getting good seat at online check-in
 

In preparation for a trip on LH, I was googling and found the following link:

No seat selection on Lufthansa?

Is this correct? If I try to check in less than 23 hours before the first flight but more than 23 hours before the second flight, then I've encountered a "gotcha" and I will never get to choose seats on the second flight?

Will I keep the pre-assigned seat for the second flight, or be given some random middle seat during OLCI?

If I wait until 23 hours before the second flight, I should be allowed to choose a seat for the second flight (according to that link), but the forward seats for the first flight may be taken by then. Is there any way around this?

Thank you for your help,

You can try your luck on Austrian's check-in webpage. Quite often it allows to check in for LH flights (and with OS platform, you can do check in 24 hours before departure of the first segment, regardless of whether or not you have a connecting flight).

If that does not work, you should normally wait 23 hours before the connecting flight in order to check in. However, LH check-in software is known for its swingy mood of either allowing to check in even 24 hours before or not allowing to check in ever stating that your flight is being prepared and all that...

Thanks for the reply! My concern was not so much about whether I can check in early, as whether I would be "force-assigned" a seat on the second leg if I checked in too early. That's what it says in the link I gave in the first post.

Welcome to FT, SeeBuyFly!
Are you based in AMS by any chance? ;)

Which routes will you be flying?
You should be able to have a seat preassigned on a longhaul flight even when flying in Economy.

As olm022 has pointed out exactly when OLCI of connecting flights open up does not seem to be consistent.

I've transited AMS many times when KLM was still a good airline, so the phrase (along with "Fly Buy Dubai") has stuck in my mind. I'm surprised that the handle was still available.

I have not managed to clearly express my concern. I do have preassigned seats. I assume that I if I don't do anything, those seats will be held to me until physical check-in. However, these seats are in the back of the plane. Like most people, I lust for things I can't easily get. I'd like to get the seats in the first few rows.

My question is not "When does OLCI open?", but "How can I optimize my chances of getting seats in front for both flights?" It seems to me that my choices, both bad ones, are

(A) Try to get a forward seat for segment 1 (by attempting to OLCI as soon as the system will allow), but risk totally screwing up the seat assignment for segment 2 (as described in the link given in the original post); or

(B) try to get a forward seat for segment 2 by waiting until quite late to OLCI, thereby giving up any hope of getting a better seat for segment 1.

Are these really my choices? It sounds like a really bad IT dept to me.

I will look into the OS OLCI but I won't know whether it works for me until the last moment.

You can re-access OLCI (and change seat assignments) as often as you want within the 23h pre-departure window. Your best bet would be to check in as soon as OLCI for your first segment opens and pick your seat. Then go back there 23 hours prior to departure of your second segment and pick your seat for that flight.

Neither of your flights' seat assignments should be affected by the other's. If you manage to grab a better seat for flight #1 through OLCI while flight #2 is still closed, you will keep your pre-assigned seat on that one. Once OLCI opens for flight #2, you can change it without forgoing the seat you chose while checking in for flight #1.

It seems that the forced seat assignment for the connecting flight as described in your link was due to the fact that there was no pre-assignment in the first place.

News to me. The pages linked in original post says "Once checked in, you cannot change your seat later on". Would appreciate clarification, because this makes all the difference.

The page is wrong. I've done it countless times: check-in and lateron access OLCI again to change to a more convenient seat.

LH's OLCI interface has many quirks. Sometimes you can OLCI for connecting flights before T-23, sometimes when you check in for the first leg it automatically checks you in for the second leg without offering the chance to select/change seats, sometimes you can access the seatmap after OLCI but sometimes you can't.

Since I usually reserve exactly the seats I want in advance these quirks do not bother me but you may have to be prepared for surprises. :(

Now you know where to come to with questions about LH and M&M. :p

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