What is 'priority' worth to you?

[WilsonM]

I'm thinking here of priority check-in, boarding and maybe baggage. Some airlines are monetising this - Etihad offer "Priority Access" for 40USD including all 3 things, while Scoot offer "Board me first" for around 5SGD.

So how much do you think these benefits are worth each time you fly? And what other airlines offer this upsell to 'priority'?

 

[Human]

Priority check-in (and baggage drop) is definitely of value to me. I don't need it every time I fly, but during school holidays, long weekends, Friday and Sunday evenings, and, especially, when there are delays and the queues are long, it's invaluable.

Priority boarding ... can be useful especially if the flight is full and I have a full-size carry-on and I potentially need to battle other passengers for overhead locker space.

Priority baggage doesn't always work, but when it does work it's nice especially at the end of a long day when I'm keen to just get to my destination as quickly as possible.

I've never thought about how much this is worth "each time I fly". During peak times such as those I mentioned above, maybe $30-$50 depending on how long the queues are and how soon it is until my flight! At non-peak times it's a "nice to have" but not something I'd necessarily pay for.

 

[Denali]

Priority check-in and boarding..... so everyone beyond row 3 knows how special I am

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Priority check-in (and baggage drop) is definitely of value to me. I don't need it every time I fly, but during school holidays, long weekends, Friday and Sunday evenings, and, especially, when there are delays and the queues are long, it's invaluable.

Priority boarding ... can be useful especially if the flight is full and I have a full-size carry-on and I potentially need to battle other passengers for overhead locker space.

Priority baggage doesn't always work, but when it does work it's nice especially at the end of a long day when I'm keen to just get to my destination as quickly as possible.

I've never thought about how much this is worth "each time I fly". During peak times such as those I mentioned above, maybe $30-$50 depending on how long the queues are and how soon it is until my flight! At non-peak times it's a "nice to have" but not something I'd necessarily pay for.

Agree!

Priority is worth its weight when you fly economy… skip the long queues, and get space your your carry on.

Not sure i’d pay for those separately? I’d tend to look for other ways to beat the system… like online chicken and then using bag drop… lines which are often empty despite the economy queue going out the door! And of course if no status, no lounge, so I’d be at the gate early to be among the first of the last to board!

And whereas I’d previously paid for ‘meet and greet’ at Bali airport, is that’s been discontinued, the ‘e-visa’ line is apparently just as quick. So I’ll be doing that next time.

 

[RooFlyer]

I loath queuing (or queuing for long), so priority checking in (we still have agents at HBA ) and boarding is of value to me. Priority bags would be of greater value esp when there is a taxi or Uber to catch, but it hardly ever happens.

As a WP I wouldn't expect this to be sold to me and I wouldn't expect anyone to have paid access in front of my group, except those of higher status.

 

[Forg]

Wonder if, to describe by example, you could turn-up at the airport really late & see the stupidly long Etihad queue, so head for the priority queue and pay your US$40?

 

[fly2earth]

As much as the special orange bag tag itself. and when there is bus transport for the priority pax to the plane and you're the only one from economy to board the plane before the rest of them arrive via a second bus 10 minutes later

 

[Captain Halliday]

I currently attribute very low value to priority check-in, and no value at all to priority boarding and priority baggage.

This is because all three are a published benefit of my current status and none is provided consistently by the airline in question.

I’ve paid for these things already and yet the airline does not provide them.

So in a scenario where I held no status, I would not pay for priority because I have no confidence that I’d receive what I’d paid for.

 

[drron]

Not all airlines make you pay however. JAL have a face express service which is free. On the 3 JAL flights we have had in the last 8 days they boarded at the same time as Group 1 - F and OWE pax. Basically though only includes Group 1 and 2. So if in J or OWS it is an advantage. However as facial recognition usually doesn’t work for me I didn’t really think it was for me.

 

[Forg]

Having flown internationally quite infrequently, there’re none of the carry-on space issues as domestic are there? What’s the positive of extending your seated-in-squeezy-Y-seats time period?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Having flown internationally quite infrequently, there’re none of the carry-on space issues as domestic are there? What’s the positive of extending your seated-in-squeezy-Y-seats time period?

As long as it’s a wide body aircraft! But for narrow bodies, same same as domestic.

 

[Forg]

But for narrow bodies, same same as domestic.

Hmmm … you may just have explained the issue with narrow-bodies that I didn’t previously understand for long-haul!

 

[fly2earth]

Having flown internationally quite infrequently, there’re none of the carry-on space issues as domestic are there? What’s the positive of extending your seated-in-squeezy-Y-seats time period?

Well would be worth negative if my flight was Jetstar (would pay to be last to board my Jetstar flight)
Cathay narrow body seats departing from MEL come in close second (felt I was squished in a can of sardines for 8 hours)

 

[fly2earth]

As much as the special orange bag tag itself. and when there is bus transport for the priority pax to the plane and you're the only one from economy to board the plane before the rest of them arrive via a second bus 10 minutes later

I find the privilege to check in in the priority lane of value (not boarding since I always arrive from the lounge just as the Zone 4 passengers are about to board). And the special *A luggage tag (don't care that much about priority luggage pickup. And priority seat selection (which for many airlines I can do T-48 anyways but feel special because I get to pre-select it, however some airlines I have to pay no matter the selection time so there is intrinsic value to that although it would be PREFERRED seating not PRIORITY seating).

 

[DejaBrew]

I’d tend to look for other ways to beat the system… like online chicken and then using bag drop…

Umm….

 

[Mattg]

I think priority becomes more valuable the more often you fly. Your time is valuable and when you take 100+ flights per year, those times spent queuing up instead of working in the lounge or relaxing really add up. If you fly once per year, spending 15 minutes waiting to check-in is neither here nor there.

It's hard to put a dollar value on it but clearly some people are prepared to pay for priority check-in and priority boarding as some airlines successfully sell these as add-ons.

I don't think most airlines could get away with selling priority baggage as it so rarely actually works!

 

[dajop]

My trouble is that priority boarding to me is being able to waltz up to the plane, not really queue at all and just after you board the doors close.

Back in the early 00’ies certainly that’s the way it seemed to be. Straight from the lounge after the flight was called and on to the plane usually reaching the gate after all the non-prioriity passengers had boarded. Aah a different time.

I don’t know whether getting older has made me more chill or simply it’s the advent of smart phones, but these days in the instance I am faced with a long queue when checking in I’m easily kept busy on my phone and find that it’s only feels like 5 mins even though it may have been half an hour.

 

[Seat0B]

I don't think most airlines could get away with selling priority baggage as it so rarely actually works!

Totally agree - and if I paid for this in cold hard $$$ and did not get it (which runs about 80% of the time as a mere WP), I would be wanting a refund. And we all know how good airlines are at refunds....

 

[SOPOOR]

I'm thinking here of priority check-in, boarding and maybe baggage. Some airlines are monetising this - Etihad offer "Priority Access" for 40USD including all 3 things, while Scoot offer "Board me first" for around 5SGD.

So how much do you think these benefits are worth each time you fly? And what other airlines offer this upsell to 'priority'?

For me, if im travelling economy, priority boarding means absolutely nothing

if im travelling in business or above, then yes its a nice perk because I can relax in a nice seat rather than queuing for ages or sitting at the gate

Would I pay for it? no

 

[elanshin]

It really depends on the airport and airline as to the value of each.

Priority check in at SYD/MEL can be nice Int'l during busy flying QF period but is nothing like sky priority for MU where theres 200+ chinese economy flyers who all have maxed luggage and comes 4hrs early to the airport. That saves you a lot of time in line.

Priority boarding on a full QF 737 dom matters a bit more when you have an overhead suitcase, but minimally to say CX or JL/NH where even though there is priority boarding, the efficiency means everyone is on super fast anyways and majority widebody means less likely to need to fight for overhead space.

Priority bags are nice in general. When everything works. If something is clogged then it might as well not exist.