Premium Club flight upgrade Thomson/First Choice flight

swecri

Hi,

I have booked a holiday for myself, my husband, my 6 year old son, and my in-laws to go to Jamaica in Jan 2015. We have booked to travel with First Choice (who are owned by TUI- the company who also own Thomson) and we are interested in upgrading our flights to Premium Club.
We have flown with the Premium Club upgrade before last year when we travelled to Mexico and we really liked it. I have a medical condition / disability which means the extra room to move around is really helpful.
When we travelled to Mexico last year, our upgrade was an extra £140 each return. To upgrade to fly to Jamaica its currently £330 each return. And considering theres 5 of us, thats an additional £1650.
Does anyone have any experience of watching the upgrade prices and whether they change nearer the departure of the holiday? Is it cheaper to buy the seats at the airport when you check in? I'm reluctant to leave it that late because I 'need' the seat (I'm an amputee due to poor circulation and need to ensure i have lots of room to move in my seat) and I don't want the seats to sell out. I'm just keen to avoid paying through the nose for them, I cannot justify an extra £1650 on top of the nearly £8000 we've paid for the holiday for the 5 of us!

Any thoughts would be much appreciated!

DomRavioli

If you speak to disabled services and advise you need extra legroom because of a disability, you might get it for free. Not sure how they work it on longhaul, but I always get to choose my seat because of my disability. They are really nice too. Phone number shoudl be on the website.

budgetflyer

When the holiday is 8K then 1600 isn't really that much to turn the flights there and back from unbearable to pleasurable.
Putting into perspective, upgrading scheduled flights would normally be 3 or 4 times the cost of economy tickets, (although I know Thomsons upgrade isnt quite the same as BA Club World or Virgin Upper Class)

jackieblack

budgetflyer wrote: »

When the holiday is 8K then 1600 isn't really that much to turn the flights there and back from unbearable to pleasurable.
Putting into perspective, upgrading scheduled flights would normally be 3 or 4 times the cost of economy tickets, (although I know Thomsons upgrade isnt quite the same as BA Club World or Virgin Upper Class)

Thompson Premium Club looks more like World Traveller Plus/Premium Economy than BA Club World or Virgin Upper Class to me :huh:

swecri

DomRavioli wrote: »

If you speak to disabled services and advise you need extra legroom because of a disability, you might get it for free. Not sure how they work it on longhaul, but I always get to choose my seat because of my disability. They are really nice too. Phone number shoudl be on the website.

Thanks for this. I dislike using Special Assistance because I feel (as most places I go) its 'generic'. I appear able bodied (until you look closer) and I can actually walk.
I find whenever I've used Special Assistance, they simply cart you off to your gate and promptly get you loaded on to the plane. I don't need help with these things, I need to be allowed to take a small sleeping bag on board and not get stung or questioned for carrying extra hand luggage (yes really- a sleeping bag sounds drastic but my blood flow is so bad) and I need as much room to move around as possible! I want to be in a smaller area whereby the temperature is easier to control. I need hot drinks as a method of keeping my hands warm, Premium Club also has the offer of an electric plug built into the seats… This means I'd be able to plug in my electric heat pad too. My conditions are unusual and yet cause me a great deal of suffering. To be able to fly in comfort and without pain would be amazing.

swecri

jackieblack wrote: »

Thompson Premium Club looks more like World Traveller Plus/Premium Economy than BA Club World or Virgin Upper Class to me :huh:

I just need access to a plug socket, a bit more room to fidget and move, and the option of better temperature control. I'm not interested in the unlimited drinks and the 4 course meal!

gettingtheresometime

Without wishing to be blunt, if the premium upgrade provides the comfort that you need then I don't see the point in eating about the bush and not booking it.

The only question I would be asking myself is it important for the group to sit together ie does everyone need a premium club seat?

jackieblack

swecri wrote: »

I just need access to a plug socket, a bit more room to fidget and move, and the option of better temperature control. I'm not interested in the unlimited drinks and the 4 course meal!

I realise that, my comment was to the poster I quoted who was pointing out that an upgrade to club world/ upper is usually much more expensive. This is correct but the upgrade you're considering is not equivalent to club world/ upper so that's not comparing like for like.

As to your original question about whether the upgrade price is likely to change, that is impossible to predict as it would depend on the demand. There are a limited number of seats in the upgraded cabin, if these start to sell well chances are that the price will rise for those that remain. If there is no/little interest they may drop the price to make the upgrade more appealing.
You should decide how much the upgrade is worth to you and book when/if you see the seats available at that price.

swecri

jackieblack wrote: »

I realise that, my comment was to the poster I quoted who was pointing out that an upgrade to club world/ upper is usually much more expensive. This is correct but the upgrade you're considering is not equivalent to club world/ upper so that's not comparing like for like.

As to your original question about whether the upgrade price is likely to change, that is impossible to predict as it would depend on the demand. There are a limited number of seats in the upgraded cabin, if these start to sell well chances are that the price will rise for those that remain. If there is no/little interest they may drop the price to make the upgrade more appealing.
You should decide how much the upgrade is worth to you and book when/if you see the seats available at that price.

I'm seriously wondering! I spoke to my husband and he and I agree that we need to sit together. I'm missing fingers and I need him with me to help me manage while on the plane. We have a little boy and he's 6 so we'd have to have him with us too. Thats at least 3 seats at £330. I'm not tight with money but £1000 for seats is just extortionate. I thought I'd ask re price fluctuation just in case anyone had any thoughts as another option (maybe if anyone had seen prices plummet just before departure act). I'm so tempted to just book them but my husband will go mad!

martindow

swecri wrote: »

I'm seriously wondering! I spoke to my husband and he and I agree that we need to sit together. I'm missing fingers and I need him with me to help me manage while on the plane. We have a little boy and he's 6 so we'd have to have him with us too. Thats at least 3 seats at £330. I'm not tight with money but £1000 for seats is just extortionate. I thought I'd ask re price fluctuation just in case anyone had any thoughts as another option (maybe if anyone had seen prices plummet just before departure act). I'm so tempted to just book them but my husband will go mad!

It's not extortionate, it's the airline charging what they think they can get. One of the joys of capitalism!

I don't see why you don't try the Special Assistance route and see if they will upgrade you without charging. If they agreed I assume they would accept that your husband and son would sit with you. There is nothing lost by asking.

The in-laws could then pay to move in with you.

littlereddevil

If you NEED the seats then you have to pay for them, why wouldn't you?