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Confused about flights

43 replies

Nousername94 · 27/06/2023 00:03

Hello,
I am wondering if anyone can give me some advise.
Were going on holiday in two days times, I booked it only today so very last minute. I checked online and it says to book seats now but when I check there aren’t any seats together. My DD is under 2 so she will be on my knee so will my four year old have to sit on his own or will he be seated with the other adult coming with us?
do I need to book these seats now even though they are not together or will we be allocated seats?
sorry, I am very confused. Basically what happens if I don’t reserve seats now?
TIA

OP posts:
egowise · 27/06/2023 00:04

If there are no sets available to book together, then there are no seats available together on the flight.

Nousername94 · 27/06/2023 00:05

egowise · 27/06/2023 00:04

If there are no sets available to book together, then there are no seats available together on the flight.

Thank you
we still have seats, just not together?

OP posts:
giggly · 27/06/2023 00:07

Yes you sill have seats just not together

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about these subjects:

Star81 · 27/06/2023 00:07

Which airline ?

if it’s one you have to do check in yourself then it won’t let you book away from a child. This means same row or in front / behind. There are airline rules on this for safety. Try and check in and see what happens

Nousername94 · 27/06/2023 00:08

Star81 · 27/06/2023 00:07

Which airline ?

if it’s one you have to do check in yourself then it won’t let you book away from a child. This means same row or in front / behind. There are airline rules on this for safety. Try and check in and see what happens

I’m flying with jet2 x

OP posts:
Nousername94 · 27/06/2023 00:10

Sorry, I know it might seem obvious but I’m not thinking logically as I’m so stressed. I keep thinking if I don’t reserve the seats, together or not, then we will have no seat in the plane

OP posts:
Star81 · 27/06/2023 00:13

From their website

Confused about flights
Star81 · 27/06/2023 00:14

Jet2 will have check in desks so just ask once your at the airport to change seats but check in online if your required to

Nousername94 · 27/06/2023 00:14

Star81 · 27/06/2023 00:13

From their website

Thank you very much

OP posts:
Nousername94 · 27/06/2023 00:15

Star81 · 27/06/2023 00:14

Jet2 will have check in desks so just ask once your at the airport to change seats but check in online if your required to

I Have checked in but not reserved seats. X

OP posts:
egowise · 27/06/2023 00:15

Nousername94 · 27/06/2023 00:05

Thank you
we still have seats, just not together?

Seats will be available on the flight, yea, but just not together

egowise · 27/06/2023 00:16

Star81 · 27/06/2023 00:13

From their website

But if everyone has booked and paid for seats on the flight, there could be seats available, bit not together on a flight.

Nousername94 · 27/06/2023 00:17

egowise · 27/06/2023 00:15

Seats will be available on the flight, yea, but just not together

Thank you for clarifying.
people only pay the extra for specific seats or if they wish to be seated together?
I know I sound so stupid right now

OP posts:
suburbophobe · 27/06/2023 00:17

I keep thinking if I don’t reserve the seats, together or not, then we will have no seat in the plane

Of course you'll have seats on the plane. They only sell as many tickets as are seats in a plane. They'll hardly expect you to stand in the aisle for the duration of the flight. It's not like the tube.

Incidentally, I was asked at pre-boarding once if I'd swap my seat to enable a child to sit next to her grandparents. I was more than happy to do so. A pleasant surprise was getting a complimentary drink on board.

Nousername94 · 27/06/2023 00:18

suburbophobe · 27/06/2023 00:17

I keep thinking if I don’t reserve the seats, together or not, then we will have no seat in the plane

Of course you'll have seats on the plane. They only sell as many tickets as are seats in a plane. They'll hardly expect you to stand in the aisle for the duration of the flight. It's not like the tube.

Incidentally, I was asked at pre-boarding once if I'd swap my seat to enable a child to sit next to her grandparents. I was more than happy to do so. A pleasant surprise was getting a complimentary drink on board.

Thank you. I know I sound silly I think I am stressed as it’s 2 days away and I haven’t given myself much time 😂

OP posts:
suburbophobe · 27/06/2023 00:21

Normal to be stressed about a flight if you don't fly often and it's only 2 days away.
Check in online before you go, I think you also have the possibility of choosing seats. Differs per airline I guess.

Have a great time!

Nousername94 · 27/06/2023 00:25

suburbophobe · 27/06/2023 00:21

Normal to be stressed about a flight if you don't fly often and it's only 2 days away.
Check in online before you go, I think you also have the possibility of choosing seats. Differs per airline I guess.

Have a great time!

thanks 😊 I will check in now

OP posts:
egowise · 27/06/2023 00:27

Nousername94 · 27/06/2023 00:17

Thank you for clarifying.
people only pay the extra for specific seats or if they wish to be seated together?
I know I sound so stupid right now

That's correct, but I've found with most flights people tend to pay the extra to book their seats

LordSalem · 27/06/2023 00:28

You will have seats but not necessarily together. You've got two small kids. Can you really deal with the 4 year old sitting behind or in front of you while you've got under two year old on your lap, the other adult who knows where and seatbelt signs are on? Sorry OP, but with two small kids you should have looked into this better before you booked. How long is the flight? You'll see how it plays out on the flight there. Flight back will be another gamble.

Nousername94 · 27/06/2023 00:35

LordSalem · 27/06/2023 00:28

You will have seats but not necessarily together. You've got two small kids. Can you really deal with the 4 year old sitting behind or in front of you while you've got under two year old on your lap, the other adult who knows where and seatbelt signs are on? Sorry OP, but with two small kids you should have looked into this better before you booked. How long is the flight? You'll see how it plays out on the flight there. Flight back will be another gamble.

I booked over the phone today with a jet2 representative. The flight is 4.5 hours

OP posts:
Wendysfriend · 27/06/2023 00:53

Your seats won't be sold, you paid for your seats so there will be 3 seats on the plane for you.

Unfortunately as you booked late, the choice is limited. When you go in and view the seating plan, is there just 3 seats left?

Airlines will always try to seat younger children with an adult, this can mean splitting up a family, once the young child is seated with an adult/parent.

You can reserve your seats and then go to the check in desk and ask if they can change your seats, it may happen that there's no shows, or they are aware that there are single travellers willing to swap.

Airlines allocate seats to travel agents, they keep seats that they sell. You will only know what's fully available by speaking with check in staff.

Not everyone pays extra for their seats, seats like priority boarding, extra leg room, seats up front, bassinet seats are extra, people book and pay for these seats. The other seats are free for all, people will have reserved these seats as they may have a preference as of where to sit, ie isle, window, near toilet etc. You may find someone will have reserved a seat with no extra fees but would be willing to swap.

If you don't have any luck at the check in desk, you speak to cabin crew, explain your situation and they will ask passengers if they're willing to swap. You might not get seated all together but they will ensure that your 4 year old is seated beside your other adult.

The only airlines I ever had issues with were Ryanair and delta, both expected my disabled dd to sit in a separate seat, I normally book and pay for priority boarding but on these 2 occasions one flight was last minute and the other was just a fuck up from start to finish. It got sorted in the end, but it involved a lot of begging and dh paying a man 50 quid to swap his seat. Most passengers are willing if travelling alone.

You might need to expect not to be seated all together, the crew will do their utmost to seat your 4 year old beside your other adult.

Nousername94 · 27/06/2023 08:39

Thank you for the help on here.
Rang jet2 this morning and was advised i don’t need to book the seats as my child will automatically be sat next me as he is under 8. No more stress haha

OP posts:
Neverinamonthofsundays · 27/06/2023 09:16

WHile I understand they have to seat your child with you how does that work if there were no seats together to book initially? WIll they get someone else to move?

helpfulperson · 27/06/2023 09:21

Because not all seats are available for self check in to give the airlines some flexibility.

lalue · 27/06/2023 09:41

@suburbophobeOf course you'll have seats on the plane. They only sell as many tickets as are seats in a plane. They'll hardly expect you to stand in the aisle for the duration of the flight. It's not like the tube.

Unfortunately this is not true of all airlines. It's common for flights to be overbooked as there is always a certain percentage of no shows and they can maximise profit that way. If more people than expected show up then you can be bumped off. I've seen this on the last two short haul flights I've done - the airline emailed us ahead of time to see if we would accept a small amount of money to move onto a less popular flight. Evidently not enough people agreed as we saw people at the gate being turned away and told they'd have to go on the next one. I would therefore book whatever you can get now, OP, and then see whether you can do anything about changing after.