New Seat fee's for Emirates

[mbamber]

Well catching on to the tricks of low cost operators I am sure the rest will follow.

http://loyaltylobby.com/2017/08/25/emirates-seat-selection-fee-changes/

[PR1977]

1 hour ago, mbamber said:

Well catching on to the tricks of low cost operators I am sure the rest will follow.

http://loyaltylobby.com/2017/08/25/emirates-seat-selection-fee-changes/

Another reason not to fly with them....aside from their cramped 777, shambolic boarding, amateurish cabin crew and inability to reach push back in a reasonable timeframe (normally due to some fiasco resulting in ground staff taking forever to leave the aircraft).

IMHO based on experience of course.

[mbamber]

15 minutes ago, PR1977 said:

Another reason not to fly with them....aside from their cramped 777, shambolic boarding, amateurish cabin crew and inability to reach push back in a reasonable timeframe (normally due to some fiasco resulting in ground staff taking forever to leave the aircraft).

IMHO based on experience of course.

Only problem I had with them was last time Bangkok-Dubai a family refused to sit down at least four attendants telling them to sit down whilst we were on the way to the Runway ended up late taking off. Mother holding baby and a boy about 4 on her lap during take off.

 

[jaynewcastle]

1 hour ago, mbamber said:

Only problem I had with them was last time Bangkok-Dubai a family refused to sit down at least four attendants telling them to sit down whilst we were on the way to the runway ended up late taking off. Mother holding baby and a boy about 4 on her lap during take off.

 

Asian ?, a lot of Asians have little understanding of normal behaviour on airlines. Landing at DMK this year, dozens of them started getting out of their seats to get their luggage from the overhead compartments, as we were still braking on the main Runway, seconds after landing

 

I've always flown with Emirates out to SE Asia, always been very happy with them, but the introduction of charging for seat selection (for cheapest tickets) prior to on-line check-in opening 48hrs before your flight was annoying. Still wondering & watching my Jan/Feb flights & hoping I won't need to pay to ensure an aisle seat

[Geordie59]

Many of the "full service airlines" have this policy now. As many refuse to pay the best thing to do is make sure you check in online as soon as it opens, usually from 24-48 hours before take off. At that stage it usually becomes free for anything not previously booked for a fee.

[mbamber]

26 minutes ago, jaynewcastle said:

Asian ?, a lot of Asians have little understanding of normal behaviour on airlines. Landing at DMK this year, dozens of them started getting out of their seats to get their luggage from the overhead compartments, as we were still braking on the main runway, seconds after landing

 

I've always flown with Emirates out to SE Asia, always been very happy with them, but the introduction of charging for seat selection (for cheapest tickets) prior to on-line check-in opening 48hrs before your flight was annoying. Still wondering & watching my Jan/Feb flights & hoping I won't need to pay to ensure an aisle seat

Arab's, had a baby across the aisle was not looking forward to that but they left it unattended whilst it was sleeping for a few minutes woke up cried for about 5 secs went back to sleep that was in a 6 hour flight wish they were all like that. 

Aisle seats are just normal seats so you should be OK

[jaynewcastle]

As long as babies are sleeping, they're ok  :).  Keeping a eye on the seating maps for my flights anyway.

This is what I posted on the TA Air Forum earlier this week about the new seat charges, following the introduction of charging for seat reservation back in October 2016

"They are really dragging themselves down with al lthese changes & extra charges.  Used to feel like you were flying with an airline a class above the rest.  Emirates had a very good reputation which they are now losing "

 

 

[manarak]

yup, when I booked a flight with them back in june, they were already charging 25 USD to chose your economy seat - as I was traveling with my son, this would have resulted in 100 USD extra charge for a return trip.

I think it's disgusting.
I didn't pay and asked at the check-in counter for neighboring seats.

In general, getting good service for cheap is becoming more and more difficult.

I remember 2008-2010 the flights were cheap, even with top carriers such as Oman or Etihad, service was great and I even got upgraded to business three or four times. Since about 2013, it's going south. fast.

[davidge]

Emirates extends paid-for seat selection policy

 Friday, August 25, 2017 by Mark Caswell

 

Emirates has quietly introduced an amended advance seat selection policy, with economy passengers facing charges of up to $135 per flight to select the most sought after seats.

The carrier originally launched advance seat selection fees last year, for economy class passengers travelling on Special and Saver fares.

The new policy, valid for tickets bought after August 20, sees a range of fees introduced for certain “Extra Value” seats. These range according to seat, route and destination, as follows:

Regular seat: $15-$35

Extra Value seats:

• Preferred seat (a seat closer to the front of the plane allowing you to disembark the plane quickly): $25-$80
• Twin seat (a row of two seats, at the back of the 777 aircraft and at the front of the aircraft on the upper deck of the A380, and usually closer to the onboard lavatories): $35-$110
• Extra legroom seat (available for sale up to six hours before flight departure): $55-$135

The fees apply as follows:

• Economy passengers travelling on Special or Saver fares must pay for all advance seat selection options
• Economy passengers travelling on Flex or Flex Plus fares must pay for advance selection of Extra Value seat options
• Business and first class passengers benefit from free advance seat selection
• All passengers may select seats free of charge when online check-in opens 48 hours before their flight
• A range of free and paid-for seat selection benefits apply for Emirates Skywards and Qantas Frequent Flyer members depending on tier membership – for full details see here
• Group bookings including ten or more passengers are exempt from advance seat selection fees

Note that the frequently asked questions section states that “if your itinerary includes connecting flights or stops where you leave the airport”, customers will need to pay for advance seat selection for each sector of the journey – the example given by the carrier is Mumbai – New York JFK, where “you’d need to pay for seat selection on the short haul from Mumbai – Dubai and also on the long haul from Dubai – New York JFK”.

In contrast “if any of the flights in your itinerary has a technical stop where you don’t leave the airport, you will be able to select only one seat for all the flight legs sharing the same flight number” – here the example given is Dubai to Christchurch on flight EK412, where “you will be able to select only one seat for the full journey between Dubai and Christchurch, provided there are no voluntary stops taken at Sydney”.

The new policy is the latest in a range of new optional charges being brought in by Gulf carriers including Emirates and Etihad.

Emirates now allows paid-for access to its Dubai lounges and 27 other lounges worldwide(including Gatwick, Heathrow and Manchester), while Etihad has introduced the option to bid for up to three adjacent empty seats in economy.

emirates.com

[The Storm]

I only fly business class with them so as long as I continue to get my ''J" seat in the front cabin (furthest from the bar on the A380) I will be happy! 

[Terryofcrete]

On 26/08/2017 at 16:56, jaynewcastle said:

Asian ?, a lot of Asians have little understanding of normal behaviour on airlines. Landing at DMK this year, dozens of them started getting out of their seats to get their luggage from the overhead compartments, as we were still braking on the main runway, seconds after landing

 

I've always flown with Emirates out to SE Asia, always been very happy with them, but the introduction of charging for seat selection (for cheapest tickets) prior to on-line check-in opening 48hrs before your flight was annoying. Still wondering & watching my Jan/Feb flights & hoping I won't need to pay to ensure an aisle seat

I was really annoyed when I discovered their bargain economy did not allow seat reservation without additional fees until very close to the departure date and of course the best were gone !  Also they reduced the baggage allowance to 20 k ! My last 2 trips I have used Etihad instead. Only 23k but not much difference and free seat booking from date of reservation. I’m trying Qatar next week as they have started a route from Dublin. We will see ! Might ask them to drop me down to Pats. 

[insider]

Just booked with Oman air for next month, I used Lycafly, i phoned them to see if they could price match and they dropped their price to match their lowest competitor, then I asked for window seats for all 4 flights (there and back) they did that whilst I was on the phone too. Although if you book with Oman Air directly online you get to pick all your seats during the  booking itself before you pay them.

The last time I used them, in June, I had all seats in my row to myself on each and every flight. Hoping for the same again this time.

[mbamber]

7 hours ago, The Storm said:

I only fly business class with them so as long as I continue to get my ''J" seat in the front cabin (furthest from the bar on the A380) I will be happy! 

23A or 20A first seat aft cabin unless I can get an upgrade to 2A  Just far enough from the bar.

[jaynewcastle]

For economy passengers,  the bulkhead seats on my route, NCL - BK, which used to be free, but you had to request them actually at the airport and were given on a first-come, first-served basis, now cost £75 per flight to reserve in advance. (or £300 for all 4 flights on the route). My return flight for Jan/Feb 2018 was priced at £476, so the seat reservation fees can be a huge addition on top, even if you're just reserving 4 normal seats at £20 a time.

 

 

[Scuba+]

The last few years I've booked with Emirates and always good. By them charging extras it probably keeps the flight prices down so ok with me. Economy flex allows you to book seats no charge.

[Jumpin Jack Flash]

I've never flown with them mainly because their prices are shit compared to Qatar and Etihad, but these extra charges (and lower baggage allowance) puts the tin lid on it. Count me out.

[mbamber]

2 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

The last few years I've booked with Emirates and always good. By them charging extras it probably keeps the flight prices down so ok with me. Economy flex allows you to book seats no charge.

It has changed again you only get standard seats with flex if you want what they call extra value you have to pay.

[Kim Jong Il]

Just booked my Lufthansa flights. For the first time ever I see the option to 'select your seat for only 25 Euros'.

[manarak]

4 minutes ago, Kim Jong Il said:

Just booked my Lufthansa flights. For the first time ever I see the option to 'select your seat for only 25 Euros'.

definitely a step backwards

[mbamber]

45 minutes ago, Kim Jong Il said:

Just booked my Lufthansa flights. For the first time ever I see the option to 'select your seat for only 25 Euros'.

Yeah they will all be doing it in a few months.

[brownmanc]

On 09/09/2017 at 14:28, Kim Jong Il said:

Just booked my Lufthansa flights. For the first time ever I see the option to 'select your seat for only 25 Euros'.

My understanding is that Lufthansa have been charging for seat selection in Economy since late 2014 !

[rog555]

On 31/08/2017 at 22:26, Terryofcrete said:

I was really annoyed when I discovered their bargain economy did not allow seat reservation without additional fees until very close to the departure date and of course the best were gone !  Also they reduced the baggage allowance to 20 k ! My last 2 trips I have used Etihad instead. Only 23k but not much difference and free seat booking from date of reservation. I’m trying Qatar next week as they have started a route from Dublin. We will see ! Might ask them to drop me down to Pats. 

Yes, I used to fly Emirates, but this time have switched to try Etihad.  Purely because of the extra seat reservation  fee nonsense.  

There must be high powered executives sitting in offices debating how to increase profits.  Steve says 'lets charge them for a seat, even though they have bought a ticket'.  The boss says great idea Steve, you'll get that promotion soon.

I didn't realise Emirates charged for seat reservations until after I had bought the ticket.  It just gave a sense of being cheated, tricked.  

[Terryofcrete]

2 minutes ago, rog555 said:

Yes, I used to fly Emirates, but this time switched to try Etihad.  Purely because of the extra seat reservation  fee nonsense.  

The only thing I would say is that they have reduced the prices quite a lot on these new economy fares so I guess it is a question of what will you endure to get the cheap fare but I was surprised at them cutting their quality of overall  service to accomodate poor people like me ! Etihad ok but not quite the same. BTW Qatar were quite good and Doha was a breeze to get through on a tight transfer. The second leg of the journey, Doha to Bangkok , was serviced by an older aircraft and having just flown from Dublin to Doha on  dreamliner it was a disappointment to have to use manual selection on a tiny screen and a tighter seat fit. Might have been just that flight. Jury’s out. 

[Kim Jong Il]

3 hours ago, brownmanc said:

My understanding is that Lufthansa have been charging for seat selection in Economy since late 2014 !

 Not being a frequent flyer with Lufthansa these days I certainly won't argue with that but from personal experience when I've booked flights online with them I've never been given the option to pay to book a seat until now.

The last time I flew with them was in April 2016 so I'm not sure anyway when the policy changed.

[mbamber]

Old article from 2014

https://buyingbusinesstravel.com/news/1622313-lufthansa-extend-seat-selection-fee-long-haul