Economy Passengers will now have to pay to reserve seats on Virgin Atlantic
Starting from the 19th of September, 2023, Virgin Atlantic will introduce a new policy regarding reserving seats for their Economy passengers.
The Majority of the passengers will be required to pay an additional fee if they wish to reserve their seats before the 24-hour mark prior to their scheduled departure or at check-in. However, passengers still have the option to reserve their seats for free within the 24-hour window before their flight. This new policy aims to provide more flexibility to the passengers and ensure a fair distribution of seats on each flight.
The airline posted the news in the most recent VSBulletin with the following:
"We want all our customers to love their experience when they fly with us and recognise that many feel reassured by pre-assigning their favourite seat at the time of booking. To allow our customers to personalise their journeys the way they choose, we're updating the ways in which we offer advanced seat selection in the economy cabin. This allows customers to secure extra legroom, their preferred window or aisle seat or simply provide the peace of mind that their travelling party will be sat together."
"Our Gold Card holders will be able to select their seat free of charge at the time of booking, whilst Silver Card members can pre-select their seats from seven days before they fly. For our other customers, they will have the option to pay to pre-select their seat on www.virginatlantic.com, or choose to select free of charge once check-in opens, 24 hours before departure."
"Customers who booked before the 19th of September will still be offered free-of-charge seat assignments. Charges for preferred seats, extra legroom and exit rows still apply."
With the aim of boosting its income, the airline introduced a strategy a few years ago to charge customers for certain seats in Economy class. These seats were renamed as "Economy Preferred Seating" and have since become highly desirable among flyers. Nonetheless, this policy update will now require most passengers to pay a fee to pre-book any seat in the Economy cabin.
The airline's policy change brings it in line with its rivals, like British Airways. However, it remains unclear how much it will cost per passenger to reserve seats. Rest assured, we will keep you informed as soon as we receive any updates on this matter.
