Why fly economy and be stuck in a middle seat beside a crying baby when you could be up front sipping Champagne?
While paying for Business Class plane seats is an expense few can afford, there are ways to grab a free flight upgrade…
Want to know how to get a free flight upgrade to First Class? Follow our 20 tips and – if you’re lucky – you’ll soon be flying in a flatbed seat with luxury toiletries, haute cuisine and plenty of comfort.
1. Travel at quiet times
Book a flight on Bank Holidays or midweek when business people are less likely to travel as the best seats won’t be taken up.
Try flying on low-traffic days — Tuesday through Thursday — and avoiding prime times — 6 to 10 a.m. and 4 to 7 p.m.
2. Join a loyalty programme
The very first thing airlines look for if a flight is overbooked in Economy seating and upgrades are on the card are frequent fliers.
Being part of an airline’s loyalty scheme instantly gives you an advantage of being called for a free flight upgrade.
3. Bid for an upgrade
Not free, but definitely cheaper is the option to bid for a premium seat on sites such as PlusGrade.
PlusGrade lets you bid against other passengers for a better seat as airlines auction off their more expensive seats closer to the departure date.
Virgin Atlantic, Air China, Qantas and Etihad are all available on PlusGrade.
4. Volunteer your seat if the flight is oversold
Usually, when flights are too overbooked, flight attendants will ask for passengers to volunteer to give up their seat and wait for the next available flight.
If you’ve time to wait, this can usually result in either a premium flight upgrade or a cash or air miles bonus. Win-win.
5. Be on time – or early!
Your flight may only have one or two upgrade places available, so arrive at the check-in desk as early as you can to have a better chance of nabbing them before other passengers.
6. Get an airline credit card
Using an airline credit card can entitle you to priority boarding, seat upgrades, discounts on in-flight refreshments and a waiver of certain restrictions on budget fares.
But the best bit? You’ll rack up air miles that can be exchanged for free upgrades!
7. Travel alone
As we mentioned, seat upgrades are usually limited so you can forget it if you think your entire family of eight will be bumped up to First Class.
Travelling solo will drastically increase your chances as after loyalty members, airline staff look for solo flyers to allocate an upgrade to.
8. Book directly with the airline – not an OTA
Using Online Travel Agents such as Expedia or Skyscanner can be incredible for finding discounted or lower fare seats, but airlines will never give discounted tickets an upgrade.
Book directly through the airline website if you’re hoping for any last-minute seat at the top of the plane.
9. Dress the part
While this alone won’t get you an upgrade, you won’t make it into Business Class in a tracksuit and flip-flops.
Dress nicely in business casual clothing and it might just be the tiebreaker between you and somebody else getting upgraded.
10. Book a Flexi or Premium Economy ticket
It’s easier to get an upgrade to Business or First Class if you already have a slightly better ticket than just standard economy.
Think of it as working your way up the scale… Spend slightly more on a flexi ticket and your reward could be bubbles in the sky in First Class.
11. Ask very nicely
The saying ‘if you don’t ask, you don’t get’, is 100% true. While we would never recommend demanding an upgrade, asking politely when you check in won’t hurt.
Smile, be polite, and hope for the best.
12. Keep an eye on error fare sites
Check out Secret Flying and their “error fares” section, which alerts people to mispriced fares with airlines all over the world.
Act quickly, and you could nab a First Class seat for the same price you would have paid for economy.
13. Speak up if there’s a problem
Problem with your seatbelt, TV not working or your seat won’t recline? Speak up (nicely!) before take-off, and the flight attendants might move you up the aisle and into a premium seat as compensation.
14. Use your professional title if you have one
Are you a Doctor or a Reverend? Adding in ‘Dr.’ when filling out your passenger details might help bump you up to a flight upgrade if airline staff are quickly scanning the list for who to upgrade.
15. Avoid large airline hubs
Try to avoid flying from an airline’s main port if you can. These hubs will be busy with travellers who have loyalty connections to their home airline.
Flying with an airline from an airport where they don’t have a large foothold will better you chance of a flight upgrade. There won’t be be so many frequent fliers.
16. Mention a previous bad flight
Throwing a line like “I’m sure this time will be much more comfortable than my previous experience with X Airline” into conversation upon check in can work wonders.
17. Mention a special occasion
A classic tip, letting airline staff know that it’s your honeymoon/graduation/other amazing occasion can increase your chance of special treatment.
At worst, you’ll at least get some free drinks on board.
18. Know who to ask for an upgrade
Your best bet is the ticket attendants at the check-in desk in the actual airport, as they have the most control over seating plans.
19. Don’t board the plane first
Your next best bet is hanging around until most people have boarded the plane. Ask the gate attendant politely (and out of earshot of other passengers), whether there are any remaining upgrade options for the flight.
You could get lucky and get a premium seat if you’re boarding last as it won’t alert other passengers.
20. Know what doesn’t work
Finally, let us remind you that just sitting yourself down in a premium seat when you board the plane won’t work. Usually, it also won’t work even after take-off and there’s empty seats up front.
Flight attendants know which premium seats are occupied and have strict rules not to let anyone sneak into one mid-flight.
