Do I need to pay for priority seating if i'm paying for seat selections?

[luvalwaysMandy]

Do I need to pay for priority seating if i'm paying for seat selections?

Whats the point of boarding first? I'd want to board last so I don't have to sit on the plane longer with my small kids.

 

[bettymae1121]

There is one advantage to getting on early...overhead bin room! Often there isn't enough overhead space for everyone that has carry on bags, those that get on last often either can't find a spot for their bag near their seat, or all the bins are full and they have to gate check. This is especially true now with bag fees, people are carrying on bags more than ever now.

If you don't plan on having carry on bags, then you're right, there isn't much point, although premium seating often has a bit more leg room in addition to allowing you on early.

 

[luvalwaysMandy]

OK, i've never flown as an adult. I flew with my mother when I was six. So what is usually a carry on? I'd prob have the kids have backpacks with entertainment in them. Can they keep those in the seat with them? What about a diaperbag?

I plan to have a bag with an outfit or such perperson which I'd want to put overhead.

 

[ceecee]

I always preferred to board last when my DD was younger. We check baggage but with so many people not checking (due to the fees) it's a nightmare sometimes. The last flight had too much for the overheads and it was a scramble getting everything stowed away. Too much in the overhead bins. If you just take a small bag with you, you can put it under the seat.

 

[mjkacmom]

Before luggage fees, we used to check everything, and just have one small bag for all of us. We'd also board last, regardless of where we were sitting.

Now, we don't check luggage, and everyone brings a carry-on, plus a bag. Those bins do fill up!

 

[bookgirl]

Do I need to pay for priority seating if i'm paying for seat selections?

Whats the point of boarding first? I'd want to board last so I don't have to sit on the plane longer with my small kids.

Boarding first means room in the overhead bins. If you are not putting anything up there then I would not worry about priority seating.

 

[bookgirl]

OK, i've never flown as an adult. I flew with my mother when I was six. So what is usually a carry on? I'd prob have the kids have backpacks with entertainment in them. Can they keep those in the seat with them? What about a diaperbag?

I plan to have a bag with an outfit or such perperson which I'd want to put overhead.

A small backpack will fit in the space under the seat (this means the seat in front of you, like where your feet would stretch out, not your actual seat and will usually fit a regular sized backpack or a small duffle). It only has to be there in the short time during takeoff and landing. So if you can fit everything in the space then it's not so big of a deal to have no overhead room. Have your outfit for each person in a ziplock bag in the bottom of thier own bag. That way you don't have the one extra bag for the overhead. Put your things in the diaperbag. Then they should all fit under seat and you can enter the plane last.

Oh but if you're seats are the very first row you will not have underseat storage so don't think you can put stuff in the area under your seat. There is a bar there to keep the person behind you's stuff from hitting your feet. You have no room under your own seat only overhead area.

 

[eliza61]

Do I need to pay for priority seating if i'm paying for seat selections?

Whats the point of boarding first? I'd want to board last so I don't have to sit on the plane longer with my small kids.

Be careful depending on the airline priority seating is a different issue. Some airlines now charge a extra fee to sit in the aisle with the emergency doors. They claim you get a few extra inches of leg room so you pay for that. Some airlines it's as much as $30 bucks extra. Continental and US airways I know do it.