Questions re: Flight Ease - recent experiences

[FlyerTalker]

2 hours ago, Earthtones said:

 their contract with Air Canada did not allow preselected seats for economy tickets (even though the cost was the same as what Air Canada was selling directly for seats that could be reserved in advance).

 

And remember that even though costs may be the same, the underlying ticket (and the fare rules attached) are usually quite different.  As you found out, as the rules included provisions regarding seat assignments.

 

 

[SLSD]

I just checked with Mr. SLSD about how we obtained assigned seats on Air Canada (purchased through Seabourn) for our return flight from Copenhagen in June.  He says he WAS able to get assigned seats right after getting the confirmation from Seabourn that they had purchased our flight for us. Mr SLSD said that by joining the Air Canada Frequent Flyers Club, he was able to get into their website to get the seat assignments.    I thought he had to pay a fee, but he says he did not. It was on SAS that he paid a fee (about $50/each) --but he obtained assigned seats there as well for our flight into Copenhagen.  He says on SAS he would  not have had to pay a fee if we  had accepted middle seats. 

 

So--on Air Canada, join the Frequent Flyers Club and see if that works for getting seat assignments right away.  

Edited July 15, 2023 by SLSD

[MarciAnn]

Our refundable flights through Flight Ease are refundable to the original form of payment.  

 

 

[Earthtones]

3 hours ago, SLSD said:

I just checked with Mr. SLSD about how we obtained assigned seats on Air Canada (purchased through Seabourn) for our return flight from Copenhagen in June.  He says he WAS able to get assigned seats right after getting the confirmation from Seabourn that they had purchased our flight for us.

Now that you say that, I'm wondering if maybe Seabourn Flight Ease told me their contract with Air Canada prevented us from choosing seats until we had made our final payment and I was afraid by then (several months in the future at that time) seating availability would be limited. But if we contemplate Air Canada again, I'll definitely make sure to join the frequent flier club before booking!

 

In any case, rules will definitely vary by airline at the least.

[Vineyard View]

Does flight ease let you upgrade using miles from economy or premium economy? 

[FlyerTalker]

10 hours ago, Vineyard View said:

Does flight ease let you upgrade using miles from economy or premium economy? 

 

For ALL cruiseline air programs, it completely depends on the underlying fare rules of your ticket.  Different fare buckets, different airlines -- there is no one standard.

 

And, unfortunately, one can rarely find out the specific fare rules until after purchasing the ticket from the cruiseline.  And sometimes, not even then.

 

Caveat emptor.

 

 

[SLSD]

30 minutes ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

For ALL cruiseline air programs, it completely depends on the underlying fare rules of your ticket.  Different fare buckets, different airlines -- there is no one standard.

 

And, unfortunately, one can rarely find out the specific fare rules until after purchasing the ticket from the cruiseline.  And sometimes, not even then.

 

Caveat emptor.

 

 

That's one of the downsides of purchasing air through Seabourn.  Your best bet is a direct flight to your port destination several days ahead flying business class--and then you hope you can get an assigned seat next to your traveling companion.  

[Vineyard View]

Thank you. I appreciate you clarifying this.

We always call the airline before booking in a lower category to get booked in the correct fare basis that allows us to use miles to upgrade for that reason. Sometimes it isn’t available, and some it is. We always fly in early - how much depends on the port.

I wasn’t clear on my question at all. Does Seabourn allow you to work with airlines in order to do this. For example, they pick a flight with premium economy. Can you work with the airline before actual ticketing to determine if this is possible, or pay more in that category to make it possible to upgrade? 

Edited July 16, 2023 by Vineyard View