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One of the choices one has to make when it comes to flying relates to the seating in the airplane.
Most of you don’t like to seat next to the toilets. Taller people want some more leg spaces and prefer to sit in the emergency exit area.
We are the same. We both like to seat next to the window, which sometimes can stimulate some argument. But since Gregor became the airplane fan, he places a lot of attention to the engine’s best view. And how can we know which seat will offer the best view?
Below we will present you the options and tricks you can use to get the desired seat and/or best airplane view.
Budget Airlines
With budget airlines, the only free option in terms of seat selection comes as a random seat assigned to the passenger when checking in. Any choice of the preferred seat comes with an extra cost.
However, one little trick to consider might be to check-in as late as possible within the chosen airline’s permitted time window. As the majority of passengers does not wait until the last minute to do so, chances are that the algorithm assigned them “less desired” seats, meaning that the “more desired” ones – such as the first row or exit row seats – wait unassigned until the last passenger’s check-in.
Therefore, your chance to place yourself in one of the “more desired” seats for free might well be hidden in the proper timing of your check-in.
Big Airlines
When it comes to flying a major airline (thus, not a low cost one), one usually has a chance to select the seat within the chosen category (economy, business, first) for free. This could be done when booking the flight or at a later stage until the check-in. Where you sit is crucial for longer flights as you spent hours and hours on the plane.
If you are often flying long haul and thus think that seat selection (or upgrade) could contribute to the flight’s quality, we recommend you to consider selecting the seat as soon as possible. Other passengers might have the same ideas about their preferred choices, and thus the “first come, first serve” logic applies.
There are many different planes with different seat format. But no worries, there is a unique website that can help you determine where toilets or food section is and provides you with the photos of the view you will get from a particular seat.
Seat Guru
To ensure you make a good seat selection, you have to know the exact model of the airplane that will carry you to your destination and its seat configuration. While this could be a bit tricky to find out just from your head, the airplane model information is usually provided when booking the flight. The information on the seat configuration could be observed from the seat selector on the booking website.
Once this is known, the best source to look up your best seat is Seat Guru. This website/application allows you to input your flight information (date, airports) and provides the exact seat map of the airplane you will be flying.
Each seat is then marked with a specific colour representing pluses and minuses if you are seated there. Those include spaciousness, vicinity of restrooms, noise etc. Based on all the data you get, you are well equipped to pick your favourite seat in the airline’s seat selector or even upgrade (e.g. to economy premium) if you find it necessary.
One last tip for the aviation enthusiasts is to also consider flight reviews on video websites. They mostly carry the information on the exact seat the reviewer was seated at and includes the visual information in this respect (i.e. a view through the window etc.).
We are two travel passionistas, who are always in the minds of planning their next travel trip and creating memories. Get honest tips and all the details, learn from our mistakes and enjoy our travel guides so you can have the best time!
