TCA

I will be departing from Scotland and am trying to decide whether to take the above KLM flight to Thailand for £645 or my usual Emirates via Dubai for the current far more expensive £867. Both economy flights.

So it's a quick hop to Holland followed by 10hrs 45 mins straight to Bangkok with KLM or with Emirates: 7.5 hours from Glasgow to Dubai, a 3 hour layover, then 6.5 hours to Bangkok.

KLM would get me there 2 to 3 hours quicker and has the obvious price benefit but I'm wondering if anyone can advise on the comfort element? The price benefit would be lost by paying for extra legroom seats and I understand that KLM only has general viewing screens, not individual entertainment systems like Emirates (-edited to say that would seem not the case according to the KLM website but SeatGuru says No Video). I'm just over 6 feet tall, so really don't want to be in any discomfort for a near 11 hour flight. I read that the economy seats aren't very comfortable?

I read from SeatGuru that row 40 on flight KL0875 (Boeing 777-200 I think) has slightly more legroom than a regular seat due to the curvature of the fuselage. It also said 40C,40D and 40G have no underseat storage or leg space but I'm not sure if this means because of the seat in front? (edited to say it looks like all seats C,D and G should be avoided!). According to SeatExpert the seats are narrower and experience heavy traffic from row 40 backwards? Can anyone confirm what's true and recommend or otherwise?

Do I definitely get the selected seat if I choose in "Manage My Booking" from the KLM website? Can I use this function if I book online with someone like Opodo (who are cheaper)?

I have an old Flying Blue membership number which still works but haven't used for over 5 years. So at the Ivory level (0 miles) and not worth much I guess.

Can anyone please help? Thanks in advance.

Departing: 17:50 Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, Netherlands
Arriving: 09:35 Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport, Thailand
KLM KL 875 - Aircraft type - 772

KLflyerRalph

Welcome to Flyertalk!

I can't provide a direct comparison between EK and KL. But despite Seatguru's statements (which are often wrong), I can confirm KLM does have individual screens on all their longhaul aircraft.

I've never flown KL on >7 hour flights and to Asia I tend to take Asian carriers. To BKK this year I've chosen China Airlines.

TCA

Thanks for the quick reply Ralph. That confirms my thinking on the entertainment at least. Just need to hear from anyone on the comfort factor and whether some of the seats in row 40 are a bit better (or worse) than the regular seating. I've always been an aisle guy because I don't like getting hemmed in but the window seat might actually be more spacious given what's being said about the underseat equipment in C and G.

chunk73

I would take KLM. If you want extra comfort, you could pay for Economy Comfort which gives and extra 3 or 4 in of legroom for an additional payment each way. I reckon with the additional payment the two tickets should be the same price and the KL flight would be more comfy. Emirates from GLA is 3-4-3 on a 777 which is a bit tight though the leg room is ok.

TCA

Thanks chunk73. Yes, I think the price would even out if I paid for better seats on KLM. For this flight Extra Legroom seats are £57 per flight, so total would be £788 and Economy Comfort Zone would be £115 per flight, so £897. That's at the KLM website, which is a bit more expensive than the same flight via Opodo. I'm presuming if booking elsewhere I could still log in via the KLM website with a booking ref and my Flying Blue number to pay for seats. Compared to anything from £763 to £866 for Emirates, so Comfort Zone would be a pricey option in comparison to a cheaper Emirates flight.

Good point on the 3-4-3 formation on the 777 from GLA to Dubai. The next leg to Bangkok is on the Airbus A380, which although is also 3-4-3 has bigger seating - 32" pitch with 18" width.

Just not sure, so would like to hear from anyone that's flown regular Economy on the 777-200 with KLM and/or tried the row 40 options.

TCA

Almost convinced I'll choose KLM over Emirates now because the timing for my preferred dates just suits me better.

Might go for an exit row seat but concerned they might be narrower (fixed armrests I think I read) and I found it a bit colder in this location in the past on other airlines. Not sure I like the TV in the armrest either. Economy Comfort would be nice but maybe just too expensive for me.

I mentioned before about seats 40A and 40J having more legroom and I had this confirmed by KLM. But I'm not convinced it'll be sufficient to warrant being hemmed in at the window, as not my favourite position.

Seats C,D and G all appear to have entertainment boxes under them so pretty restrictive, so my only aisle seat choice would be seat F. Anybody have any thoughts on these seats and a recommendation where in the plane to choose one? Rows like 28 and 44 should be avoided because of lack of recline but any reasons for choosing a particular cabin? Better to be near the front? 19F is my lowest numbered option, so thinking about that but just about every F seat after that is still available.

Any ideas folks? Although I know I'll likely hate the whole 10 hours 45 mins, any tips would be appreciated!

johan rebel

I have no personal experience with Y class in-seat IFE, but undertand that the screen can be hard to view if the pax in front reclines his seat. You will not have that problem if the screen is in the armrest.

Johan

TCA

Thanks Johan. I'm bearing that in mind but am more concerned that the seats are apparently narrower in the exit rows because of this. My main concern is for comfort. Or at least lack of discomfort!