Qantas Neighbour Free Seat Reservations

[justinbrett]

Edit: T&C's also state it will also be available on international flights (QF1 - 329) which I'm guessing will be made available soon after.

No, it says "Standard seat selection is also available on Qantas operated international flights QF1-329 and fees may apply."

So status quo, no neighbour free seats.

 

[AustraliaPoochie]

Double SC?
I would still do the "comfort seat booking" tho, as this would guarantee SC for yourself, and one more set of SCs for your "friend".

 

[jrfsp]

Will this have any impact on shadow seat blocking?

 

[encryptededdy]

Your Standard seat and Neighbour Free reservation will be available on our boarding pass.

Anyone seen what this looks like? I'm curious.

 

[wenglock.mok]

Double SC?
I would still do the "comfort seat booking" tho, as this would guarantee SC for yourself, and one more set of SCs for your "friend".

The FAQs indicate that there are no extra SCs or points for your "neighbour".

 

[SydneySwan]

So once you are in the air, someone comes and sits in your neighbour free seat. What happens then?

I bet Qantas don't process an automatic refund and after the event customer service will tell you there was no-one in your neighbour free seat so no refund.

 

[33kft]

Bit of a win for the cheapskate on the other side thinking about it, who else thinks the cheeky buggers will let the middle seat get sold twice?

 

[Reddevil]

Interesting to see how it impacts soft seat shadows for anyone lower than CL or P1.

 

[PineappleSkip]

It seems to have been bolted on permanently, according to the marketing spiel I got today

Enjoy more space with Neighbour Free seating​

Neighbour Free allows you to reserve the seat next to you so you can enjoy more space in Economy on your next flight. It will soon be available on 14 domestic routes and if eligible, you’ll receive an email inviting you to purchase Neighbour Free.^​

 

[Flyfrequently]

I’ll find out on Friday if my ghost seat PER-DRW remains free or not.

And how did it go @Port Power ?

 

[downgraded]

It looks like the trial must have been moderately successful, as I've seen a few instances of Qantas offering this in recent weeks. Doesn't seem to be that widespread though.

It's still just another lottery though, except for QF who are monetizing something they hadn't been able to sell anyway but it's another perk that from a customer perspective comes with no guarantees ( may not get offered the seat, may not stick, some chance the seat would have been vacant anyway. Don't understand why they (or any other airline) doesn't make comfort seats easier to buy (ie on line)

 

[jase05]

It's still just another lottery though, except for QF who are monetizing something they hadn't been able to sell anyway but it's another perk that from a customer perspective comes with no guarantees ( may not get offered the seat, may not stick, some chance the seat would have been vacant anyway. Don't understand why they (or any other airline) doesn't make comfort seats easier to buy (ie on line)

The NZ system seems to work ok. The first few rows are guaranteed middle seat free and anyone who selects that zone pays extra.

 

[downgraded]

The NZ system seems to work ok. The first few rows are guaranteed middle seat free and anyone who selects that zone pays extra.

Seems like they show some respect to their customers.

 

[justinbrett]

Bit of a win for the cheapskate on the other side thinking about it, who else thinks the cheeky buggers will let the middle seat get sold twice?

Oh can you imagine - the WP who assume it's his shadow puts their drink on the middle tray table, and the no-status person who paid for the neighbour free seat won't have any of it...

It will get ugly

(Unwritten rule of middle seat shadows is to share)

 

[jase05]

Seems like they show some respect to their customers.

Not sure if it’s respect or just the service they provide.
This is a look at an all Economy A320 ADL-AKL.
You pay for the Worksdeluxe package and you get a guaranteed neighbour free seat. Price is quite reasonable too considering the other extras you get such as luggage, F&B

 

[downgraded]

Not sure if it’s respect or just the service they provide.
This is a look at an all Economy A320 ADL-AKL.
You pay for the Worksdeluxe package and you get a guaranteed neighbour free seat. Price is quite reasonable too considering the other extras you get such as luggage, F&B
View attachment 328368View attachment 328369

Call it what you like, it is a worthy product that QF is obviously choosing to ignore (I know ANZ don't (always?) have J on the aircraft but this is a Y offering (except in Europe)!

 

[wenglock.mok]

So once you are in the air, someone comes and sits in your neighbour free seat. What happens then?

I bet Qantas don't process an automatic refund and after the event customer service will tell you there was no-one in your neighbour free seat so no refund.

Hopefully cabin crew will be better trained to police this. I assume because it's supposed to be printed on your boarding pass, that person would be evicted by the cabin crew. I didn't have a very pleasant experience with having an intruder once deciding to swap into a comfort seat that I had booked (an entirely different concept I know, although with the same premise). The cabin crew were almost reluctant to deal with it until I politely insisted they called the CSM over but were full of apologies once they realised what had happened.

 

[Port Power]

And how did it go @Port Power ?

Yes, the centre seat remained empty PER-DRW. Likewise on my return flight BME-PER I also had a ghost seat, one of only a few empty seats on a full flight.

 

[AustraliaPoochie]

Will this have any impact on shadow seat blocking?

Yep, thats another consideration.
With QF doing this, the chances of WP having an empty seat/shadow, if booked or if by chance, it will certainly be diminished.
Looks like now the only way to have wide space on a QF flight, is to buy a J seat via cash or points, and know you have the space, or phone up and do a "comfort seat booking" and hope things work out that the seat next to you is indeed empty, or take the "lottery" 48 hours that you "win" the seat lottery.

 

[PineappleSkip]

Booked in 4A tomorrow night, no way am I punting on a lottery where I might “win” 24A instead.