Tricks of the Trade: Max Out Your Int'l Seat

Ramsey Qubein is Travelin' Light's on-the-road correspondent.

Overseas travelers can maximize their Economy class values by always requesting seats as far forward in the cabin as possible. Some airlines permit seat reservations at the time of booking, but others charge for the service or assign seats at check-in. It pays to arrive at the airport early to reserve seats as far forward as possible (remember to mention those exact words). Some airline companies assign seats from the back of the plane forward while others randomly assign seats.

Alitalia has aircraft (namely their MD-80 series) with larger Business Class seats installed, but on most flights these premium seats are not completely sold leaving them to Economy passengers in the first few rows. Travelers may not even realize they’ve been given these more spacious seats until boarding! Other airlines including Air France and Lufthansa provide Economy-style seats in Business Class and block off the middle seat for passengers paying the premium. This provides the flexibility to expand the Business Class cabin as needed, but this still proves beneficial to passengers booking window and aisle seats in the first few rows of these planes as the armrest is positioned differently offering a couple of extra inches.

This advice is strictly for narrowbody flights within Europe as many airlines operate larger equipment with a different inflight product on transcontinental or transoceanic services. Still, this signature trick of the trade is worth noting as the benefits of extra leg or arm room can always come in handy!

Lemme, Lemme Upgrade: 'Premium Economy' Is the New 'First Class'

You know that Seinfeld episode where Jerry tells Elaine, "I've flown first class, Elaine - I can't go back to coach. I can't... I won't"? It's funny, because it's true.

However, in this wonderful economic climate, sometimes first class just isn't an option. Which is why airlines are creating the wonder that is 'premium economy'.

Several airlines, mostly foreign, have reconfigured their long-haul aircraft in recent months to offer seats that are 5 inches to 8 inches longer in pitch — the distance between the seat back to the seat behind — and about 1 inch to 4 inches wider than coach seats. Some airlines also provide better food, wine, noise-canceling headphones and priority boarding. The fee to upgrade to premium economy can range from $30 to $2,000 round trip, depending on the distance and services. But seats are also hundreds or thousands of dollars cheaper than flying in business or first class.

The profit margin for the airlines -- Virgin, United, British and JetBlue are among the carriers joining this trend -- is pretty insane too; JetBlue portends to bring in an extra $40 million by simply adding five inches of legroom for a few rows of passengers.

As for the cost itself, oftentimes it depends on the flight. JetBlue's NYC to Tokyo flight can run an extra $1,200 for the upgrade (although perks such as a personal television, dank headphones and lounge access are included) while United's only asking $15 for the bonus from Chicago to Denver.

In other words, just don't bring any luggage, and it'll seem like it's free.