Basic vs Comfort
Basic economy seats: Is the discomfort worth the savings? Is going basic worth the savings when you may actually end “discounting” your own comfort?
Airlines are preparing to go head-to-head in the price wars and they will be duking it out for your dollars. US air carriers will institute what some may consider a downward trend when it comes to seats and comfort.
A few years ago, airlines changed their seating policies in an attempt to boost revenue and came up with a new concept of seating called Economy Comfort seats. The seats were a couple of inches wider than regular seats, with an inch or two more legroom. This might not sound like a lot, but to a frequent traveler, an Economy Comfort Seat can be worth its weight in gold. In addition to increasing the legroom, this allowed airlines to also increase the price for those seats and the distance you travel determines the price. Flying from Atlanta to Orlando, an economy comfort seat could be priced at about $69, versus flying to the west coast or to another country where the price can range anywhere between $109 to $189.
One thing to keep in mind while flying basic: you won’t accrue as many sky miles as someone on the same flight who purchased Economy Comfort or First Class seats. If sky miles are important to you, you might want to scratch going basic off your list.
Basically – basic fares are here to stay. Make a sound decision when choosing fares to ensure you’re comfortable with your seat and the damage to your wallet 😉
edited by J.Latimore – Wordyeditingservices
