Not being a frequent flyer, I have always traveled economy in the past. We are going to the UK later this year, I don't want to pay for business class, so I'm thinking premium economy. Can anyone help me please, is it worth it, or should I stick to economy.
Thanks
Premium Economy
SuperMick on 04/01/2015 - 11:41
Comments
Depends what you're wanting from it?
Better food? Legroom? Prestige?Legroom is the big winner most of the time. Depending on the airline, you may not get a better seat (i.e. not able to recline any further than in economy, no wider, no more comfortable) which may not justify the price.
There's a few options;
Consider your longest legs - maybe do economy for a shorter run from Australia to stop 1, then catch the onward journey in business class - it's probably got significantly more flights and therefore more competitive prices in Business Class than AU direct.Check your frequent flyer points - do you have any/enough for an upgrade with an airline? (Also could look at buying them from a friend or family member who accumulates them but doesn't travel. Plenty of info online about what's a fair rate per point). Caution here if you want to book more than 2 people - very very difficult to get more than 2 seats together on FF points in my experience.
Talk to an actual travel agent who does this every day. I have always been very big on doing it myself, but have been working with 2 different Agents lately on projects who have opened my eyes to the fact that they don't charge anything for the service - they get the commission that is already built into the cost of booking AND they often have access to wholesale pricing which isn't advertised and they can drop their margin if you're booking other bits. One example was a RTW ticket in business class that was cheaper than booking an economy seat from Sydney to Heathrow by almost $400. Sure, if you don't want an extra holiday destination on the way to / or from the UK, this might not work, but for a $400 saving and a business class seat, I'd be willing to add 3 days to my trip to relax!
Personally I wouldn't pay for premium economy in normal circumstances unless it had a better seat that laid back further or I got an awesome deal. I'd probably pay the extra for choosing a seat with more legroom and be done with it. A couple of sleeping tablets sorts you out :)
Block-quote a $400 saving and a business class seat, I'd be willing to add 3 days to my trip to relax!
Wow! Care to explain more or share ballpark details of price / time of year, etc?
If I recall correctly the comparison was between Qantas and using a RTW ticket with OneWorld, but starting the RTW in New Zealand to get a lower fare structure. The customer had used Flightfox (?) to find the RTW deal for comparison. It's quite possible another airline would have been less than Qantas from Sydney with similar flights - I didn't ask about it when we were talking.
The Qantas ticket was about $4k for the same dates as the OneWorld promo (Dec/Jan) and only had about a month's notice, so for most normal people it would have been a challenge to drop everything just to grab a cheap flight to NZ which were on at that stage, then start a RTW ticket. Good timing/luck helps a lot here. I've had to book tickets to NZ for February and they were about $600 each return - 2 weeks later they were on special for about $250, and I notice again they're on special. Thems the breaks.
I'd never even considered doing something like that before but a good Agent has an awareness of what specials are on and any "opportunities" that can be leveraged if you let them know you're more interested in price than explicit dates and destinations and will be flexible to make it come together.
Edit: I'd be really keen on hearing how others have gone with RTW tickets and any suggestions you might have
When i travelled to the UK, premium economy was packed, and scumbag economy had half the seats filled.
imo premium wouldnt have been worth it.
Cathay Pacific offered to 'upgrade' me to premium for $300 last year(MELB-HKG-MELB). I took the offer (it's a bargain, why not?!). It turned out it was a total waste money. I actually requested to 'downgrade' me back to economy on my return flight and give me back $150, but they declined.
I am a 5feet4 'tall' petite female, so legroom is never a concern to me. I never have trouble sleeping in economy class, even in CX's non-reclined hardshell seat. I'm fine with normal economy seats.
Better food in Premium, yes. Slightly. But I'm not too fussy with airline food.
The only good thing (for me anyway) for premium class is it is very quiet, and less people walking up and down the aisle.
Premium economy don't get any extra luggage allowance, no priority check-in, no priority boarding, so I don't see the point of paying extra just for a slightly bigger seat.
If it is a long haul flight and legroom is a concern, then by no means, go for it.
It depends on the product…if I couldn't get a seat in biz, I would not mind travelling in Air France's PE, Japan Airline's PE, China Airline's PE or Turkish Airline's Comfort Class (am hoping to try Lufthansa's new PE class soon). Qantas's PE would depend on my mood.
I wouldn't expect to sleep in PE, but it will be a slightly more bearable journey than in economy. However, if you have FF status you can generally secure the exit rows seats, or just opt to pay for those seats for a small fee (depending on the airline).
We fly Y (Econ.) domestically and J (Bus. Class) long haul OS, once smitten hard to return, apart from a large comfy seat those lounges world wide are great and in J can try any OneWorld lounge too, always get there early and lounge hop, also don't forget the points you'll rack up and maybe have some QF status later like Silver or Gold. Hop on over to AFF for all the info on flying.
http://www.australianfrequentflyer.com.au/community/forum.ph…
Depends how much you value guarenteed leg room. The majority of international flights I take, I book a seat at the back of the plane (or even better on most a380's there are a few economy seats on the top deck) and there is space to move seats to get a row by yourself. Very rarely do I get stuck in a seat I don't want. Both legs back from the UK last month I got a three or a four seat row to myself on Singapore Airways and there were plenty to choose from.
I personally don't think premium is worth it, but I know others think it is and never travel basic. You normally get the same entertainment and food, and the leg room, whilst nice, is still not massive. I can sleep anywhere so once I get in a position it doesn't matter about the extra few inches. I don't feel any different walking off a flight in economy than premium.
Business is different. You walk away from a flight feeling like you actually had a comfortable sleep and the service, entertainment and food is better.
To me, yes it is nicer but not hundreds off dollars nicer. Maybe worth it to try it once to see what you think for future flights?