What cabin do you fly and why?

[DawnM]

2 hours ago, importswim said:

Whaaaaaaat!?! What airline was this? DH's parents were missionaries overseas for 40 years and they didn't get this treatment! They must have been flying the wrong airline!!! 

DH is a pilot for the airlines so I've flown a lot in all areas of the plane. Of course First or Business are my favorite and I'd definitely consider paying a little bit to upgrade if we bought tickets (but not full price). To be honest I have a hard time paying at all for tickets since we have free standby flights (Internationally we pay but a VERY low rate). 😬 We've taken full advantage of that in years past but Covid, obviously, put a damper on things. I can't wait to get up in the air again!

Originally it was Pan Am, but then when Pan Am went belly up, we flew KLM and British Airways.   All 3 provided this free upgrade.  We liked KLM the best because they also allowed us to use their concierge lounge in Holland and it had sleepers, a shower, TV, and lounge area with drinks and snacks.   We usually ended up with very long layovers.

 

[mommyoffive]

1 hour ago, Tree Frog said:

We usually opt for the lowest fare, but also consider all the extra add on's. Do we need to check a bag or take a carry on? Are 2 carry on's allowed or only 1? Sometimes it's less expensive to purchase the next step up from the base fare.

Dh wanted to take us to London. We booked economy, but when we checked in, all 5 of us were bumped to business class. We had individual seats that pulled out into beds, partitions, and great food. We were very thankful because dh got sick, most likely due to stress, as we were driving to the airport 2 hours away. The partitions separated him from everyone else when he needed his air sick bags. The flight attendant was wonderful and kept bringing him cold cloths to put on his face. We were unsure if he would be allowed on the plane, but I've wondered if the person checking us in realized how helpful the upgrade would be. We decided to fly economy plus on the way home. It was the upgrade we could afford.

Wow!  I have heard one or two people getting upgraded but a group of 5 wow.  Fingers crossed that happens to my group of 7 one day. 

[QueenCat]

12 hours ago, Tree Frog said:

We usually opt for the lowest fare, but also consider all the extra add on's. Do we need to check a bag or take a carry on? Are 2 carry on's allowed or only 1? Sometimes it's less expensive to purchase the next step up from the base fare.

 

This is a good point. Often, the difference by the time you consider all the add-ons isn't much. Or it's cheaper to upgrade. I recently bought my son a ticket to come visit me. It was $400 in coach; including adding in the fees for luggage it was $470. It was $460 first class! Granted, it isn't usually that small of a difference, but it's been that way for his particular route the past two times I've bought him tickets.