£100 to sit together?

[sunchild77]

Kids first family holiday abroad... BA want £100 to sit us all together.. Kids first flight they are 4, 9 and 11yrs plus us mum and dad.
Would the airline really sit us all separately? Is paying out really a big waste of money?
Plus Im terrified of flying as it is... I need DH nearby!!
Thoughts please? thanks x

I'm too tight to pay. We have 4 flights so I'll save the £300 and wing it. £8k holiday needn't be 8300

When DS was young we got separated in a 2 and a 1. I didn't see DH for dust

The cabin crew alway keen to get this trolleys out and sell the drinks, they block the way so no coming to fetch parents sat elsewhere, it's left to those sat around the line dc to look after them whilst parents get to relax

Of course it's aviation rules dc can't fly alone for this reason but if they break their own rules there isn't anything I can do about it but chill out

I was as sick as a dog on my first flight. Also on a coach trip when I was there. My mum loved coach trips. I don't think any strangers would have wanted to sit next to me.

Dd purchased a blanket last time we flew, I think it was £5, back years ago when flight decks weren't locked and you could smoke on planes those blankets used to be free.

So all the people who are winging it or think their child is so horrendous that anyone else would find them unbearable. If you ask someone who's paid to book their seat to move for you, are you going to pay them back?

I can assure you I wouldn't be looking after anyone's children! I'm perfectly capable of ignoring the little darlings, no matter what they do! I don't particularly like children so there's no way I'd be acting as an unpaid baby sitter because the parents were too tight to pay to sit with them.

'The cabin crew alway keen to get this trolleys out and sell the drinks, they block the way so no coming to fetch parents sat elsewhere, it's left to those sat around the line dc to look after themgrin whilst parents get to relax '

HAHAHA! Yeah, sure, the trolleys are out the entire flight, and they never move them up or down to allow the other crew to move round if need be. Which flight is this? Never seen a one where that's been true in 40 years of flying. Nor have I seen an instance where parent wasn't fetched to look after their child rather than other passengers, as some passengers are passed out asleep or don't speak the same language. But I might do to look after them, letting them know how little their parent loves them as they are too tight to pay for a seat next to them, some stories about demonic possession and child abduction, air crashes and explosions, teaching them some choice language or perhaps putting on a nice film for them to watch - something with a lot of adult content or Wolf of Wall Street. That could be quite fun .

I like your style expat!

I've been on flights where the cabin crew are ready for take off and the child of one couple is still on the floor. Flights where the trolly for food and then trolley for duty free cones round takes up most of the time between take if and landing aren't rare in Europe.

I've been on flights where you aren't allowed out if your seat due to turbulence, that flight though I vomited fortunately it only went on people's shoes

Just seen this thread- I've had a similar dilemma when booking flights for our family next easter. The BA policy seemed clear that children would be seated with a parent (tho not necessarily both), so I didn't pay the extra. Not because I'm tight, but because the policy seemed to say children would be with seated with a parent. So why would I pay extra when I don't have to?! If I wanted the four of us together then I'd pay the extra. But personally I'm happy so long as the 2 and 5 year old are with at least one of us. Didnt even occur to me that was selfish or a thing to stress about as the policy looked pretty clear to me?!?

Moral responsibility ?

As a parent my children are MY responsibility (moral, physical, emotional the whole lot) not some random stranger's

Clearly your morals are different to mine

Ivy.. it matters not a jot what the cabin crew are doing. No one would be looking after your child. That'd be on you.

"We will make sure each child under 12 years sits next to an adult from your booking"

That seemed pretty clear to me.... nothing about it being across aisles or separate rows?

Sure I'm late to the thread but under 16's must be seated with a responsible adult and not in emergency seating.

Every flight i've booked and not booked seating (including low cost) airline has either pre allocated or moved other passengers on me boarding.

I'm sure it's a pisser for other passengers but it is their rule that we sit together so I will not be coerced into paying for something they have determined is essential.

As an aside,if you are a two parent family, sure you may be separated so should consider this and consider paying if sitting together is important to you. As a single parent, it works for me.

Do you offer to reimburse the people you're pissing off or do you just expect them to move for you?

I see that the OP has lobbed the 'reserved seats' grenade and legged it!

Good work OP.. How about 'no babies at wedding' for your next post ?

Across the aisle is considered next to.

If I pay to reserve my chosen seat I don't consider I have any moral responsibility to the children of parents who think it's ok not to pay to sit next to them.

In any case, children even very young ones are left unsupervised on flights. I always was.

I'm off to Florida next year and have already chosen my seats.

We decided to do 2 and 2 instead of 4 in a row so the kids can fiddle around with the seats to thier heart content ( they are front row dh and I are just behind them) and hopefully will be a pleasant trip

I wouldn't expect anyone to move. Thinking back to my flight home from Canada - I had health issues and ended up laying in front of the emergency seats on oxygen, dh giving the staff (and doctor who happened to be on the flight) details and our 3 dc entertained themselves / slept for 3 hours with no parenting. Maybe those of us prepared to wing it happen to have well behaved dc?

Pay for it. I fly often, on my own - and I always pre book and pay for my seat. I'm not a bitch but if you could be bothered to fork out for your seat I wouldn't move for the one I paid for. Not unless it wasn't extra legroom and you paid me what I was due. I don't understand why/how people don't factor this into the cost of their holiday? It's hardly new.

Just remembered a 9 hour flight my db once took where a mum was flying with her 1yo and hadn't packed any food as she assumed her baby on her lap would be provided with a jar. Db didn't have dc but dc was screaming so all the passengers started mashing up their carrots for the baby! You never know what'll happen on a flight

Maybe those of us prepared to wing it happen to have well behaved dc?

Quite a few of those prepared to wing it seem oddly proud that no-one else would be able to bear the company of their little horrors, though.