The travelers dilemma - plane's are faster but being seated next to strangers is the WORST - especially if you end up with a middle seat! Who get's the armrest? How often will they or I have to get up to go to the bathroom? What if they're chatty!? I just want to listen to my podcast in peace!
Thankfully travel experts at Travel Codex have come through with some tips to help increase your chances of getting an empty seat next to yours. While they crafted these tips with international flights in mind, I'm sure they'll probably help for domestic flights too! I'll certainly be trying them for my next flight.
Tip 1: Always take an aisle seat. Obviously the window seat has travel blogger views, but if space is your priority opt for the aisle with the window as a backup.
Tip 2: Try to keep the middle seat open. In a 3-3-3 seating configuration, choose a seat on the left or right, as people are less likely to pick middle in order to avoid having to climb over someone to get out. If you are able to book. flight with a 2-3-2 or 2-4-2 configuration, your chances are even better.
Tip 3: Choose a seat near the back of the plane. Gate agents generally move from the front to the back when assigning seats for travelers that don't already have their seats preassigned.
Tip 4: Choose a seat next to one empty seat as opposed to near a grouping of empty seats, as people traveling in groups will be looking for those open areas leaving your chances of getting all the armrests to yourself slim.