Extra Fee for Choosing Seats on International Flight

I think it is becoming a standard fee, like the fees for checked baggage, food etc..
When I flew British Air a couple of years ago they also charged for pre-selecting seats.
I choose not to pay the few because I was travelling alone and did not care where I sat.
It is really up to you to pay or not. Someone may change seats with you if you get a seat you do not like but I would not count on it.
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Since you care where you sit it might be worth it but only you can decide. I would go on seatguru.com and see the configuration of the plane to get an idea of where to sit and then decide if I would pay the fee.

Sorry typo.

I travel internationally frequently, and I've never paid to choose a seat. don't worry, not so many people pay, so 24 hours before your flight, when you can chose seats for free, plenty of seats will be available.

You can go into Manage My Booking and see how many seats have been chosen already, and then decide. People who pay for seat selection generally do it pretty early when they have lots of choices available.

You must be flying Iberia? They are affiliated with British Airways and British charges too. So does Air New Zealand, and maybe others.

If you hate the middle seat, will your friend sit there? Or do you want two aisle seats across from each other?

Lufthansa now charges a fee for advance seat selection on internal European flights. So do some of the budget airlines. Nothing shocking about it; airlines are finding ways to maximize revenues and you have the choice not to use these services.

Would it be a disaster if you can't sit by your traveling companion? Would you be miserable if you ended up in a middle seat?

If the answer is yes to either of those questions, then you probably should pay to select your seat.

If you check in right at the 24 hour mark, odds are there will be some seats together open or aisle seats because there are plenty of people who aren't willing to pay extra to choose a seat in advance but there are no guarantees.

The extra fee is pretty typical for many of the European carriers. I usually pay to reserve a seat on my outbound, overnight leg because it is worth it to me to get an aisle. I don't bother on short-haul flights because I can tolerate a middle seat for a couple of hours.

Wow! Thanks to everyone for alot of great advice!!
:)

Look at it another way;

. You can buy a ticket for X and sit where they chunk you

. You can buy a ticket for X+40 and get to pick your own seat

. You can buy a ticket for 5X and they're all pretty good

Which one's the deal?

Unfortunately that is how it is done these days. That way your ticket is $1200 and not $1425. If you want it or need it, you pay for it.

You might want to consider how many hours you will be sitting in this seat. I would say that chances are good the flight won't be too crowded in Dec., but have only flown international in Jan. $40 may seem like a lot, but if you're in it for 6-8 hours......especially if you tack on another flight first.

I've flown to Europe in December and flights are just as crowded, plus there is a lot more gate-checking of carryon bags because of all the winter coats.

I usually fly Delta and pay for Economy Comfort. It comes out to about $100 more roundtrip. If I went with Economy Discomfort, I would pay the extra $40 to get an aisle seat.

Remember anyone who advises you to wait, doesn't have a dog in the fight. If you get stuck in a middle seat, they lose nothing. Our limited experience with flying at the end of Dec found every seat taken. Maybe not the first of Dec but the holiday period is a peak period.

totafields,

airlines can do much as they please when it comes to fees.

just wait for them to start charging for air, movies, charging your e device, using a seat, charging for toilet paper and water and whatever they can make $$$ on.

if it was me, i would pay and get a seat I CHOOSE.

happy trails.

I'd pay the $40 and select an aisle seat. You're already in for $1200, why take the chance of getting stuck in the middle?

My daughter and I have just happily paid an extra $164 each on top of our $1850 dollar return air fare to have exit aisle seats for our long haul flights from Adelaide to London next year. Worth every cent!!

"Worth every cent"...hence the addition of more and more absurd fees. If people pay it, airlines will only keep adding more and more.

I have flown from Seattle to Europe on European airlines for 12 of the last 13 years and have never had to pay to select my seats which I have always done when making my reservations. Almost all of those flights have included a second leg from the airport we land in from Seattle onward to our final destination and all of them have been booked thru whatever airline we are flying out of Seattle on and again no charge for seat assignments. In the last couple of years we have upgraded, and paid for, something like Economy Extra where again we made seat choices at no charge. I have found the cost of EE on a 9 1/2 hour flight to be well worth it given my height of 6'3". If I was in your situation, I would pay the $40 and pick a seat.

I'm a little confused here. I thought your airline was asking you to pay to select a seat but some of the replies are talking about paying for upgrades with more leg room. During four trips to Europe I have always flown United because they are consistent and go anywhere we like to travel. I am 6'1" and always pay extra (about $120 each way) for an Economy Plus seat which has 5" of extra leg room. I sit in a regular coach seat for any domestic part of the flight which is rarely more than 2 1/2 hours. United has never asked me to pay extra to chose a regular coach seat, and in fact always guides you to the seat selection before finalizing the reservation. I've never flown on the other airlines that were mentioned, but can assure you that the minute the demand that I pay for the privilege of selecting a seat on their flight is the same time I would cancel out of the process.

I'm a little confused here. I thought your airline was asking you to pay to select a seat but some of the replies are talking about paying for upgrades with more leg room. During four trips to Europe I have always flown United because they are consistent and go anywhere we like to travel. I am 6'1" and always pay extra (about $120 each way) for an Economy Plus seat which has 5" of extra leg room. I sit in a regular coach seat for any domestic part of the flight which is rarely more than 2 1/2 hours. United has never asked me to pay extra to chose a regular coach seat, and in fact always guides you to the seat selection before finalizing the reservation. I've never flown on the other airlines that were mentioned, but can assure you that the minute the demand that I pay for the privilege of selecting a seat on their flight is the same time I would cancel out of the process.

"the minute the demand that I pay for the privilege of selecting a seat on their flight is the same time I would cancel out of the process."

In that case, you will have to be vigilant with your choice of airline. British Air, Air Berlin, and Lufthansa (and possibly others I don't know about) all now charge coach passengers to select seats in advance (before check-in). Other airlines are sure to follow.