I have just used Avios to get me and the Memsahib two CE seats LHR-BLQ in June (BA0540 going out, BA0545 coming back) and took a look at the seating for CE available.
At the moment, it is only showing 3 rows (1 to 3) as available for Club, rows 2 and 3 are available but row 1 is blocked (exit row I believe).
Now as I am only a lowly Bronze, I can't reserve a seat without paying, but do you think
a) the flight would oversell in Club and we might get bounced back, and
b) would it be best to wait until all the seats are taken to see if we get allocated row 1 seats by default?
I suppose it is possible that if we don't book these, we could be seated separately as other individuals pick and choose ...
What is the advice from those long-travelling Golds and Silvers using this route?
Row 1 is blocked for Golds and above until OLCI opens.
The chances of your getting bounced back are extremely small. They would normally push the curtain divider back and offload someone from the back if necessary.
Frankly I wouldn't bother paying for the seats. If you find you are separated when you try to do OLCI, see what if you can clear it up at the check-in desk, or even when you're on board. The CE seats on a 319 are really much of a muchness and I would be really surprised if you found the 10 other pax in a 3 row CE config not prepared to help you out.
The CE cabin on the A319 is variable. You will not get bounced back, the dividing curtain will
Best wait until T-72, the seat map will get a bit stable by then – but if you're really unlucky, you may not get seats next to each other, so you may want to pay and reserve a pair.
Edit: Ah, got beaten to the point
Last edited by csutter; Nov 30, 12 at 9:41 am..
Reason: Oops!
Programs: BA Gold, BMI , AF, VS, AA, Amex Plat, HH Diamond
Posts: 7,123
Absolutely nothing to worry about. CE on BLQ is not a busy cabin and that curtain is very movable. I very often find that the CE cabin is much bigger on the day of the flight than the 3 rows I see when I first book. 3 rows is standard for early booking on the BA system. The system adds rows as the cabin fills up.
Is Memsahib aware of the rather large Italian Designer Factory Outlet shopping mall between Bologna and Florence ?
We travelled to BLQ this summer in CE and although we could pre book seats due to status the cabin was not full. There were only four rows of CE on the way out with the cabin being 50% full and three rows on the way back - we were the only ones on the way back. The cabin service was excellent and I very much recommend the BLQ lounge (land side) for your return journey, it is very relaxing with a few snacks and bar with staff member serving drinks. It also has it own security channel to get through to departures.
If I may recommend a great excursion during your stay - Italian days food experience. A thoroughly good food tour/meal in the region.
By way of thanks, and in the spirit of recommendation, if anyone is travelling in / from / to Tuscany, I have been returning to the agritorismo http://www.agriturismolacasella.com/ for nearly ten years now, and would whole-heartedly recommend it to anyone.
We have flown Ryanair to Pisa, BA to Bologna, and have driven down as well, with 2 night stopovers both ways in France, Switzerland and northern Italy, and have to say I'm looking forward to the trip in Club this time round!
