Which Side of The Aircraft To Sit

On a lighthearted note which side, port or starboard, do people like to sit on particular routes ? (nb I'm assuming no-one actually likes sitting in the middle seats...and though it may shock some V-Flyers, yes, if you look back as you head to the bar, there are middle seats..). For years I've tended to choose seats on the starboard side (possibly because I'm right handed).

We've done the LHR - LAX and LHR - SFO routes a few times and I particularly like the views once over the US. I often wonder what I'd be seeing were I seated on the other side of the aircraft ("the hanging gardens of Babylon ? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically across the plain?").

The result of the choice was brought home to me on an internal flight in the US from Richmond "International" (who said americans have no sense of irony ?) to Chicago where I'd been seated on the port side and was rewarded with a truly memorable view of Chicago on a cold, clear day. Had I been on the starboard side, well, it would've been a view of water...

I know this isn't a great thread for those who fly, say, to Barbados as the choice is largely water or water all the way.

[preiffer]

Port from LHR > SFO (as they normally do a Golden Gate arrival, so you get a great view of the city on your way in).

Starboard from SFO > LHR (as the same "normal" departure route allows for a great view of SF on the right hand side, and if you come in on the westerly runways at LHR, you get a great view of London)

[y]

Its a bit of a tricky one this isn't it - because as Paul has pointed out with London it will depend on the wind direction at the arrival airport as to the view you get when the aircraft is on approach.

We have had great views from the port windows of Sydney Harbour, the bridge and city, weird views from the port side of all the shanty towns on the outskirts of Johannesburg, and I always enjoy the view as you come over the Florida coast into MCO and look down to see Cape Canaveral and the Kennedy Space Centre - usually though we choose the Port side because I like seats 79 or 74 a/c in PE - so that has more of an effect than what we are going to see.

I usually find that sitting on the right side (starboard side) when flying to LHR usually yields good views of London. You sometimes come from the other direction (in which case neither view is particularly good), so I always choose the right.

Originally posted by MarkJ
Its a bit of a tricky one this isn't it - because as Paul has pointed out with London it will depend on the wind direction at the arrival airport as to the view you get when the aircraft is on approach.

True enough and a bit of a flaw in my original post, and not something you can hope to control. That said there's still a lot to see on overland flights away from the airports; even at night where the sheer scale of the US is revealed by its vast swathes of both illumination and darkness.

Originally posted by MarkJ
we choose the Port side because I like seats 79 or 74 a/c in PE - so that has more of an effect than what we are going to see.

Again, fair point. I have yet to like *any* seat in Economy that I actually *like*. It's more a scale of disliking (and that's on any carrier, not just VS).

Paul

Being mainly an ANU flyer, it would be port both ways for me. Better ocean views on approach to ANU and sunset on departure.

Port from LHR > SFO (as they normally do a Golden Gate arrival, so you get a great view of the city on your way in).

I'd normally do starboard for LHR-SFO, as this can (clouds permitting) give tremendous views of greenland and all the icebergs etc.

We have had great views from the port windows of Sydney Harbour

I've had the opposite, taking off from SYD, I've had excellent starboard views of SYD (photo's are in the v-flyer library) - like you say - it depends on the winds.

As a side note, when travelling in the Upper Class Suite, my preference, regardless of route, is a K seat - as the TV and table are attached on the right hand side - which I seem to like better!!

Simply always take the north side of the aircraft to avoid the sun, so K seat out to the US and A seat back ...

Or you can follow the rules of the elite :

Port Outbound, Starboard Homebound

= POSH

so you too can be posh when deciding which side to sit on whichever class you fly:)

This is the how the word posh was derived...........[:?]

[Decker]

The "in" side.... boom boom...

re: Posh.. 'fraid not [:(]

Originally posted by Decker
The "in" side.... boom boom...

re: Posh.. 'fraid not [:(]

What a good site that is - ta Decker.[y]