Plane seats - refused to swap

It wasn’t a computer error sadly seating near children is in front of so all of that was covered.
if the lady hadn’t heard of the error then it sounds like it is him - and the fact he won’t give you access wow!

leaving it to 24 hours before creates this issues nothing else (and booking 3rd parties like Expedia)

I would've moved as would not want to be sat next to a crying child, however if I'd paid extra for that seat I wouldn't be happy either! Your dh should've paid if he'd wanted you to sit as a family. Although, tbf, a 5 and 8 year old should be able to sit nicely on a plane without kicking off - and if they can't be trusted pay the extra!

If you want to sit with your dc you need to book the exact seats when buying the tickets.

Your dh probably didn't do this.

Making a drama in these situations is never ever a good idea. It could have been a perfectly fine adventure for your 5 year old to sit where they did. You could have visited and made sure he had something to read or do.

How long was the flight?

Your dh sounds awful.

Why thank you @ThePure.

Sounds like your husband has been too dense to notice that booking airline seats has become more complicated recently. Book cheap flights and you get charged to sit together. He’s tried to do it on the cheap previously and got lucky, this time it’s been one half truth after another and by the time you found out it’s too late. In the immortal words of MN you have a DH problem not an airline or other passenger problem, his attitude is what you need to “sort out” before you fly back. I would have put the kids sitting together and promised / bribed them with whatever it took to get them to behave.

This is actually genius and would definitely work

People pay for their chosen seats why should they move because the OPs miserly husband didn’t pay for his family to sit together . The only dick is the husband .

I suspect the error was he didn't pay yo select seats and by the time he went to check in there were none left together.

The only solution you really have here is to go online and book a new flight home for yourself and your dc where you can pre book the seats. Then make it very clear to your dh that he is the idiot who messed up the booking, not you and therefore you will be doing all the booking from now on.

If you want to take control of this for the return leg, then put £100 cash x 2 in your pocket and offer it each person/couple that you want to move.
That will pay back the cost of the seats they have reserved plus give a little incentive. That puts the power in your hands and away from your husband.

Why do you think people pay for seats? You do understand there’s reasons for that choice. If I’d paid I would only move if the parents paid me to move, I’m not losing out on money for some strangers. If I hadn’t paid then yeah no problem.

What is the matter with your husband?. Horrible!

They don’t want to sit next to a child, but neither do they want a shitty middle seat when they’ve booked and paid for the seat of their choice.

TBH I would move if a parent and child were distressed unless I had a good reason not to but I would judge them for being cheeky fuckers too.

Agree completely with you and mine are both NT and one absolutely wouldn’t have sat there between two men. She would have 100% had a melt down.

Mine has appeared now!

easyJet sat me in row 19 , my 6 year old in row 26 .
luckily she wasn’t bothered , and a man did offer
to swap with her ( she declined ! ) , but now I know there’s no real age limit for them to sit child away from adult .
You pay or take your chance , that’s the bottom line .

Or mine! It was perfectly reasonable, with no offensive content, images or brand names 🤷🏻‍♀️

No idea why my comment has been hidden!

One of his mistakes was waiting until 24 hours before the flight to check in. That used to be the norm, but it online check in opens much earlier now.

Are you already checked in for your return flight? If not, get him to do it NOW (with you there) so you can see the seat allocations. That way, if there are no seats together, you have time to call the airline or Expedia and sort it out.

(for context, I am away now and have known my seat number for outward and inbound travel for months)

Even if you'd been able to check in 24 hours before,it's very likely that you would not have been able to get seats together. You need to pay when you book the tickets to 100% be sure you get the seats you want.

If you book through Expedia you still do all the check in stuff through the airline’s own app or website. Or at least you did last time I use them.

Which airline was it OP? Some, like Ryanair, let you check in up to 30 days in advance. With BA it’s 24 hours. With most airlines you can pay to select seats anytime between booking and check in. With some it’s included but you pay extra for stuff like extra leg room.

I’ve just come if the flight where all the family were seated apart. They had booked it last minute so didn’t have a choice.

The stewards asked if people minded moving and the two that did got a free drink and snack when the trolley came round.

Goodness knows why it’s always such a drama. Not every seat will be someone’s special chair.

From what you say about him and his reaction to the situation don’t you think it’s quite likely that he in fact decided they are old enough to sit alone so he won’t pay the extra any more? You say he appeared unbothered and he has form for not consulting you…

Even if it wasn't them, I just came here to say

I HATE RYANAIR

Your H is a dick and so are those people that refused to move. Why would people want to sit with a child if a parent isn’t there??