When choosing the seat after booking a flight, you may not know that there are pros and cons to
selecting where on the plane you would like to sit, especially if you're new to flying.
So, in this video I'm going to share which seats
on the plane you should avoid and which ones you might want to consider instead.
Let's go
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So let me start off by saying that the best seats on the plane are the upgraded seats.
So these would be the premium economy, business class, and first class seats.
If you can afford one of these seats,
then definitely upgrade yourselves to one of these categories.
But for the rest of us who have to slum it in economy,
here's what you need to know when choosing a seat.
First, I think everyone can agree that leg room
is a huge deal but it's not the only way an airline seat can disappoint.
Some won't recline, others are constantly bombarded with the scent of the airplane lavatory.
But you can steer clear of most of these seats most of
the time just by knowing which ones to avoid.
So, here the seats you should stay away from when it comes time to selecting your seat.
Number one, the seat at the back of any section.
These seats are usually found just in front of a bank of lavatories or a galley. They are great if
you don't like to recline or can't stand having your seat kicked in from the person behind you.
If you like discomfort, then this is a seat for you but for the rest of us,
these seats should be avoided whenever possible.
Number two, the exit row seat.
If you are just looking to get the most legroom possible,
then getting an exit row seat would be the best choice for you.
But if you are an average height person,
then choosing one of these seats may not make the most sense.
For one, there is no seat in front of you which means no under seat storage,
so you will have to put everything in the overhead bins during takeoff and landing.
The seats also have a reduced width because since there is no seat in front of you with
a tray table, the tray table for these seats are stored in the armrest making
the armrest bulkier and thus making your seat just slightly narrower.
Also, it will be colder sitting by the exit door since it does
not have any insulation due to the inner mechanics of the exit door.
To go along with the exit row seats are the rows in front of the exit row.
To ensure that the exit rows remain clear for emergencies,
the row of seats in front of the exit row don't recline or only recline slightly.
So, if you're looking to recline your seat during your flight, don't choose these seats.
Next are the seats near the bathroom.
Not only do you get the aromas coming from the bathrooms, but more often than not you
can expect a constant stream of passengers going in and out of the bathrooms during the flight.
And if you are wanting to sleep on the plane, the constant opening and closing of
the bathroom doors along with the lights from the bathrooms can make for a restless flight.
You may also experience a line forming for the bathroom in which case you can
expect to have people standing next to you steadying themselves on your seat back,
or using it to help stretch out their legs making your seat jiggle back and forth.
And as people try to move past each other in the narrow aisle,
you are most likely to get bumped if you're sitting in an aisle seat.
And let's not forget the projecting over the engine noise conversations
you'll be treated to while trying to sleep.
But perhaps the worst place to be on the plane is the last row.
Not only are you near the bathrooms and the smells that come from them, but you will also experience
seats that don't recline and a constant crowd of inpatient passengers waiting to use the bathroom.
And when your plane has arrived at the gate, don't bother getting up for at least 10 minutes.
By the time your aisle is clear for you to go, it will just be you and the cleaning crew.
Another seat you may want to consider avoiding our seats in the bulkhead rows.
And if you are not familiar with the term, it simply means a row of seats that are
directly behind a wall or a curtain that separates cabins on an airplane.
A lot of people consider these seats the best seats on the
airplane if flying economy and they usually cost extra to sit in them.
I personally do not care for them even though they do provide extra legroom
and you don't have to worry about anybody reclining into your space.
The main reason I don't like them is because just like the
exit row seats they don't have under seat storage.
I like to have my backpack where I can easily get into it and not
have to keep standing up and down to get the items I need in the overhead bins.
I also don't like staring at a wall for the duration of my flight.
I like to see space and also check out what's going on around me.
And unless you have things in front of you,
people also like to use the bulkhead space as a cut through to get to the opposite aisle.
Let's now talk about the window seat.
There are some pros and cons to window seat.
Let's start with the pros.
The window seat is going to give you just a little bit more separation from
the people you are sitting next to and that is because you are able
to lean into the side of the airplane and it can also to be used to rest your
head against which can be great if you are trying to sleep during the flight.
The cons are that you're trapped in your seat and it's not going to be easy to get
out to either grab some things out of the overhead bins or use the bathroom.
I have always found it awkward to wake up the stranger sitting next to me so they can move out
of my way so that I can use the bathroom, and let me know if you feel the same way.
The other con is that it tends to be harder to communicate with the
flight attendants over the jet noise to give them your drink and snack order.
I generally like the window seat but only for flights less than three maybe four hours.
Anything longer than that and I'm choosing an aisle seat so
that I can easily get up if I need to without disturbing anyone else.
But just be careful about certain window seats you can end up with
either a tapered window seat or a misaligned window seat.
Tapered window seats are located at the back of
some planes where you end up with a few rows of two seats.
This may seem like a great option since there
won't be a middle seat but there are some issues with these seats.
One, there is usually a gap between the seat
and the wall eliminating the ability to lean up against it.
Second, the person sitting behind you could end up claiming the extra space as their extra leg room,
which could mean you could constantly be seeing wiggling feet in your peripheral
vision for the duration of your flight which can be annoying.
The misaligned window seat is when the window is not actually next to
you where you can look out but blocked by the seats themselves.
This can create a disappointment if you actually want to be able to look out the window.
Not only that but it can also create lighting issues as the window in front
of you and behind you may peek into your row but you won't be able to control them.
And speaking of lighting issues,
you should also consider where the sun is going to be located on your flight.
For example, if you are flying from South to North on a morning flight,
the sun will be shining through the right side of the plane when
facing forward and on the left side of the plane for an afternoon flight.
So, if you prefer not to have the sun shining in your face or having sun
glare be sure to sit on the opposite side of where the sun is going to be on your flight.
And for you new flyers out there, even if the weather is cloudy the plane does
fly above the clouds for the most part so you can expect it to be sunny during your flight.
Next is what I like to call the DMS or dreaded middle seat.
These seats are always the last to be claimed, meaning the later you book,
the more likely you are to resign yourself to battling your window
and aisle seat mates for the extra few centimeters of the armrest.
And if you are sitting in a window or aisle seat,
please let the person with the middle seat get the armrest.
It's kind of an unspoken rule anyway but it's bad enough that they have to
sit in the middle seat the least you could do is offer them the armrest.
Moving on to the aisle seats.
These are beneficial since you can get up and grab items out of
the overhead bins or use the bathrooms without having to ask anyone to move.
You can also use the aisle to stretch out your legs or use it for extra elbow room.
If you are looking to get some work done on the plane consider sitting
on the opposite side of your dominant hand.
For example, if you are right-handed you may want to sit on the left hand
side of the plane when facing forward in an aisle seat so that you can move
your right arm into the aisle without having to worry about hitting anyone next to you.
So keep that in mind when selecting the seat on your flight.
The downside to the aisle seat is that you will have to get up and move out
of the way if someone in your row needs to get up.
You also won't have a place to lean your head against however, some airplanes do have
headrests where the sides can extend and wrap around your head where you can lean against it.
Another downside is that you may get bumped as people are moving up and down the aisles
or from the beverage cart the flight attendant uses to serve drinks and snacks.
As far as where to sit to experience the least amount of turbulence,
those seats will be located over the wings of the airplane.
This is because that is where the center of gravity for the airplane
is located and everything pivots from that point.
You can think of the airplane as kind of like a seesaw where the
middle moves very little but the ends experience the greatest movements.
I will also add that the best time of day to avoid turbulence on a flight
is either in the morning or evening.
So because there are so many different types of aircraft that are being flown around the world,
how do you even know what a good seat is and a bad seed is when choosing a seat for your flight.
Well luckily there is a great resource that you can use to
help you decide where to sit on your flight and that resource is SeatGuru.
Just enter your flight information and SeatGuru will pull up the map
for your exact flight and give you information about each seat on the
airplane and even color code the seats that you might want to avoid.
I go to this site a lot before I select the seats for my flights
just so I can avoid ending up with a bad seat.
So where is your favorite place to sit on the plane?
Let me know in the comments section of this video.
For me I like to sit either just in front of the wings or just behind the
wings and I typically choose to sit in the window seat except for the longer flights.
Mostly because I do enjoy looking out of the window and also because
it's a more stable place to sit on the plane.
Let me know if you have any questions and be sure
to check out some of my other videos that may be helpful to you as well.
Thank you so much for watching this one and I hope they catch you again in a future video.