Generally
my budget dictates that on long haul flights, an economy seat is all I can
afford. I often don’t even compare the cost of different seats on long haul
flights, so imagine my surprise when booking a recent trip between Australia
and the UK, and I found the premium economy seat was cheaper than a seat in
economy.
Having
already made the journey between Australia and the UK four times last year, I
wasn’t really enthusiastic about spending 30+ hours crossing the world again
TWICE, but I needed to, so I began researching flights
and made my surprising discovery.
If
you’ve never had the pleasure, here’s why we should all fly premium economy or
better:
Comfort
The
obvious benefit of travelling in any class above standard economy is comfort.
Seats are larger and more generously spaced out the nearer you get to the
pointy end of the plane and there is more opportunity to lie flat, making sleep
more achievable.Food
Nobody flies for the food but it does make a difference, especially if plane food is all you have to eat for over 24 hours. Not needing to do battle with plastic cutlery is always a benefit too.
Baggage
Checked
baggage allowances tend to increase with different seat prices.
Convenience
Being
nearer the front of the plane means you spend less time waiting to board and
disembark the plane. It’s useful if you’re hurrying to make a connection, or
just impatient. It always amazes me how long it takes people to disembark airplanes.
Flexibility
The more
the price of a ticket, the more flexible the airline will generally be about
making changes to the booking, such as re-routing or simply changing dates of
travel. Of course the reason we don’t all fly in first class is the price.
The cost
of first and business class fares can be astronomical. However, as I
discovered, it is worth checking the other fares available on the flights you
need. I’m not entirely sure, but I believe it is availability that largely
dictates the prices. When I needed to book flights two weeks ahead of a late
December departure from Australia to the UK, I knew I would face limited
availability and expensive prices. I was still surprised to find premium
economy to be cheaper than the very limited availability in economy.
Lesson
learnt.
So, is
it worth the extra cost to upgrade? Well, it’s really a personal question. It
depends on your budget, requirements, what you’re prepared to tolerate, and to
a certain extent, your size.
As
someone who sleeps fairly easily on flights, I don’t need a lot. I just need to
be left in peace. Sometimes the discomfort of flying economy is bearable as I
spend most of the trip asleep (and I know I will have more money to spend at my
destination!)
Extremely
tall people are no doubt terribly uncomfortable in the economy seats. I
consider myself average sized, and I start to feel claustrophobic as soon as
the person in front of me reclines into my lap.
If you
don’t need to take a lot of baggage and your travel dates are set, an upgrade
may seem like an extravagance that can’t be justified.
Still,
having enjoyed premium economy on this recent trip (and the saving it
represented!) I know I will always double-check the prices for the upgraded
seats from now on…
Have you
flown in premium economy? Did you think it was worth the price?
