Seat Selection

[Shrike9]

Let me preface this by saying I absolutely hate flying, no that’s not true, I absolutely refuse to fly, hate paying to be treated like cattle…strip searched, stupid expensive food and uncomfortable seats waiting to board

Now having said that

Wife and I are planning a trip to Hawaii and looking at flying United to Hawaii (Pearl Harbor is a bucket list) & I’ve been looking at different flights & seating and not sure I want to risk my sanity flying crammed in the back like cattle

Where is the most comfortable seats with best legroom. I’m broken and need to get up/walk/stretch every couple hours or so if not more often depending on things….

 

[bdcardinal]

Bulkhead or emergency exit row have the most outside of Business and First class.

 

[RhondaHonda]

Business or First, sounds like you rarely fly, so treat yourself for the long flight.

 

[BHopkins]

Assuming you don't want to spend the money needed for First Class, the next best seats for comfort are emergency exit rows. Because they need to be easily used in an emergency, the leg room is very generous. Those that sit on an Emergency Exit row have to be physically able, and willing, to open the door and assist in an emergency. Emergency Exit rows also have a premium cost.

A perfect combination for you may be an aisle seat on an Emergency Exit row.

 

[Bottom_Feeder]

Business or First, sounds like you rarely fly, so treat yourself for the long flight.

Expensive but worth it.

 

[fdcg27]

From Billings, it looks like your best bet would be to book biz on Alaska with the connecting flight to HNL being on Hawaiian. A one stop itinerary at a not too hateful <$2K each and this is a long enough journey that it's worth paying for the enhanced space, seats and amenities.

 

[rstsco]

Premium Economy is often an option on long-haul flights. The seats are a little wider, have quite a bit more legroom, and often recline more than basic economy. I'm with the "buy once, cry once" crowd saying to splurge and get business class (or first, depending on what's available). Your experience from checking in until you get off the plane when arriving home will be so much more pleasant and a memory you won't regret, well, remembering.

Enjoy your once-in-the-rest-of-your-lifetime trip!

 

[Shrike9]

From Billings, it looks like your best bet would be to book biz on Alaska with the connecting flight to HNL being on Hawaiian. A one stop itinerary at a not too hateful <$2K each and this is a long enough journey that it's worth paying for the enhanced space, seats and amenities.

Have relatives in Sheridan & looking at Sheridan to Denver bypassing Denver’s TSA and then to Hawaii & this way they will baby sit the dogs

 

[crashz]

Once you go Business class, you'll never want to fly any other way. I upgraded us on our way home from Ireland and it was wonderful. But its $$$$$$

 

[Shrike9]

Premium Economy is often an option on long-haul flights. The seats are a little wider, have quite a bit more legroom, and often recline more than basic economy. I'm with the "buy once, cry once" crowd saying to splurge and get business class (or first, depending on what's available). Your experience from checking in until you get off the plane when arriving home will be so much more pleasant and a memory you won't regret, well, remembering.

Enjoy your once-in-the-rest-of-your-lifetime trip!

What is the difference between business class and 1st?

They look the same from what I can tell

 

[Astro14]

SeatGuru.com can be very helpful. Like Wikipedia, it is peer reviewed, and a source of information on airline seating configurations.

Some seats may look attractive, until you see what people say about them on seat guru.

If you need to get up and move, at the very least book an aisle seat so that you are unrestricted in that ability to get up and move.

If you’re connecting from the West Coast, that flight to Hawaii is about five hours. It’s not terrible, and it’s actually slightly shorter than flying from Boston to San Francisco.

United, along with most of the other carriers, offer several different classes of seating. First is their “Polaris“ product which includes lay flat seats with copious amenities including storage.

Personally, I don’t see the return on that investment on a five hour flight, that said, if I were flying to Asia on a 10 or 12 hour flight, I would absolutely recommend that you fly in Polaris.

The next step down is “premium economy”, and that is offered only on certain international flights. The seat pitch is larger than any other economy service, and the seats are a little bit wider with some pretty generous recline. But again those are typically going to Asia or Europe. Hawaii, from an airline perspective, is a domestic flight. It is after all one of our states.

The next step down is economy plus. Economy plus offers a 36 inch seat pitch, as well as in seat power on most of the aircraft.

The least expensive seats are of course economy. A 31 inch seat pitch, and while many of them have seat power, not all of them do.

I would go at least economy plus. Over a five hour flight that little bit of legroom is gonna make a substantial difference. If the premium economy is an option, then I would lean towards that.

 

[Shrike9]

Once you go Business class, you'll never want to fly any other way. I upgraded us on our way home from Ireland and it was wonderful. But its $$$$$$

I lucked out once and flew “first class” from Baltimore to Ireland to Germany to Riyadh once in a flying tigers 747 & it was nice for a military contract flight

The return trip home was a hellish trip & that’s being generous

 

[fdcg27]

Have relatives in Sheridan & looking at Sheridan to Denver bypassing Denver’s TSA and then to Hawaii & this way they will baby sit the dogs

Kind of a shame since there are no good options for Sheridan in either cost or total time in transit.

 

[Shrike9]

SeatGuru.com can be very helpful. Like Wikipedia, it is peer reviewed, and a source of information on airline seating configurations.

Some seats may look attractive, until you see what people say about them on seat guru.

If you need to get up and move, at the very least book an aisle seat so that you are unrestricted in that ability to get up and move.

If you’re connecting from the West Coast, that flight to Hawaii is about five hours. It’s not terrible, and it’s actually slightly shorter than flying from Boston to San Francisco.

United, along with most of the other carriers, offer several different classes of seating. First is their “Polaris“ product which includes lay flat seats with copious amenities including storage.

Personally, I don’t see the return on that investment on a five hour flight, that said, if I were flying to Asia on a 10 or 12 hour flight, I would absolutely recommend that you fly in Polaris.

The next step down is “premium economy”, and that is offered only on certain international flights. The seat pitch is larger than any other economy service, and the seats are a little bit wider with some pretty generous recline. But again those are typically going to Asia or Europe. Hawaii, from an airline perspective, is a domestic flight. It is after all one of our states.

The next step down is economy plus. Economy plus offers a 36 inch seat pitch, as well as in seat power on most of the aircraft.

The least expensive seats are of course economy. A 31 inch seat pitch, and while many of them have seat power, not all of them do.

I would go at least economy plus. Over a five hour flight that little bit of legroom is gonna make a substantial difference. If the premium economy is an option, then I would lean towards that.

Thank you, will look at premium economy as while cost is important being able to walk is more important. I have a traveling electric wheelchair and will probably be taking that along with us for the freedom it brings

 

[Shrike9]

Kind of a shame since there are no good options for Sheridan in either cost or total time in transit.

The dogs are worth it, one is my retired service dog and he needs extra attention due to physical issues

 

[fdcg27]

The dogs are worth it, one is my retired service dog and he needs extra attention due to physical issues

Dogs are like children and they do complicate the travel process.

 

[y_p_w]

Assuming you don't want to spend the money needed for First Class, the next best seats for comfort are emergency exit rows. Because they need to be easily used in an emergency, the leg room is very generous. Those that sit on an Emergency Exit row have to be physically able, and willing, to open the door and assist in an emergency. Emergency Exit rows also have a premium cost.

A perfect combination for you may be an aisle seat on an Emergency Exit row.

Southwest had seating behind an emergency exit door where there was literally 6 feet to the next seat because they opted to not place a seat next to the door. Once I flew same plane with one stopover where most got off, but there were maybe 5 passengers who stayed on board. Some might have gotten a terminal pass and returned, but the crew allowed us to change seats where we all got first dibs.

https://www.sanspotter.com/southwest-737-max-8-exit-row/

Not sure how much of a premium that will be with assigned seating.

 

[rstsco]

What is the difference between business class and 1st?

They look the same from what I can tell

Often the terms are interchangeable. Some flights offer both, but often only one or the other. First Class is considered the more premium of the two.

Depending on the flights, business and/or first class may offer seats which can be laid flat, typically allowing you to get more rest than other options, but I've seen some people on flights who could care less whose space they're encroaching on and get plenty of sleep at the expense of those around them.

 

[dubber09]

Consider duration of the flight and your body size too as they will determine how much space you need; passengers seating next to you may play big role as well. Personally, I like sort of 'bracing' myself where I can rest my legs/knees against seat in front of me (without causing any inconvenience to the person in it). I consider flights within 3-4 hours airtime be 'easy', they get 'hard' when lasting over 7-8 hrs. Also, don't drink coffee/tea on the plane, only bottled beverages unless you wanna play lottery with your health.
If you collect miles with the airline and esp if you have status due to SQM/SQS and over 60 y.o. then you may ask for a curtesy upgrade to Business class. I was bumped to Buss once for free when flying to HI on B747, due to status with the airline, it was 1K with United.

 

[CKN]

Let me preface this by saying I absolutely hate flying, no that’s not true, I absolutely refuse to fly, hate paying to be treated like cattle…strip searched, stupid expensive food and uncomfortable seats waiting to board

Now having said that

Wife and I are planning a trip to Hawaii and looking at flying United to Hawaii (Pearl Harbor is a bucket list) & I’ve been looking at different flights & seating and not sure I want to risk my sanity flying crammed in the back like cattle

Where is the most comfortable seats with best legroom. I’m broken and need to get up/walk/stretch every couple hours or so if not more often depending on things….

I checked on this a while back. First class is about double the price-it sounds like you should spring for it.