The premium-economy club recently welcomed a new member: TAP Air Portugal earlier this month unveiled plans to launch a new cabin dedicated to this hybrid class on long-distance international flights starting next summer. The Portuguese line was one of the last major carriers to embrace a trend that started more than 30 years ago, when airlines realized they could slap a “premium” label on a few rows of coach with some additional space and frills—and charge more for those seats.
In fact, the demand for what has evolved into a new-generation premium-economy class, as opposed to a few “extra legroom” rows in coach, has grown steadily, according to airline experts. More than 114 million premium-economy seats were on sale globally last year, an increase of nearly 40 percent over a two-year period, according to the travel site Hopper, which credited the “growing segment of travelers who are willing to spend more in order to have a more comfortable in-flight experience.”
Indeed, in announcing TAP’s move, Carlos Antunes, TAP’s director for the Americas, said that the carrier is responding to “what travelers have been asking for,” specifically, more premium amenities. The airline currently has two classes of service: business and coach. But in introducing this third option, which does not yet have an official name, TAP isn’t mimicking the rest of the industry; the new cabin, located behind business class, will have just 12 seats with four seats per row. This layout ensures a quieter, more private environment for a truly relaxed journey. Customers will get other perks, such as priority check-in and boarding, bonus miles, nicer headphones, and more food and beverage choices.
The seats will be available on the airline’s Airbus A330s and A321 LR fleets, which operate on all of the carrier’s flights between Portugal and the U.S. TAP currently serves 10 gateways in North America, including New York (JFK and Newark), Boston, Washington, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Miami.
A wide range of premium-economy options
On most other airlines, the premium-economy offering includes a few extra inches of legroom, often with leg rests, a somewhat wider seat, and a few more inches of recline. The appeal is it offers an escape from coach-class claustrophobia without the steep price of a business-class ticket.
For airlines, the calculation pays off, too. Several carriers, including Lufthansa and Virgin Atlantic, are on record as saying that this ersatz premium cabin is, for them, the most profitable swath of real estate on the plane.
“In general, premium economy is a moneymaker for airlines,” said Gary Leff, an airline mileage expert who pens the View from the Wing blog. Airlines, he said, can set a price for this service that’s far higher than the costs they incur (e.g., the revenue lost from cramming in extra seats) in giving fliers a bit more space than in coach.
But there’s an increasingly wide range of seats and layouts across airlines for this service category. Legroom and seat width in premium economy can vary from a seat pitch of 38 inches to 43 inches and from a seat width of 17.5 inches to 20 inches. On some airlines, such as Air France, it includes perks like expedited airport services, a predeparture glass of champagne, and premium lounge access (for an additional fee).
But if you’re on a crowded overnight flight, the experience can sometimes feel closer to the “economy” side of the equation. In that case, the additional fare you pay for this upgrade may not be worth it.
Air France’s premium-economy seats get high marks in the industry.
Courtesy of Air France
When is premium economy worth it?
Afar writers and editors weighed in with our own picks for best-in-class premium-economy cabins that are worth the added costs, extolling the offerings from airlines such as Delta, American, United, Emirates, KLM, Air France, and Singapore Airlines. On a recent Reddit thread, fliers generally agreed that about $300 to $400 above coach fares is the sweet spot for premium economy, but it also revealed that many fliers are willing to pay even more than that to escape coach on longer flights.
In their searches, many travelers are often mystified by the pricing swings they encounter. I myself experienced this confusion when planning a recent trip for two people to Spain. On the return leg from Madrid to New York, my fare searches turned up premium-economy price tags that were nearly $1,000 more one-way per person over the standard coach price, which was more than I wanted to pay.
But a week before departure on the American flight I’d booked, I got an email offering me an upgrade to premium economy for just over $200 one-way. It ended up being even less when I factored in the refund of the $78 seat-selection fee I paid to avoid getting stuck in a middle seat in back, and I checked my bag for free. I’m glad I took the bait; what I got was a decent seat, two acceptable meals, and attentive service, made more so by good luck: The 24-seat premium economy cabin was half full.
But the comfort-to-cost calculus is tricky. On international overnight flights, even with extra recline in premium economy, you’re effectively still sitting up; unless you’re a contortionist, getting a decent night’s sleep isn’t a guarantee.
Still, Leff feels that other “soft” benefits, like being seated apart from the crowds in coach, right behind business, and the ability to board earlier and exit faster, is enough of an incentive. “Simply put, you get more space. You may not be super comfortable, but you aren’t cramped either,” he added.
The ongoing evolution of premium economy
Joe Brancatelli, who runs the Joe Sent Me site for business travelers, said that even after three decades’ worth of premium-economy iterations, “it’s obvious that the airlines haven’t totally figured it out yet.” In his view, most of the demand is “people who are trading up from coach, because it’s gotten so crowded and awful, and business travelers who can’t sit up front” due to their employers’ travel policies in some cases, limiting business and first class to senior executives.
Will TAP’s audacious move to give premium economy fliers more space than average prod more airlines to get creative in this space? Jennifer Coutts Clay, a former British Airways official and author of a book on airline seating, Jetliner Cabins, said that she’s hearing more about new shell-like seat designs that will allow premium-economy occupants to recline almost fully into an enclosed space. “In the end,” she said, “it all comes down to the comfort of the seat and the space around it.”
The bottom line
Premium economy can definitely be worth the extra fare, especially if your budget precludes a business-class splurge. But for the best value, don’t jump at the first price you’re quoted. As I did, you may get a much better deal closer to departure (and you can also try to bid for a lower-cost upgrade).
