corporate-wage-slave

Direct access. On the 86J it's probably one of the best seats off the Upper Deck, on the 52J it's a bit to close to the bassinet in WTP, though still a good seat. However I would still rate all UD seats as better, though others may disagree.

AJBChina

Repeating a question here that I asked on the Oakland thread earlier : On my upcoming LGW-OAK trip I have 3K and 4A booked for the outward and return. I note 11A/K are open on both flights - do these seats allow free access to the aisle (like e.g. 64A/K on the 744), and if so would you recommend these seats vs staying in the quieter forward cabin but having the usual stepover to get out? As far as I know row 5 is without windows - is that correct?

carrington1

Thank you for your advice!

brytpa

Just throwing this out there -
I'd suggest taking in to consideration what seats exist across aircraft type and configuration when choosing, as well.

With my upcoming BA trip, I took a gamble and paid extra to select seats I wanted upper deck 747. Then BA changed the aircraft to a 777-300, rendering the selection completely obsolete. They send out no notification and they didn't even reassign anything comparable - it was entirely up to me to notice the plane had changed and seat selections were tossed out. I made the mistake of then choosing row 16 A/B in the 773, which lasted all of a week before they changed the plane to a 772 (which only goes up to row 15 in Club World). Again, seat selections rendered obsolete and completely thrown away. No notification from BA. They did reassign seats, but put one of us in a D and the other in an E - far from desirable for 2 people traveling together, with one of them now likely cozying up next to a total stranger in the middle of the middle. I suppose this is less an issue with status (I'm likely unable to select certain seats, despite paying, since they're only available to elite status passengers) but still, you might find yourself having to select new seats after all the seats you might have wanted were already snatched up - even after you think your seat is confirmed. Fun times!

BrianWBrazil

That is normal (it seems the system is designed to do this). It potentially allows 12 couples to be seated together overall (albeit in a yin yang config). If the E&F middle companion seats are all snagged by six couples, that would leave a further six couples left separated in aisle seats.

brytpa

i can understand their rationale. Ultimately, their club world configuration and hard product just makes for quite the pick-your-poison scenario - yes, we'd be "together" in a yin yang arrangement, but one of us would potentially be even more "together" with a total stranger in the rear-facing, middle seat.

In our particular case, the desire for easy aisle access made me bite the bullet and pay to select, so to gradually get kicked out of any appealing options kinda added insult to injury. I'm pragmatic enough to understand changes can happen and I don't expect them to keep a 747 or 773 plane when there aren't enough passengers to make it necessary, but their entire process can set you up to be extra disappointed when changes occur - the stakes are higher because of the type of hard product they offer (limited aisle access, the way seats are arranged, etc) and the way they make it available (charging certain people to select seats, not sending out notifications via SMS or push or email when aircraft type and then seat assignment changes or is scrapped entirely, and such).

armouredant

Hello. I've an upcoming BA flight in J on a 789, overnight from KUL to LHR. I'm in 6K at the moment, which is fine (although 7K would be better, it and its neighbour are blocked off - are they crew rest seats?). However, I've noticed there's Avios upgrade availability in F.

Does this forum believe it's worth 35,000 (and no extra taxes or charges) to upgrade?

It's worth noting that I'm not at all a fan of the CW seat, and that this flight will be the second day of four consecutive days of travel (USM-BKK-KUL-LHR-AMS-LCY-LHR-PHX-SJO-TNO).

mikeyfly

Hopefully you mean 35,000

And yes, 100% worth it.

Don't think twice. A window Club on 780 still has all the usual annoyances of jumping over and nowhere to put anything. Both problems alleviated on the very good F seat

armouredant

That was apparently all the motivation I needed. Upgraded. Thanks @mikeyfly.

clarkeysntfc

When does 64A on the 747 come up for selection if the bassinet is not required for a flight?

Flying in December, the seat is blocked at the moment and 64B is free.

SussexFly

Flying on the high CW config of the 777-200 to ANU in January, and currently undecided as to whether we should pay and allocate seats.
The chances of getting two seats together are getting slim so we’re now toying with the idea of just paying - however

1. am I right in thinking that we have to pay for the outbound and return at the same time? We can’t just do one way.
2. if we wait until check in - am I right in thinking that we can select our seats at -24 however the availability on the seat map will constantly change up until approx -2hrs, therefore we could get better seats at say -14?

T8191

I'll take the 2nd point first. All the LGW-Caribbean 777 routes are subject to airframe changes! What you see today may not be what actually operates that flight. In that context, you might end up paying for a selected pair of seats that no longer fit your preferences ... and then have to fight BA to get your seat fees back! Your decision, of course, but from several personal experiences it can be a bit of a lottery. The ANU Trip Report in my signature shows what it can be like ... we got caught both ways!

I have no idea about the 1st point, as we enjoy free seat selection anyway so have never explored that scenario.

LCSinTexas

I can answer point 1 -
You can purchase seat for any segment you wish on its own or any combination you choose. But you must do the same for each person in the booking, i.e. if pax 1 wants a seat purchased for seg 1, pax 2 must do the same.

SussexFly

Fantastic trip report! A very interesting read!

However, I’m still none the wiser as whether to play the BA CW seat lottery or not!
I think I’ll just risk it.
However - according to EF - I’m left with 5JK, 10AB/EF or 11JK.
Unfortunately somebody has bagged 11F, therefore taking the seats I was hoping for.
From experience - what seats would you recommend? Is the missing window at 5 that much of an issue?

SussexFly

Fantastic - thanks for your help!

Another question to put out there - is there a chance of better seats after OLCI? for example, if I select 4AB (whether pre-booked or at -24), is there a chance a better seat will become available after -24 as people move around the cabin?
Is it another BA lottery?