Air Canada Pre-Paid Seat Selection

[crashbb]

For those adding seat selection onto a Tango fare - check the difference between Tango and Tango Plus. I booked a flight from YYZ to YVR a few days ago. Seat selection would have been $22 and to "upgrade" to T+ was about $35. So, I got my seat selection, plus 100% status miles, and cheaper change fees for about $14 more than just seat selection.

Also, consider only selecting some seats. If, for example, you have two adults and one child traveling, and you want your child to sit next to one of you. Consider selecting two seats (child plus 1 adult). The second adult may end up sitting away from the pair, but your child is with one adult and you save one seat selection fee. CAVEAT - I've not done this with AC, so I don't know if you can take different options for different passengers, but it works with other airlines. You could do two reservations and then link them, if you cannot do it in one reservation.

 

[mkmommy]

Also, consider only selecting some seats. If, for example, you have two adults and one child traveling, and you want your child to sit next to one of you. Consider selecting two seats (child plus 1 adult). The second adult may end up sitting away from the pair, but your child is with one adult and you save one seat selection fee. CAVEAT - I've not done this with AC, so I don't know if you can take different options for different passengers, but it works with other airlines. You could do two reservations and then link them, if you cannot do it in one reservation.

I don't think you can if you are booking them on one reservation. No way I need 6 bags for the 3 of us, so I wanted to deselect baggage for 2 of us, but I did not see a way to do this.

 

[Hodder]

The last two times we flew WestJet and they had us sit together anyway, told us that because we were a family of (either 3 or4) the automatically put you in the same seats.

Hopefully this will be the same this year

 

[tgropp]

I have always paid for a seat selection so I can sit with my family. when we went to WDW in Dec, I saw a lady with 2 young children take 3 seats in a row and when the people came to sit in their seats, the lady TOLD them to go sit elsewhere since she had to sit with her children. When the FA came to talk to her, she just looked straight ahead and pretended that she didn't hear her. I thought that it was sort of comical to see how the FA would react. The people than went and sat elsewhere, but how rude of that lady. If I was in a position that I needed someone to move, I would ask them politely and offer to pay their deposit and buy them a few drinks or a meal if it was available.

 

[crashbb]

The last two times we flew WestJet and they had us sit together anyway, told us that because we were a family of (either 3 or4) the automatically put you in the same seats.

Hopefully this will be the same this year

At check-in, the computer tries to put all groups as close together as possible. However, depending on how full the flight is, how many people paid to choose their seats, and how early you check-in, if there are a group of 3 or 4 seats together, they will not be able to seat you together. The computer/agent cannot move people who paid for their seats or already checked-in (and were assigned seats) so that they can give you seats together.

 

[redrosesix]

The last time we flew on AC (and I mean the LAST time) we had paid for pre-selected seats. It was ok going up but coming back they changed the plane, and had my DD8 and I at opposite ends of the plane. I didn't find out about the change until I went to do mobile check-in the night before our flight.

I called AC and was told there was nothing they could do at that time - that I would have been better off not having pre-selected seats but doing mobile check in exactly 24 hours before the flight and choosing our seats then. It wasn't possible to for me or her to change the seats at that point. Was told to call back in the morning, which I did -- after they cussed me out for not checking in sooner since there were now no 2 adjacent seats available, I was given the chance to explain that I had, then they told me that my DD would have to fly as an Unattended Minor since we were not seated together.

You know I said goodbye and then called back again and demanded to speak to a manager. They did sort it out. Probably somebody was asked to move -- I don't know.

 

[Hodder]

At check-in, the computer tries to put all groups as close together as possible. However, depending on how full the flight is, how many people paid to choose their seats, and how early you check-in, if there are a group of 3 or 4 seats together, they will not be able to seat you together. The computer/agent cannot move people who paid for their seats or already checked-in (and were assigned seats) so that they can give you seats together.

All I know is that when we went to check in I asked if we couldn't sit together could we have a parent and child together didn't matter if all 4 of us were together and were told that when we booked it was there already. Maybe because of the kids age?

 

[grantclaire]

I prepaid for 4 seats on WJ out of TO for our March break trip to Orlando while we were waiting at the gate we were paged to the desk for " A important message " As I have elderly parents I thought the worst for a second. When I reached the desk there was another passenger there. The gate agent asked me if we would move our 13 yr from her window seat in the row behind us to aisle seat 5 rows away so that this gentleman could be with his family. The man then said tell she will have to sit beside a 3yr girl. I told them I would ask her. She did not want to move. The agent met me on the way back to the desk, I told her we had paid for the seat and my daughter did not want to move. She said no problem. My daugther sat beside the 3yr who was very well behaved!