possible- especially when you are forced to essentially tell an airline that you are two whole human beings and therefore deserve to pay for two people, rather than one. (Seriously, I’m all for paying for the space you take up, but what about letting me pay for 1.25 seats rather than a whole 2? eh?) But if you do decide that you need that extra space, opt for an airline like Southwest or the recently acquired AirTran. I’m sure we’ve all heard the horror stories of how Southwest has treated fat passengers, but you should still take advantage of the ability to get a full refund of your 2nd seat as long as your flight is not fully booked. What’s more, if you need to travel domestically in Canada, pick Air Canada or West Jet, who have policies stating that fat passengers can get 2 seats for the price of 1! Oh, Canada! ◦ If possible, another suggestion might be to try to find a seat buddy. Maybe it’s a good friend who doesn’t mind being a little close to you for a few hours. Or maybe you and a fellow fatty traveler can team up and share three seats between the two of you to cutdown on costs! Either way, phoning a friend is a great way to ease anxiety about the whole seating issue. (Note: I’ve heard mixed reviews on the fatty seat buddy option, with some parties saying that airlines forced them to still get another seat just to make an extra buck, but others have said that they have done a two-fatty seat-share without incident. In my opinion, it’s at least worth a shot, if you have a spare friend and a steely glare if push comes to shove.)
at the door of your vehicle of choice ◦ Another option for the ample-bottomed is to employ AirTran’s upgrade policy, which allows passengers to switch to a business class seat at check-in for an additional $49 - $129 (depending on flight length- additional costs
for connecting flights). This means going from an 18” to a 30/31” seat (that normally costs hundreds of dollars more), if you are willing to take the risk that business class may be sold out. ◦ If you aren’t feeling the upgrade (or aren’t flying AirTran), why not check-in with Checking-in: the time you ar- an agent rather than a kiosk and ask them if rive at the airport/station until you are they can put you next to an empty seat. Be-