Gain Some Space and Save Some Money on Your Next Vacation Flight

As you know, we're all getting squeezed into a smaller space in coach on airplanes nowadays. By shortening the distance between your seat and the ones in front of and behind you, all the way through the plane, the airlines are able to create areas of what are known as "extra legroom seats"

When they first began offering these premium seats, the additional cost was pretty reasonable. But as they became more popular, the prices on these seats has risen. And risen a lot !

Let's say you  purchase 2 standard coach seats round trip from Boston to L.A. for $700.00. Suppose you want to upgrade those 2 seats to extra legroom seats. That can cost you close to $350.00 !!! That's a lot of dough to stretch your legs !

How about considering a couple of other options to gain some space ?
Next time you book a flight for you and a companion, check the seat map for the flights you've chosen. If the plane you'll be flying on has 3 seats between the aisle and the window, try to book the window seat and the aisle seat in the row you want. There aren't many travelers that will want that seat between you. Having that seat empty will allow you to raise the armrests on either side of the middle seat, giving you extra space to  turn a little to the side,  and cross your legs in front of you.

If you're not willing to take that gamble, consider buying that middle seat. For the same $350.00 you would have spent on the premium seats, you'll keep the seat between you empty, and the extra room that goes with it.

In addition, purchasing that 3rd seat will entitle you to one more carry-on bag for free. The resulting 3 carry-on bags should hold as much as the checked bag the 2 of you probably would have needed for the trip. Checked bags for this round trip could have cost you another $50.00 !

And we all want to avoid checked bags, right ? Checked bags can get lost. Checked bags sometimes get broken into when they're out of your site. And nobody wants to hang around the baggage carousel with 100 other people whose bags look remarkably just like yours !

Just another option you might want to consider when planning your next vacation !