Continental

OK so my better half and I waited until the end of April to book our June 4th Las Vegas vacation because we wanted to see how low the prices on Expedia could get so we could jump on a good deal.

As we were watching the hotel rates we were also watching our 7:55am flight out of EWR filling up pretty quickly.

Anyway, we got nervous and just booked because at that moment there were scattered seats of maybe 5 left in coach and I knew it would be impossible to get seats together at that point.

We lucked out and got a great rate for the hotel and car so whew! When I contacted Continental (because I have credits from a Vegas trip we didn%26#39;t go on last year) they were only able to seat him behind me so we%26#39;re both in different rows.

My better half says not to worry that planes never fill up anyway or someone will be willing to switch a seat with either him or me. I think I disagree. We%26#39;re going to Vegas so the plane is going to be full because it%26#39;s is the earliest flight out w/ no connections plus we are in middle seats and nobody wants a middle seat.

What are our chances of getting to sit next to each other?

Sorry for making this post so long. I worry about the littlest things.

Continental

I fly Continental out of EWR often to Vegas. My sense is that there are usually a number of single people flying, so it%26#39;s not impossible that you%26#39;ll be able to talk someone into moving.

Also, the available seats shown on the websites when you book aren%26#39;t always completely accurate; there may be some seats that aren%26#39;t sold that they don%26#39;t show as available; they may be labeled ';premium seats,'; or just shown as occupied.

Check back with the CSR every day or two to see if additional seats are showing as available, and especially the day before your flight.

May want to check in the forums over on flyertalk.com too for advice.

Continental

Your best bet for switching seats would be doing their on-line check-in exactly 24 hours out. A limited number of previously blocked seats usually become available at that point. You may be able to get 2 together in a row that was previously blocked for advance seat assignment. Otherwise, asking politely, even bribing with the promise of a comped alcoholic beverage in-flight might do the trick in getting someone to switch with you. Just make sure you%26#39;re offering a similar seat, i.e., aisle for aisle or window for window. I wouldn%26#39;t give up my window for a middle seat, perish the thought!

WOW... Mama9507...

We have the same delima... i have flown several times of course me and my husband sits next to each other... i love the window seat...

but this time i booked and we had seats together except for one flight.. Cont... is the only airline out of our airport so we always fly this way.

Well i called and talked to a ';not so nice'; guy... and i was trying to explain i wanna sit by my husband... well he said. mam... forget trying, your seats are assigned. i asked... should i cancel and book on another day... he put me on hold... was disconnected... when i called back he had cancelled my flight not VERY happy..

Anyway... 24 hours before the flight they release all seats available... i check the site daily amd several times a day...

I know a few times... the airport will call someone up and ask if they are willing to switch.. and i am sure once they see you are together someone will be kind enough to switch.

Good Luck...

We are leaving on the 5th of June... can%26#39;t wait

have a great trip

Keep checking every day- or more than once a day. I did that on Continental on a trip to FL. I ';seemed'; to get the last seat- not an aisle seat that I wanted. There are always seats available that you don%26#39;t see. they always keep seats back for frequent fliers, etc. Although they were ';sold out';- seats became available about every 2 or 3 days- still no aisle seat . Finally- after weeks of looking twice a day- an aisle seat showed up and I got on that computer fast to get it!

If that doesn%26#39;t work- look when you check in to see if anything popped up. If not- you are at the mercy of other passengers and there is no way to predict if you can change seats or not. Yes, there are people flying alone but if they have a aisle seat- they will probably not be willing to give that up. Good luck- hope for the best. If not- it is only about 4 1/2 hours so it is not a long flight. Bring things that will keep you entertained even if you are alone.

I havent been on a flight in a couple of years now that wasnt either completely full or pretty close to full.

That said, Ive probably been assigned a seat away from my wife or other traveling partners over 10-15 times, but not once have I not sat next to them.

If you havent changed your seats by the time you arrive at the gate, ask the person at the gate and more than likely they will be able to get you switched before you board the plane.

';What are our chances of getting to sit next to each other? ';

Let%26#39;s face it: No one with an aisle or window seat is going to want to switch for one of your middle seats. Especially on a nonstop flight that takes 4+ hours.

There should be no reason to call the airline, if you have a confirmation number just look it up on line and see if anything comes up for a better seat and change it.

I would not wait until 24 hours beforehand to check for ';released'; seats, I would check during the windows when they upgrade frequent fliers to first class, which opens up their coach seats.

Try to get at least one aisle or window seat even if you can%26#39;t get two together - people will be much more willing to switch for one of those.

curious also, i have a flight on continental out of cleveland on june 6th.. and when i tried to select my seats for hubby and i they had nothing together. when i tried the emergency door seats it said not able to assign those seats, those were the only ones that had 2 seats together.

i hope we are sitting together... any suggestions on how to handle would help.. has anyone tried to confirm 24 hours prior to flight and it then let them pick there seats? or is it the sooner you get to the airport to check in the better chance you would have to sit together?

I have never done 24 hr check in but I have asked for seat changes when checking in at the airport and had no problems...I think some people choose their seats when booking, but others may be based on the time you check in for the flight.

Who knows, someone else may have the same problem and be moving around, too.

When DH %26amp; I travel (or my daughters %26amp; I) we book an aisle and window seat. This is in the hope that no one will book the middle seat.

So therefore there is a slight and I mean slight chance that some other idiot does the same as me and booked the window and aisle in the hope of the middle being empty.