PRO NEGOTIATING
STRATEGIES FOR
SITTING
TOGETHER
seat location, you’ll receive one
when you check in. It might be a
middle seat next to the galley, but
trust me, you’ll still fly.
• Make a special request. Airlines
allow you to register any special
needs when you book your ticket.
“Check for methods of notify-
ing the airline of special needs or
requests,” advises Grainne Kelly,
a mother of two and former travel
agent who owns a car booster seat
company. “In some cases, changes
can be made right at check-in.”
For example, Delta Air Lines pub-
lishes a page on travel with kids
that has useful information about
seating. Calling a few days before
your departure can yield positive
results.
• Don’t panic. Airlines want you
to freak out and immediately shell
over a seat reservation fee. Resist
the temptation, even if you’re trav-
eling with kids. “Don’t try to solve
the problem with the airline before
getting on the plane,” says David
Leventhal, a frequent traveler and
hotelier based in San Francisco.
• Talk to a gate agent. The first
real opportunity to find a seat
together comes at the gate. Gate
agents have a lot of flexibility in
moving seats around. This time,
money isn’t their primary motiva-
tor — it’s getting everyone in seats
in time for departure. “There have
been multiple times where we’ve
told the gate agent that we don’t
have seats together but would like
to, and they’ve been able to make
it happen,” says Nina Thomas, a
frequent traveler and author of the
book How to be Your Own Travel
Agent.
• Ask for help from a flight atten-
dant. That’s what Sarah Wilson,
who travels with three young girls,
does. “On several occasions, the
airline does not seat us together,
despite my requests,” says Wilson,
a marketer who lives in Nashville,
Tenn. In fact, flight attendants
often will do their best to reseat
passengers when they see a sepa-
rated family or even a couple.
• Ask a fellow passenger to
switch. “That’s the easiest way
to sit together,” says frequent
flier Rob Chimsky, a partner in a
Sonoma, Calif., winery. “Just ask
your respective seat neighbor if
they would be willing to switch.” It
helps if you can offer a better seat
— preferably an aisle seat near the
front of the aircraft. Otherwise,
you’re likely to get a “no.” ■
W
hat if none of these strat-
egies work? Then you
might try an unconven-
tional strategy. The most
common, at least when it comes to kids,
is threatening to not switch seats. Anyone
want to sit next to a rambunctious child?
And if all else fails, you could always pay
the seat assignment fee.
Typically, you can switch seats with
another passenger in your class of service
after the cabin doors close. Here’s how
to do it:
• BE POLITE. Sometimes, you won’t have
any leverage, like a better seat or a set
of extenuating circumstances. A “please”
and “thank you” can overcome all of that
— and land you in a seat next to your
friends or family.
• SWEETEN THE DEAL. Offer to buy the
passenger a drink, or slip them a couple
$20 bills. It’s still less expensive than pay-
ing the airline’s seat assignment fee.
• WAIT, THEN ASK YOUR FLIGHT
ATTENDANT AGAIN. After your flight
reaches cruising altitude, try asking the
flight attendant for help again. You may
also want to ask for the purser, or chief
flight attendant, if your requests to be
reseated are rebuffed. But don’t forget
your manners.
WAYNE MAGAZINE HOLIDAY 2018
35