Bargaining with Hawaiian Air: You Betcha!

I fly Hawaiian Air frequently, but not enough to retain the Platinum frequent flyer status I enjoyed for years. With no clout anymore on Hawaiian, I needed some new strategies to save some bucks and retain in-flight comfort.

Seat assignments and the Magic Word.

The seat map displayed before purchasing this trip showed only middle seats available. I wanted the two on the side and wouldn’t settle for less. Leaving my reservation screen open I called Hawaiian’s reservation number which is answered in the Philippines.

When the agent confirmed only middle seats available, I unleashed the magic word; ALASKA.

I asked to speak to a supervisor and said I would be flying Alaska Airlines (which offers nonstop service from my island) if they would not open up two seats on the side. After a two minute wait, I was told they could confirm the window and aisle seat. I clicked to complete the reservation, and the courteous and professional agent put in the seats promised.

3. Where to sit.

If there are two of us flying Transpacific (767), I prefer Hawaiian’s 2×2 sets (AB or HJ). These are the first to go. DEF is the middle section of three seats. Sometimes I’ll book the two aisle seats in the center section and hope that no one takes the middle seat. This often works and offers more comfort.

One of my reasons for flying on Hawaiian is that I don’t like to be stuck in the middle seat in Alaska’s 3×3 seat 737 configuration. On the other hand Alaska flies non-stop with a better schedule. On Hawaiian I have to fly into Honolulu and connect. It’s never quite perfect. (Note that on Hawaiian’s A330, economy seating is 2-4-2).

Comments.

Subscribe to our email updates.