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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

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

612 replies

mumsnit · 17/06/2015 21:08

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 Shock

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?

OP posts:
OddBoots · 17/06/2015 23:14

There are many reasons why adults wouldn't want to sit apart on a flight and if adults are paying £25 each to secure that option then you know it must be important to them.

The quickest and cheapest way for airlines to run is to put everyone in a seat allocated by the computer as being generally balanced by weight and to have no luggage in the hold so the airlines offer what is in effect a discount to customers that fit that model. The rest of us want more so complicate things and cost more so their airlines offer that at a fee.

Behooven · 17/06/2015 23:14

Or some may say it reflects society today that some people think they are entitled to something free that others have grudgingly/happily paid for.

elderflowerlemonade · 17/06/2015 23:15

But it evidently matters to them - hence paying Smile

I may agree on a personal level, and wouldn't pay extra to be seated near DH but it doesn't alter the fact it is important to some - and they paid.

That's like saying you are baffled why people pay money to listen to Justin bieber. I mean, I quite agree - but their choice isn't it?

GaryBaldy · 17/06/2015 23:15

I could never ever see a child put in a distressing situation whether it was down to a parent deliberately not paying extra, not being aware of the likliehood of being separated or simply not being able to budget for this additional cost, and would offer to swap as a matter of course.

No me neither, but if it is a choice of my child put in a distressing situation or someone elses child then of course I will put my child first and not move away from my child so someone else can sit with theirs.

elderflowerlemonade · 17/06/2015 23:16

It's you with the rude entitled attitude Ruperta, not me Confused

Being considerate of others doesn't equate effectively handing £25 to them because they have a child!

misbegotten · 17/06/2015 23:17

I believe that if you want to sit together then pay. I have four adult children and never had this problem. I brought them up as a single mum after my husband passed away and have always worked full time without any help as some of you may be amazed to know ...

It amuses me the ridiculous entitled comments put here by some. if you asked me to move my seat to allow you to sit next to your sprogs who you were too tight/ failed to pay for and reserve seats for the answer would be NO.

MintChocAddict · 17/06/2015 23:17

Because calzedonia most adults can manage fine alone on a plane and lone small children can't.
Aside from the in and outs and rights and wrongs of who paid what when, it's a matter of goodwill and common decency. To put the well being of the most vulnerable first. Surely. Or at least it should be. Peoples values are seriously skewed. Sad

Ruperta · 17/06/2015 23:17

Yes but now I don't have a choice - I have to pay otherwise my two year old may get seated next to mean spirited people like you who won't even console a frightened child during bloody take off & landing.

I don't have a choice do I?

ilovesooty · 17/06/2015 23:19

If I'm travelling alone and pay several weeks in advance for priority boarding and a seat of my choice that's because I'm prepared to pay an extra amount to add on a service to make my flight and thus the beginning / end of my holiday more pleasant. If people want the peace of mind and guaranteed seats next to their children I think they should be prepared to factor that cost into their holiday.

MidniteScribbler · 17/06/2015 23:19

If I'm going on holidays with someone, then I want to actually spend time with that person. And if I've paid extra to be able to do so with my travelling companion, then the parent is also able to pay the same to be seated next to their child. If I'm travelling alone, I will swap for a same type of seat (I only fly in an aisle seat as due to a condition with my back I need to be able to get up and move around a fair bit).

There is no excuse for parents to not to be sitting next to their child on a flight. There is only people who are too cheap to pay the fee to do so, or feel some special level of entitlement over other passengers on the flight. Everyone has the same right to sit next to their travelling companions if they choose to pay for the privilege. If not, you take your chances or fly with a different airline.

elderflowerlemonade · 17/06/2015 23:20

Trust me ruperta, if I tried to console your child, it would be petrified.

However I have my own child to contend with. I don't expect other people to console her because, you know, she's my child.

Hence I will pay to sit next to her.

Whathaveilost · 17/06/2015 23:21

Thre only time that I pay for setting is when I fly with DH which is only about twice a year. He is terrified of flying and starts to breath heavy and gets all panicked.

There's no way I would give up a seat I had paid for do that someone else could have it. Not because I can't entertain my self or too loved up I can't leave him but because I like to sit and reassure him.

Ruperta · 17/06/2015 23:21

So you have to pay for the privelege to sit next to a 2year old???

Heard it all now!

MintChocAddict · 17/06/2015 23:22

Arghhhh! gary I'm not suggesting you should move away from your children to accommodate another parent and child.
I'm just shocked at travellers without dependent small children who would refuse to move for a parent and small child.
Unless you're literally joined at the hip to your spouse/travelling partner then surely you could put yourself out for a few hours without stubbornly sticking to the 'well I paid more' argument.
Forget the rights and wrongs of the situation and think of the right thing to do.

ilovesooty · 17/06/2015 23:22

You pay because the base fare is set low so extras can be added on.

elderflowerlemonade · 17/06/2015 23:23

Ruperta what ARE you talking about? I'm lost here - sorry.

Okay. It's quite simple.

You pay for a flight. If you need certain extra things, you pay a little more. Sitting with your child comes under that category.

If another passenger ends up sat with your child and doesn't console him when he cries (how do you comfort someone else's toddler anyway) that is not mean spirited of them but it is YOUR fault for not having sorted it before!

Ruperta · 17/06/2015 23:23

Yes elderflower pretty sure my son would be terrified of you, I'm terrified of you!

Off to pay for the privilege of sitting next to my baby ....

Athenaviolet · 17/06/2015 23:24

When I flew with my 2 year old he was hardly in his seat. He spent most of the flight running up and down the aisles. Grin

elderflowerlemonade · 17/06/2015 23:24

You are just so rude. But yes, children don't like me much and generally speaking the feeling is reciprocated. I like my own but don't think other people will. So we pay!

OddBoots · 17/06/2015 23:25

Ruperta if you are the person who has decided to take a 2 year old on a flight then yes, that is how 'build your own package' style airlines work. You pay for the options you want, if you wanted a meal for that 2 year old you would pay for that too not expect a nearby adult to give it to you free because a child might need it more.

Behooven · 17/06/2015 23:25

The right thing to do, to be fair, is pay

elderflowerlemonade · 17/06/2015 23:25

That must have made the flight pleasant and safe for everyone Athena Hmm

SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius · 17/06/2015 23:26

"Booking seats tomorrow - but mainly because I don't want to be left on my own dealing with out 20 month old for 4hrs either & DH to now be having a relaxing flight with a 3yo who we can plug into an iPad for a couple of hours."

Or you could save the money, and swap seats (or children) with your dh half way through the flight.

I had a train journey where dh and I were seated a long way apart - one of us with two of the dses, and one with the other one. I ended up in the seat with only one Ds, but basically I always had the ds that dh was finding the most troublesome or who was misbehaving the most for him. It was just funny, the way every 20 minutes or so, he'd stomp down the train with one of the boys, growl that they were being naughty, swap them for the one I had (who would invariably be behaving nicely - drawing or reading), and leave me with the naughty one - who would,then start being angelic, whilst one of the other two would start playing up. You had to laugh!

Behooven · 17/06/2015 23:27

Odd boots, somehow I think she would.

misbegotten · 17/06/2015 23:29

Go first class avoid all the whinging tedes and their offspring...