Easyjet Tricks - guide discussion

Hi, great article... but you're not entirely correct about Easyjet always allocating parents seats adjacent to their children without charging an extra fee for the 'privilege' lol. At the end of June, I had a big argument with another passenger on a flight between Malaga and Newcastle upon Tyne. Unknown to me before embarking, the check-in assistant had seated me and my boys, aged seven and nine, in three different locations. A pleasant male passenger offered to swap seats so that two of us could sit together but then a horrid woman came along and insisted that I move so she could occupy the window seat she had booked ("I've paid for it so I WILL sit there"). I pointed out that this would leave my lively and excited boys (a) unsupervised and (b) hence unable to view my laptop, which I had brought loaded with movies to entertain them on board. But, no, she insisted that I occupy my allocated seat, sandwiched between *her* female friend and a man who was playing Suduko. I knew what was likely to happen. I warned her! I would happily have offered to reimburse the booking fee for her seat, had she not been such a stroppy woman. Predictably, 30 minutes into the flight - amid considerable chuntering from other passengers that it was all my 'fault' because I had not paid 3 x seat selection fees to ensure we were placed together - the woman piped up: "I just cannot tolerate any more of this!" The boys had thrown crisps and then a book into her lap. She still did not want to swap seats but did not dare look me in the eye either! Eventually, the man who was playing Sudoko suggested that my older boy and I swap seats so that I could directly supervise my younger boy, who was still seated beside Horrid Woman. He offered to entertain the eldest with a few games of Sudoko! A solution, of kinds! But not my idea of a pleasant flight experience.... and that woman never glanced at me once all the way to the disembarkation haha.

I agree entirely, though, about the trick for checking a bag into the hold free of charge by offering it at check-in "to save ground crew time and free up room in the overhead lockers". It works EVERY time. We have done it repeatedly on Easyjet routes.

Once, we were late at check-in and I had a cabin bag forcibly removed at the gate... even though the overhead lockers were only partially filled. I accidentally failed to remove one 'valuable' - a black external hard drive containing all my data. I did not see it amid the black-lined suitcase. I completed the flight in terror that it would be broken. There I was, at the baggage reclaim entrance chute at Newcastle Airport, with my hands outstretched so that the case would not bang down on to the hard metal lip below. The HD was OK... just. EEK.