I subscribe to a handful of travel deal newsletters, and among these is Jetstar's weekly Friday flight alerts.
Normally I scan the subject line and delete right away. But one day in November last year, the phrase "2 for 1" caught my eye.
Even with all the add-ons that budget airlines slap you with, a 2 for 1 fare puts you well ahead! And thus, we're going to Tokyo in September.
Assigned seats
Would you pay $5 to guarantee you and your travel partner could sit together on a flight?
Personally, I wasn't sure at first. After all, on our flight from Reykjavik to New York, we didn't get to choose our seats (either we checked in too late, or I missed that step somewhere along the line) and T and I wound up sitting several rows apart. And that was totally fine. It must be said, though, that this was toward the latter part of our trip , so we'd already spent a ton of time together.
But $10 (for both of us) per flight in the grand scheme of things is not a lot, so I stumped up.
Extra legroom
I am slightly toward the tall end of average for a woman and even I feel claustrophobic in economy class. So I have lots of sympathy for T.
I think it was on one of our short European flights that we got to change seats with another passenger in the exit row, and enjoy extra legroom for free. Let me tell you, that was a revelation!
Anyway, I balked at the $45 price tag for seats in the rows with extra leg room, but T's best sad face convinced me. And since it's not possible to sit together and have only one person get extra leg room, that came to $90 per flight. (I would sit apart to save money, but apparently that wasn't acceptable.)
It might even be worth it for me. I gotta say, the older you get, the more you're willing to pay for comfort.
Hot food
The in flight meal menu looked absolutely dire. And this is where I drew the line. No way am I paying for what looks like a terrible attempt at a meat pie, or chicken and rice. Instead, we will fuel up and stock up at the airport before we leave.