United Economy Plus Question

[Kevenswife2]

Flying to LAX from Ohio in less than a week rotfl2, and can't wait!

I've never flown on a flight longer than 2 1/2 hours, so I'm a little concerned about comfort. We're on a Boeing 757-200 for 4 1/2 hours (from Chicago to LAX).

In your opinion, if you've used or heard info about it, is United's Ecomony Plus worth the money? It's suppose to be 'up to' 5 extra inches of leg room near the front of the economy cabin. We don't have close connecting flight times, so sitting near the front isn't a necessity.

Cost would be $49 each person, each way.

Please let me know your opinions.

 

[bavaria]

Absolutely - it is usually the single biggest reason why many give for being loyal to UA (although this year UA has initiated so many positive changes that there are now many reasons why they are at the forefront of US domestic travel)

The FAs actually police E+ and will send poachers back to their seats, or have them charged for taking a seat in E+.

I spent an hour in misery on LH economy last week (and of course my flight from LHR was delayed so it was longer than an hour) The seat pitch makes a significant difference (and there are some reports of basic amenity kits now appearing in E+)

 

[maxiesmom]

I've sat in E+ one time, and I was suprised at how much more room there seemed to be. It was nice to fly and not have my knees jammed into the back of the seat in front of me. Well worth the $49, imho. Go for it!

 

[Kevenswife2]

Absolutely - it is usually the single biggest reason why many give for being loyal to UA (although this year UA has initiated so many positive changes that there are now many reasons why they are at the forefront of US domestic travel)

The FAs actually police E+ and will send poachers back to their seats, or have them charged for taking a seat in E+.

I spent an hour in misery on LH economy last week (and of course my flight from LHR was delayed so it was longer than an hour) The seat pitch makes a significant difference (and there are some reports of basic amenity kits now appearing in E+)

Took your advice (and looked up our plane's configuration on Seat Guru) and decided to give it a try on our Chicago to LAX flight. I'm not in my beloved window seat, but we are very, very close to a lavatory and I'll only have to climb over my OWN daughter to get there

Problem with 3 seats across: I like the window seat and then have to climb over a stranger to get to the lav. ....or hold it .

We moved from seats 32 E&F to 10 B&C !!

Thanks Bavaria for your response!

 

[bavaria]

Since you won't be on my flight... here's another tip!

On the Airbus twins UA often holds 6D/E aside for special needs, and releases them at the 24 hour mark. So if you are quick and check in at the 24 hour mark, you could get those bulkhead seats which have even more room (just park 'Keven' in row 10 if you can't get all 3 seats in row 6 ) And even though they are technically bulkhead, you can put your carry on under the seats in front of you unlike on many aircraft in many bulkhead rows.

You will have a longer walk to the lav as you cannot use the ones in front of your ticketed cabin, but the space is worth it.

And on a UA 757 seats 9A/B/C have about 6 FEET of legroom. Seriously. More than regular business class seats, due to the configuration.

 

[txo1474]

Yes and no.

While working for UA, this was the single most asked question from passengers checking in.
On a flight of that duration, E+ is a VERY popular choice. If you wait too long to decide, you might miss the chance because E+ will fill-up fast.

That being said, if you wait til you get to the airport to check-in and ask the agent how full the CHI-LAX flight is,depending on the load you could possibly be able to get a whole row to yourself. Some flights at this time of year operate with a lot of empty seats. I have seen planes that seat 150 passengers depart with 40 passengers on them.

If you send me your itinerary I can check the loads for you now and help make your decision.
Ill never forget the guy who returned from a trip were I had told him it was worth the extra money. He came up to me and started yelling cause he took the E+, in a middle seat, and the back of the plane had whole open rows!

 

[Kevenswife2]

Yes and no.

While working for UA, this was the single most asked question from passengers checking in.
On a flight of that duration, E+ is a VERY popular choice. If you wait too long to decide, you might miss the chance because E+ will fill-up fast.

That being said, if you wait til you get to the airport to check-in and ask the agent how full the CHI-LAX flight is,depending on the load you could possibly be able to get a whole row to yourself. Some flights at this time of year operate with a lot of empty seats. I have seen planes that seat 150 passengers depart with 40 passengers on them.

If you send me your itinerary I can check the loads for you now and help make your decision.
Ill never forget the guy who returned from a trip were I had told him it was worth the extra money. He came up to me and started yelling cause he took the E+, in a middle seat, and the back of the plane had whole open rows!

I've looked at the seating charts and my flights are very full. It's Christmas time...who doesn't want to go to Disney!? hehe Do you have another way of viewing the reserved seats? I see how full they look when I check my seats. I have chosen E+ for my ORD-LAX flight, but not on the return flight as the only seats available in E+ have no window. I've never been out west and would really like to see something. Hopefully it won't be cloudy.

As for your unhappy customer...he should have done some research before he made his decision. Not your fault at all! Some people have to have someone to blame.

 

[bavaria]

UA loads are at a record high this year; on many routes flights are full. I cannot recall a time this year when my UA flights were not full ie every single seat.

We can most likely see more of the seat map than you can - often E+ is sitll relatively wide open while E- is full. But those who are not elite, and who don't want to pay for E+ may not have a seat assignment, hence the seat map is misleading and not an indicator of loads.

And far better a middle E+ than any E- seat for many of us!

 

[Kevenswife2]

just park 'Keven' in row 10 if you can't get all 3 seats in row 6

No Keven since Aug 19, 09. He pulled a "Tiger Woods" on me and I got rid of him! Canceled out on a family vacation to WDW to shack up with a Mystery Woman he had "met" on an affairs website (AshleyMadison).

He still has no clue as to why his Mystery Woman never showed, but I do.....it was ME...and I was in Florida enjoying a nice vacation at WDW. Just me and DD10!!!

Haven't changed my name because I don't want to lose my Tag Fairy tag or number of posts.

Little warning to all: You never really know who you're talking to on the internet. It could be your "Clueless" wife! Or your mother-in-law. Yes, he tried to setup a 'date' with her too. Idiot!

 

[Kevenswife2]

Yes and no.

While working for UA, this was the single most asked question from passengers checking in.
On a flight of that duration, E+ is a VERY popular choice. If you wait too long to decide, you might miss the chance because E+ will fill-up fast.

That being said, if you wait til you get to the airport to check-in and ask the agent how full the CHI-LAX flight is,depending on the load you could possibly be able to get a whole row to yourself. Some flights at this time of year operate with a lot of empty seats. I have seen planes that seat 150 passengers depart with 40 passengers on them.

If you send me your itinerary I can check the loads for you now and help make your decision.

I sent you a PM with my flight info. Thanks!

 

[txo1474]

Ill check the flights tomarrow and get back to ya Sunday morning.

 

[bavaria]

or feel free to PM me in the next hour; I'm sitting in the RCC redoing my travel patterns for the weekend as UA had a hiccup tonight

But I followed my own rules and got rerouted to a different city, better location, at no cost to me, and ended up in my favourite seats on my favourite aircraft for that route.

 

[bavaria]

No Keven since Aug 19, 09. He pulled a "Tiger Woods" on me and I got rid of him! Canceled out on a family vacation to WDW to shack up with a Mystery Woman he had "met" on an affairs website (AshleyMadison).

Well then you definitely should have parked him in another row, far far away....... back in E-

Hope that things are going better for all of you now.

 

[crashbb]

Well then you definitely should have parked him in another row, far far away....... back in E-

Hope that things are going better for all of you now.

You are far too nice - I'd be thinking more like strapped to the plane.

OP - you can actually get a sense of load yourself. Check www.seatcounter.com or http://publicbackup.com/shared/flyertalk/availability/

ETA - I suppose those sites aren't actually helpful unless you have a general idea of which letters go with which fare class. Sorry. Y is generally a full-fare economy - if there are any seats in economy they would be available for a Y fare. So, if Y starts getting low (max is shows is 9), the flight is getting full in the back.

 

[bavaria]

You are far too nice

I just got off a UA flight which was 1/2 empty and granted there were entire rows free in E- but I still say that nothing beats 9A or 6D for legroom in Economy.

 

[seashoreCM]

Ill never forget the guy who returned from a trip were I had told him it was worth the extra money. He came up to me and started yelling cause he took the E+, in a middle seat, and the back of the plane had whole open rows!

But what if he had checked the seat map, seen a lot of empty seats, not bought the Economy Plus and when he got to the airport a sudden horde of people perhaps from a cancelled flight came on board and had been given all the vacant seats including the last minute unassigned E+ ones?

Anyway, he could have gone to the lav a little into the flight and on the way back lounged in one of the empty rows instead of coming all the way back to his assigned seat.

 

[bavaria]

and remember, one cannot lay across seats during takeoff, landing, while the fasten seatbelt sign is on; often up to an hour or more of the travel time, so don't count on that.

I would far rather sit in my seat and stretch out my very long legs right from the time I board.

 

[Kevenswife2]

I'm glad I started this thread...I'm learning so much! While I've flown quite a few times, I still don't know all the ins & outs of it. I just buy the cheapest ticket, choose our seats, and show up 2 hours ahead of time. Didn't know I could EVER sit in another seat after takeoff, other than my assigned one. Yes, I'm a rule follower. Now I'm thinking of the flights I've suffered through which could have been made much better if I had only moved to one of the empty ROWS in the back.

I LOVE the Disboards!! I've learned so much about Disney and Airtravel since I've joined.

 

[txo1474]

Hey Bavaria good call on the 9abc on the 757s. I used to like the window seat in the exit row on the 737s that had no A or F seat in front of them.