Posted: 5/30/2011 6:50:42 AM EDT
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I've been planning a trip to Seeeeeeetle (tour the Boeing facility and stuff) and looking at the various pricing on airlines and such for first class.
Out of curiosity I google searched the airlines and their first class options. Is there a website that centralizes these type of reviews and such? There is a forum/website for everything these days so I figure there has to be a 'best' one. One random google find gave a US Airways First Class review, decent description of the experience, with the end verdict being that their service is really just Enhanced Economy lol. So for that money (why waste it right?) US Airways was crossed off the list. And it seems that flights from Miami to Seeeeeetle are only on the little 737. No widebodies, no 747, 777, etc. Is there a way to search by plane/flight? Oh and few, if any, direct flights. And this is going into SEA and not BFI |
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I feel your pain. Not many direct flights to SEA from the FL airports. Most are going to be on a 737. The only 767s to SEA that I noticed were from ATL or Charlotte.
If you look at the airline booking pages you will see a pattern of what planes they are using for the route you are looking for. |
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I have honestly never flown first class. Those I know who do it, do it as a business travel perk. On their own dime and time, they fly economy.
The airlines make a lot of extra money selling the rest of the seats to the kind of people for whom "exclusivity" and "prestige" are successful marketing buzz words. The only place where I could see a tangible difference is on the big planes for the long flights. Sometimes, just being allowed more bags and more flexibility is benefit enough, even setting aside the ability to recline and get a good sleep. It seems like a whole lot extra for minimal gain on domestics, though. |
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I'm only considering it for this coast-to-coast flight.
2-2.5 hrs in the cattle section is more than long enough for me, especially these days when they intentionally overbook every flight. No sense tolerating one leg for 5.5-6hrs when I can avoid it. I flew first class once before (pre-9/11) and the comfort, food and service was worth every penny. I'm not certain where service and food rank these days though. Hence the search for a website that ranks this stuff lol. The realization of living only once struck home recently. No longer any sense in tolerating "economy" in any of life's situations when it can be avoided. I'm no longer going to be 'cheap'. Buy right to buy once, but no more being 'cheap'. |
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My experience flying "first" class on Delta from Las Vegas to Michigan. Due to a company conference, I had to leave on a thursday afternoon, and they only gave me a weeks notice to book flights, so they only option on the return flight was first class.
Checking in at the Las Vegas airport - used the priority check in. This saved me about 30-40 minutes of standing in line. The priority line was about 20 deep, where the normal line was several hundred. Security at the Vegas airport - Delta has a priority security lane for first / business class. I was the only one in line, again the normal line was several hundred. Food - on the flight from Vegas to Minneapolis, they served a cold chicken sandwich, and soup. Was ok, but nothing great. Free alcohol for those that drink, instead of the $5-7 per drink in economy. Think the guy next to me had 3-4 beers. I don't think it is worth the few hundred extra, and I wouldn't have paid it except there wasn't really a cheaper / easier way to get home. Oh, and if you are a member of the airlines frequent flyer program, first /business class usually get more points per mile, then an economy flght |
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I'm only 5'11" and 180 lbs, so it is fair to say that some people will have more cause to complain about leg room and such, but I still don't understand why some people hate economy class so much. My first ever plane journey was a 24 hour one to Australia (changed planes in the UAE, stopped to refuel in Singapore, though I stayed on the plane then). I had no problem with economy class, really. I've had worse road coach trips (24 hours to Wacken Open Air festival in Germany). I also did a direct flight (10-11 hours) from London Gatwick to Las Vegas McCarran back in 2008, economy class. Nothing to it. |
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Quoted:
I have honestly never flown first class. Those I know who do it, do it as a business travel perk. On their own dime and time, they fly economy. The airlines make a lot of extra money selling the rest of the seats to the kind of people for whom "exclusivity" and "prestige" are successful marketing buzz words. The only place where I could see a tangible difference is on the big planes for the long flights. Sometimes, just being allowed more bags and more flexibility is benefit enough, even setting aside the ability to recline and get a good sleep. It seems like a whole lot extra for minimal gain on domestics, though. I've never bought a first class ticket, however, a few days ago Airtran was offering upgrades for $49.....and if there was a seat available it would have been mine. Im not trying to be exclusive and prestigious...I am trying to not have my back all jacked up and legs all cramped. I'm 6'4".....the cheap seats in the back of the plane werent designed for me. I'd pay $49 every single time to get a little leg room. I couldnt care less about the other perceived perks...I just want the extra space to stretch out. |
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Alasa Airlines fly direct between Miami and Seeetle. 737/800 I believe. You'll ge a meal, drinks, and digiplayer for movies. Good service and comfortable seats. I fly first class about 1/3 of the time when I get upgraded. I just saw and your 'review' is the first I've come across. Might the option if I go lol. |
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I'm only 5'11" and 180 lbs, so it is fair to say that some people will have more cause to complain about leg room and such, but I still don't understand why some people hate economy class so much.
My first ever plane journey was a 24 hour one to Australia (changed planes in the UAE, stopped to refuel in Singapore, though I stayed on the plane then). I had no problem with economy class, really. I've had worse road coach trips (24 hours to Wacken Open Air festival in Germany).
I also did a direct flight (10-11 hours) from London Gatwick to Las Vegas McCarran back in 2008, economy class. Nothing to it.
It depends on the plane and how it's set up. For international flights, they use bigger planes and often have the rows of seats a little further apart. I'm about your size and I've been on smaller jets on domestic flights where the seat pitch is so close that you can barely lower the seat tray. Somehow, the seats recline enough so that the guy in front of you can recline enough to put his seat nearly in your face, but at the same time when you recline, it's not enough to actually get comfortable. At least it's only 2-4 hours (unless you sit on the tarmac for 8 hours). I'll admit that I've been on longer international flights in coach, and it's much nicer. |
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I have honestly never flown first class. Those I know who do it, do it as a business travel perk. On their own dime and time, they fly economy. The airlines make a lot of extra money selling the rest of the seats to the kind of people for whom "exclusivity" and "prestige" are successful marketing buzz words. The only place where I could see a tangible difference is on the big planes for the long flights. Sometimes, just being allowed more bags and more flexibility is benefit enough, even setting aside the ability to recline and get a good sleep. It seems like a whole lot extra for minimal gain on domestics, though. I've never bought a first class ticket, however, a few days ago Airtran was offering upgrades for $49.....and if there was a seat available it would have been mine. Im not trying to be exclusive and prestigious...I am trying to not have my back all jacked up and legs all cramped. I'm 6'4".....the cheap seats in the back of the plane werent designed for me. I'd pay $49 every single time to get a little leg room. I couldnt care less about the other perceived perks...I just want the extra space to stretch out. If they are offering upgrades for $49, it means they were not successful selling them for higher, to the types they hope to sell them to. It is well worth it for the leg room for $49. A special promotional rate is not, however, the business model. Just take a look at the normal prices they expect you to pay for first class. They model is not always very successful, and many seats in first class remain open - often meaning tickets are available last minute when no others are. It makes it worth it then, as well. |
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Just check your flight. Bigger and Newer planes have the best first class. I tend to fly it for 3 reasons. I hate coach now that the seats are for midgets and crying children. ***Not saying*** Most large/new planes now have internet and electrical plugs. It's nice to watch netflix or hulu. It's your money. If first class is a small enough portion of your total income, then it doesn't matter. If it's a large part and you're skipping little Timmy's mumps vaccine to fly it, then don't. When you buy a discount ticket and buy the upgrade through the airline it's cheaper. When you buy it at the airport and the flight is not full, it's cheapest (assuming you don't have miles/points to transfer). American Express and some of the other cards make it very easy to upgrade to first or business with points you already have on your card from buying groceries. My trip to Mexico was booked with $300 for the upgrade ––-Week long wedding, I want the extra space and storage. You can have the steward kick economy baggage out of your slot overhead. It's not elitist when you pay for it. And Ft Lauderdale was free with points from the Mexico Trip. If you are already using a credit card and you pay it off every month, I highly recommend Chase Sapphire for low fee and AMEX for higher fee/higher perks. I've never carried a balance and I use the points system to no end. Chase lets you keep points and they have a small interest rate for them. I tend to pile them on and life off my point interest for upgrades. |
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To the OP, I fly a lot. I am talking hundreds of thousands of air miles. The site I use is www.seatguru.com It will tell you how each plane for each company is setup. It shows a real seat map for each flight and tells you how wide the seats are, how much leg room you have, how far the seats recline, if there is power at the seat, if you have a TV, where the galley is, where the restroom is, if a ceratin seat is good, bad or inbetween.
When I have a trip planned, I look to see which airlines service my destination then I go and see which one offers the best services. I fly first class fairly often because I have so many miles its always an upgrade, I dont pay for it. I will pay for premium economy though, a lot of the newer planes have a section for premium economy. It gives you a better seat with more room but for a lot less than first class. |
I've flown first class only 3 times. I like the space but don't buy into the hype at full fare. My wife's aunt & uncle, OTOH, fly up front because they don't want to associate with the riff-raff. She told my wife that on AC trip where they were on the same plane as my wife who was in coach. 
First was when the gate agent kindly bumped my then-gf, soon-to-be-fiancee and me to first class. We were on the way to my wife's parents & I showed the agent my ring explaining I was going to ask father's permission on arrival. Second, I flew a red-eye across the country for an 8am last minute interview for a job after residency. The kiosk offered a $100 upgrade. I took it and slept most of the flight. The position had been filled, but they created an extra spot for me. I've been with that group almost 6 years, they've voted me medical director of anesthesia at one hospital and department chair at another. With the 2 other senior leadership guys away on travel and medical leave, I am temporarily the acting president & director if our corporation. That was the best return on $100 I've ever had. The last time, the airline completely lost (stolen in Boston) my suitcase full of clothes for a high end management conference and my Glock. It sucked. I asked them for an upgrade for my empty handed flight home, and they were very accommodating. After several days of not sleeping, washing socks & underwear in the marble bathroom sink in the Fairmont Copley, and days of death by PowerPoint including actual slides referencing TPS reporting, I slept the whole way home. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Quoted:
To the OP, I fly a lot. I am talking hundreds of thousands of air miles. The site I use is www.seatguru.com It will tell you how each plane for each company is setup. It shows a real seat map for each flight and tells you how wide the seats are, how much leg room you have, how far the seats recline, if there is power at the seat, if you have a TV, where the galley is, where the restroom is, if a ceratin seat is good, bad or inbetween. When I have a trip planned, I look to see which airlines service my destination then I go and see which one offers the best services. I fly first class fairly often because I have so many miles its always an upgrade, I dont pay for it. I will pay for premium economy though, a lot of the newer planes have a section for premium economy. It gives you a better seat with more room but for a lot less than first class. cool, thanks |