exit row

Hi

Quick question for those in the know. I have checked my girlfriend & I in on line for a flight tomorrow morning to NY. We're hoping to get the exit row seats (in Y), which I know I can't reserve on line, so have booked the best other available seats. Firstly, can we change our seats at the baggage drop or do we have to queue up at the Y check in counter? Secondly, if we do have to join the Y check in queue, how early does anyone recommend that we turn up at the airport?

Many thanks.

[Nottingham Nick]

You have to pay for the exit row seats at the VS ticket desk. I don't know if they will be able to tell you if there are any available, and complete all formalities, or if you have to brave the bag drop / Y queue first.

As for how early? ... the earlier the better. [8D];)

IIRC check in opens three hours before the first flight out.

Nick

[mitchja]

Yes you can change your seats at the airport even after using OLCI. LHR check-in opens at 06:30 and you can check-in for any VS flight that day from 06:30 onwards. It's likely to be very busy with it been Easter so I'd get there as soon as you can.

I think check-in agents can process credit card payments so they should be able to process your exit row seat payments (£50 each) but you can have the seat nearest the door for free (thats the A or K seat) if you pay for the either a B or J exit row seats in Y. The seats next to the doors do have the slide housing sticking out which does slightly reduce your space.

Regards

Thanks guys - cheers for the advice & the tip on the 'free' exit row seat. I guess my best bet is to turn up early and to join the Y check in queue rather than the baggage drop?

[mitchja]

You should be OK in the bag drop queue which should be shorter as I would imagine they can also process card payments as well. They are likely to be able to process excess baggage payments so should also be able to process upgrades and exit row payments.

Regards

[Nottingham Nick]

If there isn't a queue at the ticket desk, it is worth dropping by to make the enquiry.

Let us know how you go on with it... don't forget the TR. :D

Cheers for that. I had thought that the baggage drop agents could only deal with taking bags from pax who had already checked in, and so could not process seat moves/upgrades.

[mitchja]

Have a great flight where ever you end up sitting

Regards

Thanks again dudes

It's not busy at the moment as most schools are back on Tuesday/Wednesday taking the first two weeks of April off not the week either side of Easter so i wouldn't anticipate any queues at check in.

I'm assuming you're on the VS003 tommorrow. Check in will open just after 6. Tell the security you have checked in on line so they wont put you in the kiosk queue. You'll probably find there is no main Y check in queue.

When you get to the check in desk enquire about the exit rows. Further to what someone else wrote, some window seats are chargeable, but it is always worth asking how busy the flight is - sometimes it's not worth paying if you can get a couple of seats to yourself to stretch out over.

Don't go to the ticket desk, they will say to ask at the check in desks, as these will be the guys who know about availibilty etc.

A check in desk is a check in desk whether it is a bag drop desk or normal check in - the agents are there to deal with all enquiries.

Enjoy your flight!"

N.B The free exit row seat is freefor a reason! If you can get the rear rows where there are just 2 seats that is better in my opinion than the free exit seat.

Cheers again for all the advice. Just to let you know that I checked in at LHR at around 6.20am, went straight to the baggage drop (no queue) and sorted my 2 exit row ticket for £50 total. When I went to pay for them at the sales desk, I was told that the sales desk 'did not encourage' pax to go straight to them for exit row seats before checking in. I got the impression that they would (perhaps after a little chatting up) sell the exit row seats before check in, though.

[Nottingham Nick]

Thanks for the update, Dez. [y][y]

We know now.

Nick

[mcmbenjamin]

Here is maybe the first good, valid question I have ever asked here on VF or on any online forum.....

Say a young wiper snapper such as myself is traveling from Washington's fine Dulles airport to Dubai's shopping complex that doubles as an airport via London's Heathrow in economy (to pick up shortbread and to spot in the Roof Garden) on a thru ticket; all operated and ticketed by the extermely helpful folks at Virgin Atlantic (that is no pun, I must say every call has been professional and the agents have gone the extra mile but the one that rebooked me on 13Nov instead on 13July).

Would this young wipper snapper be able to check in and get his boarding card for the LHR-DXB segment? Would he be able to 'buy' the exit row on the LON-DXB flight? Can the check in folks over ride the fee, say for a young gentlemen who bribes them with a cupcake; joking of course?

No go straight to the bag drop desk and ask there. Those desks are EXACTLY the same as any other desk at check in they just have a different sign above them so there's no point joiing the Y queue.

^ You should be thru checked and get your boarding card - depends how helpful the staff in IAD are, i've seen people all conx on the same VS flights and only half of them have boarding cards for their onward journey. Seems to be a case of whatever the machines spit out.

IAD would not be able to allocate the exits for LHR/DXB as those seats are blocked off and only computers set at LHR are able to release them. You could always get one assigned at the transfer area at LHR when conx during the long, long wait between conx flights.