The Traveller's Magazine
When traveling by plane, leg room is a hot topic. There never seems to be enough, and sitting anywhere but the aisle seat often requires all your skills as a contortionist to get comfortable. To help you out, liligo.com has taken a look at which airlines provide the most leg room.
We’re comparing the amount of space between seat rows on board airplanes with a number of carriers.
Which airline offers the most comfortable experience?
> Iberia Express offers the least leg room
> Air France and its low cost carrier HOP! offer the most leg room
> The average distance between seats on long haul carriers is 80 cm
> The average distance between seats on short-haul flights is 77 cm
> The average seat size overall is 44.5 cm. Boeing 777-300 ER planes operated by Qatar Airways offer the largest seat size, with 47 cm in economy.
> Planes operating short-haul flights in general reduce space between seats in order to maximise the number of seats in the plane, and therefore to reduce ticket prices.
Tips to get as much leg room as you can:
> Seats found at the emergency exits offer the most leg room (betweem 94 – 104 cm). In general, when traveling with low cost airlines travelers will need to pay extra to reserve seats of their choice – including these ones. It’s also worth bearing in mind that in case of emergency, whoevers sitting in this seat will suddenly find themselves with a little more responsibility…
> Aisle seats offer the chance to stretch your legs. However, there’s always the risk of accidentally tripping up a flight attendant or fellow passenger if you fall asleep in this position – or being awoken by those needing to get past.
> Seats at the back of the plane are also often more generous with leg room. However, they are also located next to the toilets and you may need to wait a while before disembarking the plane upon landing.
> The ideal solution? Travel business class, first class or in your own private jet (we can dream…)
