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AerLingus Vs Norwegian? New England to Ireland

Posted by on

Planning a trip in early September and as of yesterday had similar deals available on AerLingus out of BDL and Norwegian out of PVD. Originally I was willing to spend a little more to fly AerLingus since I knew Norwegian was a discount airline where you had to pay for seat reservations, bags, meals etc... but then I found that the inexpensive AerLingus rate is the same (or at least appears to be)...and the AerLingus prices went up since yesterday.

Is there any reason to choose AL?

If it is relevant my wife and I will be traveling with our 2 year old. As near I can tell, both airlines have the same allowances (even with no checked bags) for a stroller/car seat being checked for free. I am assuming I will need to upgrade to "reserved seat" status so that the three of us can be assured of sitting together? Or will we be able to board early with a child on either airline in which case paying for a reserved seat will prove unneccesary?

And finally, I am 6'6"...these are coach seats on discount airlines...safe to say I will be equally miserable regardless of the two we choose?

Posted by
882 posts

You are late in making flight reservations, and, at 6'6", the misery index is a serious issue. Be happy you aren't flying non-stop to Istanbul. I am also 6'6" so I know all too well how that goes. Typically, I fly out of Oakland or LAX - so those flights are on Boeing Dreamliners. Norwegian offers an upgrade - in the form of extra luggage weight (10 kg to 20 kg), food and, here's the key....seat selection for around $90 more. I fly them all the time, always forking over the extra cash for seat selection - and I always book early enough to get exit row seats.....loads of legroom, although the seats are a tad narrower as the tray folds into the armrest. If you are lucky, and you have been saying your prayers, maybe - just maybe - there is an exit row seat (or three) remaining.
I once flew Norwegian from Oslo to LAX in a non-exit row seat....although it was on the aisle. Still alive, as of this posting. What I don't know is......can one make the seat selection discovery prior to committing to their ticket. Maybe a phone call can answer that.

Posted by
337 posts

Economy seats on Aer Lingus don't have a lot of legroom, so if there is some kind of upgrade, consider it. I haven’t flown Norwegian.

Is one airport more convenient for you than the other? I would factor that in, too.

Good luck and have a great time!

Posted by
3122 posts

We've flown Aer Lingus on two transatlantic trips and had no complaints. Can't give exact seat measurements, but the condition of the planes, the food, the helpfulness of staff, etc. were all very satisfactory.

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