a small, separate section which is nice. I’d get details on United’s premium economy before considering an upgrade. Food still terrible on American LOL. (I have made a decision not to take any long flights without bringing a sandwich.)
I’d check with airline if you want an extra economy seat. Of course need to get two seats together so it depends on availability.
What airline are you thinking of flying? Different airlines use different premium economy seats and location can be really important. For example, the recline on AirFrance premium economy seat on the A350 is excellent…if you are seated in the bulkhead. Everyone else basically has another passenger in their lap for the flight if the person in front of them reclines fully.
It might be worth checking out the different airlines flying your route and doing some in depth research at flyertalk or watching YouTube videos of people’s experiences flying different seat classes on airlines.
Just going to put it here that my dad did this and they put someone in the seat. Seat was empty, flight was full so they filled it. He was obviously livid, they didn’t care. I don’t remember the airline.
It’s a good option. As I mentioned in my previous post, the seats are wider, recline much farther, and are located in a separate section. You also get an amenities kit, and the food is better.
On international flights, it’s called Premium Plus; on domestic routes, it’s Premium Economy, which isn’t significantly different from regular economy. You get about 2 inches of extra legroom and in-seat power, although many newer planes now offer power outlets throughout the cabin.
You can look up your prospective flight numbers on SeatGuru and see the configuration of the plane and specific notes about how different seats that are of the same class do vary. For example there may be a window seat where the window does not align with the row, or there is a something under the seat in front of this particular seat so you end up with half the legroom you’d expect, or the row in front of this row doesn’t recline (so you have more room), or this row is close to bathrooms and galleys, and that row doesn’t recline or lacks overhead space.
They mark the seats on each configuration with white for average seat, green for best seats, yellow to indicate there may be a caution about that seat, and red for worst seat. For each seat you can then also hover over them and see the specific note about that seat.
It’s very informative and I check the seat maps for each flight while I am making decisions about which flights to purchase, and which seats to pick.
They put someone in the seat he paid for to keep empty??? Thats just wrong!! Hope he complained up the chain and got his $ back!!
What equipment is the flight? Is it a Boeing 777, 787 Dreamliner, Airbus A350? Look at the plane’s layout to see what the best seat options are for you. Delta has economy plus (well they have made some name changes but thats what it was) and then premium select , which I don’t recall being all that much more but the seats are the old first class seats that have lots of room, recline (though aren’t lay flat like the Delta One seats) and get all the same level of service as first class. Look into that too. Very worth it.
To clarify, for comparison, that’s what Delta offers. Wondering if United’s tiers are similar. But the plane/equipment/metal mentioned above are those commonly used for international flights. Another option is to book window and aisle (if there are 3 seats in the row), especially if the plane is not crowded. And watch the flight for inexpensive upgrades.
United has three classes on flights to Europe (source: I’m a frequent flyer and will be flying to Europe again next week)
Economy: within this there is standard economy, basic, and plus (2” extra leg room). The seats are all the same and you get the same food and amenities.
Premium Plus: already described in my previous posts
Polaris Class: business class, with lie-flat seats and premium service.
Sounds like United’s Premium plus is similar to Delta’s premium select (there are differences but its off topic here). There is a United airlines facebook group where you can also get a ton of helpful suggestions.
I am a terrible sleeper on planes and am too cheap to upgrade.
I have found that NOT having the backpack under the seat is a game changer. So if that means paying for an extra bag (less than upgrading or purchasing an empty seat) I’d do that. Wear a hat with a visor (a comfortable, cotton, breathable baseball had) bring a shawl, pashmina, something like that, and arrange it over your head (i.e. with the visor allowing the shawl to fall away from your neck, not strangling you), pop an ambien, and wake up in 7 hours. No alcohol or coffee a few hours before the flight. Bring your own shawl so you aren’t wondering how disgusting the airlines blanket is, plus yours will be soft not a scratchy acrylic/poly blend. Keep your seatbelt buckled. Pop in flexible ear plugs.
This works either window seat or aisle if you’re in the middle of a three seat row (so the person in the middle can go to the bathroom by using the other side to exit).
Board the plane with the bare minimum so you don’t have anything by your feet, in the pocket in front of you, on your lap. The ambien will knock you out even if you are sitting up right. I’ve used an eye mask in addition to the shawl-- mixed results, the elastic bothered me a bit. But if you are very sensitive to light, try the eye mask under the shawl.
I can sleep on a plane, but not if I am cold. I bring a shawl with me in case I couldn’t get a blanket. I have few glasses of wine and I am out. I don’t bother with business class going to Europe because I would be sleeping anyway.
Basic Economy could mean you board last and there may not be overhead space available, resulting in gate checking your bag.
I think you pay for your seat assignments.
We did economy with our daughters, putting them behind us so we could recline. I have very short legs, so it’s really all the same to me.
Our daughter sets alerts for seat upgrades when she travels and has been able to score for not much $$.
I’ve heard that just because you’ve bought that extra seat, doesn’t mean you’ll keep it open. As others have said, regular economy could get you a checked bag, earlier boarding, seats next to each other, etc. It’s something to think about.
I’ve decided that in my old age (haha) premium economy is the way to go. We’re actually going a step higher than PE on Delta on our trip this fall because it wasn’t that much more and the benefits to our joints and how we feel when landing after 9 hours are immeasurable.
If not flying business, my favorite seats are bulkhead, ideally in premium. Once the plane is aloft and you can bring your bags down, I use a backpack or inflatable footstool (new toy) to put my legs up (much more comfortable for me) and it’s almost as good as business class from a comfort point of view,if not the privacy and service aspect. Of course, my legs are short - some bulkheads don’t have enough room for tall people to stretch legs out.