to not want to pay £100 to guarantee that our kids can sit next to us on the plane

[mumsnit]

DH wants us to pay £25 each to guarantee that we can all get seats together when we go on holiday next month. Aibu to think it's a ridiculous cost to pay out

But I have heard that one airline refused to seat a family together as they hadn't paid the premium and tried to seat a 3 year old alone on the other side of the plane from the parents. We don't go on holiday very often - especially abroad and I'm already nervous about flying so don't want this added to the stress of travelling.

WWYD/WDYD - do you pay the extra cost?

You think that if you like Siobhan.

I do think under fives should be booked with one adult automatically, but there would still be post about parents complaining about not sitting with the over fives. I use the assisted flying for my son as he needs to wear a safety harness. Both traditional and lo cost have always been really helpful, especially as I ask for a window seat for him and for a member of our party to be directly in front of him in case he grabs or tries to kick seat, they have never charged or even mentioned charging. Prior to kids my holidays began at the airport bar the plane trip is part of my enjoyment. I would move but I would be gutted, do not like to drink alone.

We are flying with Thomson this year and have paid £45.00 for selected seating. Last time it was £90, so that was a pleasant surprise.

I don't see it as an extra, I always factor it in to the cost of the holiday when I'm first looking.

I've got the same problem from a different angle. I've paid for allocated seating with Thomson (but last minute) but all the seats are gone!! 4 left scattered around plane. When I phoned their call centre, they kind of said tough.
Now I'm stressing that I've paid and we won't get to sit together. Bloody airlines.

Just musing through the paying the fee to the person who paid it to move.

If say both DH and I paid £10 each to sit beside each other, if I volunteered to move then we'd be losing £20 of benefit not just £10 as the whole point in paying for a seat is to be together. Therefore the other family are still getting double the benefit for half the price as if they paid me £10 to move they'd have seats together whereas DH and I wouldn't.

it's probably a moot point tbh as we only pay for seats when travelling with DS and since having him we've never flown alone as a couple , although excitingly we are off to Venice in September whilst he's at a school residential.

Anyway back to the point, I agree with EveDallas - just factor it in when you're first buying the tickets, it's clearly shown on all airlines at that point, you know the point before you enter the credit card details, so it shouldn't now be a huge shock to OP that this extra might be needed - unless they've booked a package holiday in which case I have personal experience of not being told that we'd have to pay for seats to guarantee sitting together and this was when DS was 5, so it's slightly different in those circumstances.

You're right again rookie, almost as if the deliberately non-payers are receiving a free hand out at your expense.

Why should people who have paid to sit where they choose move because you chose not to pay to sit next to your DC and are gambling on others' goodwill to get a freebie?
Airlines are not social services, they are businesses, and people expect rock-bottom pricing and then whine they are not getting premium service.
All the options are laid out clearly.
If you need or ant to sit together then... just pay like the rest of us do.

The woman sitting next to him gleefully fessed up to being an ex- head of English dept and tested him all the way to our destination.

coming back from St Lucia a few years ago I was sat next to a seven year old whose family were dotted around the plane - she had diddiculty oprnin her meals etc & it's lucky I'm a maternal sort of person so I looked after her for the 9 hour flight - what if she'd been sat next to someone who wouldn't have looked after her

I don't understand people here who think letting people sit together actually costs the airline £25 per seat per flight.

The airlines I use most often let you choose your seats at the moment of purchase. If you buy your tickets early, you get good seats. If you are one of the last people to buy seats, you sit near the toilet. And if, exceptionally, you are the last 4 people to buy tickets and there are no 4 seats available next to each other, I imagine that you call them and they shuffle seats around a bit to get 4 seats in a row.

OP's airline is screwing her over. There is no such £25/person cost in allocating seats in the airline business.

If it's with a budget airline that's just how they work. Lower headline costs but everything is extra. My husband is Irish but I refuse to fly ryanair - we've learnt it's not really worth the hassle and hidden costs.

No there isn't. But if they waive the charge they'll recoup the money elsewhere, probably in higher base fares for everyone.

I often fly Easyjet (which is obviously a budget airline) and while you pay a small amount for seat allocation, it is nowhere near £25 per seat per flight. That is just outrageous.

Weebirdie - I suspect Siobhan has a pretty good idea of how she reacts to the valium she takes - probably a much better idea than you do, in fairness.

We're all different, but I do know how valium affects me -- It just removes my anxiety. So I'd be a lot less trouble, and rather more aware, than the rat-arsed drunks, for example. I can still move sharpish when instructed. And I wouldn't argue with the crew. Unlike the pissheads, IME.

ilovesooty
exactly - they have to make the money somewhere.
So - you choose what matters to you in extras - eg taking luggage, sitting with co-travellers.
Otherwise you would be paying a higher fare to cover all those extras for those who care about them.
Amazes me how people expect everything to be 'free'.
There is no 'free', it's just that someone other than you pays.

Bigbuttons, why was the Turkish airline dodgy? Sorry, I have RTFT but that's puzzled me.

My tuppence worth: I resent being asked to move because parents should be more organised instead of just taking what they think is their due.

However, I would move because I don't have any particular reason for wanting any specific seat.

I totally get why some people have anxiety, have paid for their seat etc and don't want to move.

Organise yourselves!

"f they waive the charge they'll recoup the money elsewhere, probably in higher base fares for everyone"

That's exactly what is going on. Their fares are pretend-budget, until you realise that you have to actually pay for the position of the seat that you have already paid for, not to mention paying extra to take a bag with you.

I was told on once that I had to put my handbag into my carry-on bag because "only one bag is allowed per person". A woman's handbag. Effing jackasses

My DS is going to Turkey with his friends parents, they didn't pay for sitting together but the airlines have said that children must be seated together so at least DS and friend will be sat with one adult.

My eight year old is capable of sitting quietly, eating and reading for a few hours

I got split up from ex dh (he wasn't ex then). I got both kids (was breastfeeding one) and he got a blissful flight with neither.

I paid for the seating together from then onwards

Am I the only one thinking that if the airlines want to cause a riot on their planes this is the best way to do it? I'd personally love a few hours not supervising dd, so if they want to sit her next to a fellow passenger as childcare.... Pity the poor unsuspecting sod who ends up with hours of "No you colour THIS bit, no not THAT colour!" etc.

They should be asking everyone else to pay £25 if they DON'T want to be seated next to someone else's kid

It could all be solved if there was one price that guaranteed a party sitting together and then you could be offered a discount if you were prepared to sit anywhere. If you took the discount, you couldn't complain.

I certainly wouldn't pay £25 not to be seated next to someone else's kid. I hate the way this is put - I am sure that I could manage them quite well and will call someone's bluff.
It appears to be a MN problem. I flew today, didn't get a seat until I booked in. Everyone appeared to be quite happy with seats.