Not paying for seat selection with 3yr old

[Tooken]

We've just booked a family holiday to Spain with first choice for myself DH and DD3, DD3 do you think I'll be OK not paying extra for seat selection? I'm prepared to be split up in two blocks of two but surely they'll sit a 3yr next to their accompanying adult rather than say the seat in front? I'd pay to sit together if the kids were older but my logic is they won't split really young kids into a seat on their own?

We've just been on a holiday with First Choice. I have medical seats so don't pay but I absolutely would if they asked. Unfortunately, because of the problems with the grounded planes, the aircraft on the return journey was changed. I couldn't access the seats the computer allocated to me so they charged us €38 to change. The plane had 100 empty seats. We have kicked up a fuss, and got a refund, but it's all about the money to them.

In your situation I'd pay.

I pay to sit next to my partner as being on the plane is part of the holiday for me and I want to be with him. Yes it's a rip of but so are all the other add ons they catch us on these days.But in the grand scheme of paying for the holiday it's not much. I would be annoyed to be asked to move when prebooked months in advance tbh. I don't have kids but for me i would book.

We go to Turkey in June and travelling with a 3 year old 5 year old and 10year old costed £100 pounds for book seats so there’s no way I would move for you if you were too tight to pay. We also go to Rome just me and dh and paid for a seats again I wouldn’t be moving when I paid. It’s part of the holiday cost and it’s beyond cfuckery to expect people to move.

If you don't pay then take a chance but don't be cross or expect other people to move, if you don't sit next to each other.

Please dont be an entitled CF onboard.

What an absolutely ridiculous statement. It's not CFery to wish to avoid needless additional fees. Mugs like this who criticise those who challenge stupidity are why companies get away with bad practice. Blame the airline if people have to move.

The CAA guidelines clearly state that you will be sat with your 3YO. The PP who points out that this could be the seat in front is technically correct, but no-one is going to be stupid enough to do this to a 3YO.

First choice seat people who don't pay together where possible anyway (as do all airlines except Ryanair). They are charging you twice for the same thing.

I blame Michael O’Leary for this and airlines greed, it is sheer greed & yet it’s the holiday makers that are being told they are CFers

Last time I flew I was told it was £1.50 for a cup of hot water & extra for a stirring stick 😬 really? I didn’t bother.

First choice seat people who don't pay together where possible anyway (as do all airlines except Ryanair). They are charging you twice for the same thing.

I have found jet2 purposely split people as did Monarch - and as I’m not bothered have offered and swapped seats so couples can sit together

I wouldn't move for you, sorry. If I've booked and paid extra to ensure I'm sitting with family, being expected to move because you won't do the same? Yeah, nah. Buy two together and accept the third could be anywhere. Don't be that person who demands a seat because what else can be done. But expect everyone else to bend over to ensure it whilst not doing anything practical about it yourself. Don't be the next MN CF self entitled flight wanker.

It depends who you’re flying with, if it’s BA I don’t pay as they tend to allocate families seats together around 5 days beforehand anyway and we’ve never had an issue.
Any of the low cost airlines and I definitely would

I always pay as I decided I'd prefer to pay then deal with the worry of being separated. Although last year we had a four hour train journey where they were together (aged 5&7) and I was a few rows away facing the opposite direction and it was fine... So they would probably be fine now as long as they were together.

The CAA guidelines clearly state that you will be sat with your 3YO. The PP who points out that this could be the seat in front is technically correct, but no-one is going to be stupid enough to do this to a 3YO.

Well, Ryanair were "stupid enough" to do it to our then 2yo. If everyone else on the plane has paid for their seats, what can you do?? Nothing.

I have found jet2 purposely split people as did Monarch

Jet 2 do not do this, but they do allocate those who don't pay by algorithm. If they split people it is because it was necessary. For example, a family of 4 would be likely to get 2 and 2 to allow room for those who pay to be in 4s.

No airline will seat a 3YO away from it's carer. They risk a fine from the CAA for doing something which would make evacuation harder, as well as complaints from those inconvenienced.

In terms of expecting it you are a bit cheeky.

But I wouldnt pay to make a point and put child in allocated seat and say hey ho that's the seat he was given and let them deal.

They absolutely will seat a 3 yo in the seat in front / behind its carer as this is classed as being seated with the carer. This meets CAA guidelines, which are only guidelines, not law.

This may seem stupid / cruel / unfair / whatever. But it is what it is.

People on this thread, including me, have first-hand experience of this.

OP, if you want to guarantee that you are seated next to your child, and not in a row in front or behind, you will need to pay for allocated seating.

Seriously, when the airline is full and it's taxi-ing to the runway, people will not get out of their seat and move for you! They just won't.

Also - your 3yo will probably be really distressed if they are not seated next to you. Why would you want to put them through that?

If the flights were £20 more each, would you still have booked the holiday? I think you would.

If the flights were £20 extra as default, and you were then given the option to "give up" your ability to reserve seats, in order to get that £20 back, would you? I don't think you would.

Why are people such cfs?

I always pay because I travel a lot and once when flying longhand dd aged 5 was seperated from both dh and me. My employers booked the flight and I was furious.
But I don't get how people say its peanuts to book. Last summer I flew longhaul with a stopover in the way there (obviously flew same way back). It cost £20 per person per flight so £320 total (4 people, 4 legs) just to book seats. I don't think that is peanuts.

The guidelines to airlines don’t guarantee that you will be sitting next to your DC.

The CAA recommends the following:
“The seating of children close by their parents or guardians should be the aim of airline seat allocation procedures for family groups and large parties of children.

Young children and infants who are accompanied by adults should ideally be seated in the same seat row as the adult. Where this is not possible, children should be separated by no more than one seat row from accompanying adults.

This is because the speed of an emergency evacuation may be affected by adults trying to reach their children.

Whenever a number of infants and children are travelling together the airline should make every effort to ensure that they can be readily supervised by the responsible accompanying adults.”

We have never paid extra. We usually go with Jet 2 and they will guarantee that my child will be next to me even if partner has to sit elsewhere which is fine. We always do online check in the day it opens so our party of 6 have always been sat together.

We are First Choice this year and hoping same rules apply but I know a few years back Thomas Cook told us we would have to pay extra to guarantee one of the adults being sat with child - my little one was 3 then and I struggle to believe they would sit a three year old on their own! More hassle than it's worth surely!

It's not CF to expect to be sat with your child on a plane, this has come in as an extra way of getting more money out of people.

You can always choose your seats at the check in for free. So it isn’t a case of pay to seat together or be separated.

What an absolutely ridiculous statement. It's not CFery to wish to avoid needless additional fees. Mugs like this who criticise those who challenge stupidity are why companies get away with bad practice. Blame the airline if people have to move.

Airlines like all businesses want to make a certain level of profit. If they didn't get their profit through this way, it would mean price hikes in the basic ticket price. At least there is a bit of discount for those who are happy to sit separately.

I suppose there would be a mind set difference if everyone had to pay the same higher price. But in reality although you are losing out now when they are younger, you'll gain when they are older and ok about them sitting alone. Just as we did. When they were young, we paid, now we don't bother and we take our chances.

I love how everyone likes on saying PAY this is exactly why the airlines charge - they make you afraid, make you worry, so you pay everyone, you make it easy for them to up their prices and charge

If no one paid they would have to allocate seats at check in as they always did, first come first served, yet they now have good technology who could easilu do this for them

A few tick boxes would do, isle seat? Tick, two together - tick easy

When I close the door, I am on my holidays.

So I would not move for you, we fly with BA so not an issue, but any other airline the answer would still be eh no jog on....

I hate that it has come to this, but I think it is something that people need to factor into the cost of a holiday. In our case we pay for extra legroom seats as we are all tall with long legs.