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?

I'm not asking anyone to hand out money to young families! Just a bit of courtesy when on a plane! People seem to go out of their way to be difficult I think. I'm flying on my own in a few weeks and if a family need my seat so a parent can sit with their child, I'll move. I can't think why I wouldn't?!

But why does choosing seats incur an extra cost?

Jet2 allows you to choose seats online - no extra cost

Do you hand young families money on the street?

Eh?

What elderflower is saying, I believe, is that it's pretty silly to excuse families with small children from paying this fee on the basis that others can move and they're under a financial strain.

AnotherOne believes it to be the height of bad manners because 'having a young family inside a financial strain' - therefore 'expecting families to fork out over £100 because ... people are too ride to move for young children.'

So you have paid £30 to sit where YOU want and a family with young children board who haven't.

I wouldn't see them in the street and hand over £30 because 'having a young family is a strain'; nor would I do so on a plane.

I have never paid to dit next to my dc and yet every flight I am DAT next to them, even now they are adults we are sat next to each other

Op just print out the rules of the CAA and take with you,a phone number for them may also be useful and then very placidly hand this to check in if they seperate your family - which I doubt they will.

Is a not inside.

Once more, I love autocorrect.

Paying to sit near young children is only a short term cost of going on holiday, and it should be remembered that flying is a luxury. Apart from very few passengers on any given flight who might be travelling for a funeral or to visit a dying relative, no one is really that hard done by if they're on a flight. There's really no reason why people shouldn't pay if they want to be seated right next to their child instead of across the aisle or in front or behind.

If you resent paying to sit near your child, just remember that your child will grow and will likely be fine sitting separately in a few short years. It's not a cost you have to endure forever, but while you do, just be thankful that you can go on holiday at all.

But why does choosing seats incur an extra cost?

I think you mean, why does the airline charge for this? I think the most obvious reason is because they can. I suppose you could make the argument that seat assignments cost money for the airline to administer.

Shsmr on the airlines for trying to break aviation rules and scam people out of money.

Just because another passenger has been scanned out of money for a seat which may be breaking rules, doesn't mean I am going to willingly be scammed as well

Ivy they are guidelines not rules. You won't get very far with your little bit of paper I'm afraid.

They will think you are mad. Pay or don't pay. But don't moan or make a fuss if it doesn't work.

But why does choosing seats incur an extra cost?

It's already been explained several times.

You have a base line cost. The cheapest option available. This is a great low cost way of flying. You have bolt one for any extras.

If people want to take their chances and risk being seated further away from their children, they have the option of taking cash with them so that they can offer the payment to people on the plane who they might need to move. It would be really rude to expect people to move without offering to reimburse them.

Anotheronesoon I fly on my own often and on some airlines pay extra for a chosen seat. No way am I moving for someone who chose not to pay that add on fee.

We fly to the US quite often - I pay, NOT to sit next to the kids as such, though they are quite pleasant young teens now - BUT to sit near the front, can make over an hour difference going through immigration - on the way home it is an overnight flight and would pay to be next to the snorers I know rather than those I don't.

I pay for my own personal version of comfort.

I mentioned having a young family being expensive not as an excuse not to pay the fee but just that of course rather than paying £30 to reserve seats they will be paying £120! So it's a huge cost and that would add to the many many reasons I would happily move so a mum could sit next to her young child.
I just can't fathom people's attitudes who wouldn't move! I get if you are petrified of flying and want to be with your husband or need extra legroom but otherwise I would always give up my seat if someone needs it more than me- on a plane, on a bus or on a train. Just a nice way to live- to be kind and courteous to others. It's how I'm raising my children and how I was raised. Pity this attitude seems to be on the decline ( well according to mumsnet!)

The flight attendants can ask people to move even if they've paid to reserve seats but they don't have to move so it's worth paying for peace of mind. My dad pays for extra leg room and he was asked to move once because a woman with a flying phobia wanted to sit beside her husband who was also in the extra room seat.

He refused and suggested the husband swapped with the person beside his wife. The couple grumbled about him being inconsiderate but did that eventually. Aside from the fact that he'd paid for the seat, putting someone in the emergency exit row if they have a flying phobia seemed odd.

I think that is the issue. I probably would move because I'd feel pressured to and put on the spot and it would wrong foot me.

It just isn't considerate or fair to put people in that position. I suspect if people continue to do so it will become part of the ts and cs that families with a child aged under 10 pay more.

I fly frequently and sometimes pay extra to choose a seat. I would offer to move though if it meant a little one sitting away from a parent.

When I don't pay extra I actively look around in case anyone wants to swap so they can sit together.

It's just a nice thing to do IMO

The last time DH and I flew together was our Honeymoon four years ago. As and when we fly next, we will pay to sit together, because I see the flight as part of the holiday. I wouldnt move seats to accomodate someone who has chosen not to be organised.

If and when we fly with our DCs, I would pay to have pre allocated seats. (1) it isnt fair to expect anyone to manage my kids (2) the flight is part of thw holiday and (3) id be mortified having to ask a random to swap with me because I was too unorganised/lazy/tight to build this into the cost of my holiday.

I think that's a good point Somewhere. People don't only pay to ensure they sit next to who they want, but also because they want a certain position on the plane, or because they want a window or an aisle seat.

In certain circumstances, I don't mind moving, but there's no way I'd move from a window or an aisle to sit in a middle seat.

Elderflower but why would you mind moving back a row? What's the big deal?

People always want to swap you to a worse seat - I've noticed that.

No I will not give up my aisle seat near the front for your middle seat near the toilets at the back.

Anotheronesoon Being disabled, as I am, costs a fortune. So don't expect me to move for anyone. I need to sit next to DH as he helps me in and out of my seat and gets my meds etc during the flight.

It has never been cheaper to fly than it is now. You can not expect to fly from Spain to the UK for less than the average train fare and have everything thrown in. Paying for guarenteed seating and checking in baggage is just the way of making up the price of the plane ticket to what it used to be.

If you want to not pay and take the risk that you might not be sat next to the rest of your party then don't moan when you aren't and don't expect other people to move.

It is a huge cost Another, but it's a cost that is added on to something that is already a huge cost, for something that is luxury, not necessity. No one needs a holiday that requires taking a flight. That's what makes the difference IMO. It's not like expecting someone to pay for something that they are entitled to for free.