Flights

[lindaanddarren]

Hi,
We are looking to go to Florida October 2013. We've been looking at both DIY and package holidays, however our first concern is the seat pitch as my partner is 6ft 4in and is worried about the long flight. Has anyone (especially of that height) traveled economy or do we really need to upgrade to get the leg room?

 

[wayneg]

Welcome to DISboards

Our Son is 6`2", he manages in economy but it is better in PE. Your other option is the VA extra legroom seats, we were upgraded to those seats last year, enjoyed them just as much as PE, we actually got more legroom in those seats than business class.
Pic he took with his long legs, loads of room.

 

[LauraDaveCharlie]

Hi. I am a six foot tall woman. But I found US airways quite restrictive, Continental Airlines better and Thomas Cook (surprisingly) the most roomy of all economies we have done in the last few years.

 

[queendisney]

Hi,
We are looking to go to Florida October 2013. We've been looking at both DIY and package holidays, however our first concern is the seat pitch as my partner is 6ft 4in and is worried about the long flight. Has anyone (especially of that height) traveled economy or do we really need to upgrade to get the leg room?

I have a tall husband (and I am 5ft 8') but he also has broad shoulders so I sit at a permanent angle! Economy is not the most comfortable but its managable. Just don't expect to come off feeling fabulous The emergancy exit seats are good but you can't request them on-line, you have to go to the check in desk. Also be aware that the window seat of the emergancy exit is not good for a tall one as your legs will be at an angle because of the door mechanism but you don't pay extra for this seat with VA. Don't even consider the bulk head seats as they are by far the worse seats on the plane because you can't stretch your legs out in front of you as its just a wall!
Personally I would try and get to the airport as early as possible and try and bag the emergancy exit ones..or go for the PE seats!

 

[dixonsontour]

My DH is 6ft 4 and fits in economy.

We are very much you can put up with anything for 9 hours mentality though - he reads his kindle/watches films and just gets on with it.

He will definitely be comfier in an extra leg room or premium seat.

 

[starrysky]

DH is 6foot 9 and if it were not for the aer lingus option to pre book the extra leg room then we would struggle. he can't fit in a standard row seat as he can't always get inbehind the seat in front and if he can then there is no way he would be able to fit into the brace position if it was needed.

We had terrible service from BA one year over this and would not fly with them again.

We can't afford PE and to be honest most airlines we have flown with it would not make a massive difference.

 

[chmurf]

The emergancy exit seats are good but you can't request them on-line, you have to go to the check in desk. Also be aware that the window seat of the emergancy exit is not good for a tall one as your legs will be at an angle because of the door mechanism but you don't pay extra for this seat with VA.

I think it's also useful to mention that children are not allowed on exit rows.
OP did tell us of a tall partner, but did not mention if kids were involved too.
With kids, exit rows are not an option

 

[lindaanddarren]

Thanks for the replies. Does anyone have any advice on when to book the flights to get the best price/seats. We are still trying to decide whether to do a package or DIY as my partner has a 14yr old son who is coming with us, so we would ideally need 2 bedrooms. My thoughts were to do a week onsite at disney, 2 days at universal (where we could share a room) and the remainder in a 2bed condo style apartment on i-drive. I hoped to get the free disney dining but a week with us sharing one room isnt an option...any ideas please.

 

[wayneg]

There is no set rule when to book at the best price, it might be a package now, it might be flight only 11 months out or it might be 3 months before you fly, you need to decide how much you are willing to pay and book when you see them.

I just booked on Wednesday for this Oct/Nov, just 4 months from flying, flights were £520pp, I set a limit of £500, on Weds they dropped to £468 so I booked.

2 bed would be expensive onsite even with free DDP, we are going again next month with our 17 year old Son (18 while out there) we share a studio, there is no way I would pay the price for anything bigger onsite. Offsite you should be aboe to get something reasonable. Personally I would stay around Lake Beuna Vista area, I don't like I drive but its a personal choice.

 

[lindaanddarren]

Thanks wayneg,
I have noticed that some of the value resorts do suites which is what i'm after. I have stayed value a few years ago and would like to try moderate level or above. I have also stayed at downtown disney area before (Hilton) and wondered if any of the hotels in that location had suites. I have also noticed DVC property's which i presume are timeshare and wondered if they are available to rent out privately.

 

[tigger137]

Thanks wayneg,
I have noticed that some of the value resorts do suites which is what i'm after. I have stayed value a few years ago and would like to try moderate level or above. I have also stayed at downtown disney area before (Hilton) and wondered if any of the hotels in that location had suites. I have also noticed DVC property's which i presume are timeshare and wondered if they are available to rent out privately.

The DVC properties are available to book through Disney, just like you'd book any other Disney hotel.

Or you can rent points from a DVC member, which can work out considerably cheaper - effectively you get a DVC resort for the price of a moderate Disney resort. Have a look on the DVC Rent/Trade board. Be sure to read the advice thread as renting from an owner is different than booking direct with Disney and requires an element of trust on both sides.

 

[disneyholic family]

DH is 6' 7" and hasn't flown long haul economy in years because of it...(within the US he flies economy)..

but when he almost flew international economy last year and we notified the airline of his height, they moved him to the exit seat without us asking for it...
they didn't want to inconvenience the person who would be sitting in front of DH...
in the end he went business on that flight too (DD and i stayed in economy), but they were going to move him..
they told us we should always inform them and they would take care of it..
but he's 6'7" which makes a difference....
6'4" should be able to fit in a regular seat, albeit a tad uncomfortably...

 

[Andy Lou & Meg]

DH is 6ft 7in and economy was fine when DD was little as he could use her leg room to spread out. On the occasions we have flown PE he much preferred it but would only fly PE if you can get a good price. On flights now we now pre book extra leg room seats for all of us or exit seats for him. I guess it depends on if you are happy to sit a few rows apart. I think its worth paying for the extra leg room / exit seats just so you wont have him complaining for 8 hours.

 

[disneyholic family]

DH is 6ft 7in and economy was fine when DD was little as he could use her leg room to spread out. On the occasions we have flown PE he much preferred it but would only fly PE if you can get a good price. On flights now we now pre book extra leg room seats for all of us or exit seats for him. I guess it depends on if you are happy to sit a few rows apart. I think its worth paying for the extra leg room / exit seats just so you wont have him complaining for 8 hours.

and so you won't have the person in front of him complaining when they can't recline their seat at all because his knees are completely in the way...

 

[starrysky]

DH is 6' 7" and hasn't flown long haul economy in years because of it...(within the US he flies economy)..

but when he almost flew international economy last year and we notified the airline of his height, they moved him to the exit seat without us asking for it...
they didn't want to inconvenience the person who would be sitting in front of DH...
in the end he went business on that flight too (DD and i stayed in economy), but they were going to move him..
they told us we should always inform them and they would take care of it..
but he's 6'7" which makes a difference....
6'4" should be able to fit in a regular seat, albeit a tad uncomfortably...

We tried that with BA and all we got was a snotty response that they don't class being tall as needing special consideration.

We were told to book in online at first available and we did that still no luck for the return. We asked at the gate and again were told tough luck or pay £2000 each to upgrade.

Once on board they were going to off load us because DH could not fit in the seat and the man in front got very aggressive when my DH asked him politely if he could put his seat up and this was before take off. Eventually the lovely Head cabin crew member said he had a seat in PE that he could have while I stayed at the back on my own.

We had flown with BA before and never had such a nasty cabin crew/ground staff etc. Really put us off ever going with them again. We did email and complain but really got nowhere with them. Every other airline we have gone with could not have been more helpful.