Orbitz Seat Reservations?
 

Has anyone had any luck making seat reservations for their flight through the Orbitz site?

I bought tickets from them (NWA, RT from DFW to CDG) in March for my trip in September and, in my "folder" on the website, there's a link that says, "Click here to select seats" (or something to that effect). But when I click on it, I get a message that says something like, "Online seat selection for this flight is currently unavailable. Try again later."

It's been saying this since I bought the tickets in March. At first I thought maybe the flight was just too far out to be making seat reservations, . . . but I don't know at this point. A friend who is traveling at around the same time on a different airline was able to make her seat reservations directly through the airline.

Anyone have any suggestions. Will the airline make seat reservations for me even though I bought the tickets through Orbitz?

Thanks in advance,
Jennie

Suggest you call the airline and ask them for seat assignments. I've done this with Orbitz purchases, Travelocity, etc., and never a problem.

Also, by calling the airline, you confirm Orbitz provided the necessary information to complete your reservation. One of my trips was cancelled by the airline when Orbitz failed to complete the transaction - but no one ever told me, and I didn't discover the problem until I reached the airport. Last time Orbitz and I did business!

Call Northwest. They will have your reservation in their computer and will make you seat reservations.

Curious

Thanks guys! I'll call them today.

If anyone is interested or if this thread comes up in a search later on down the line, I just got off the phone w/ NWA and they don't start making seat reservations until 90 days before the flight.

Jennie

they probably haven't decided which type of plane they're going to use
I guess that's why you couldn't do it on Orbitz either

Jennie, Do you think you are not given a seat assignment now because you used Orbitz? We booked directly through the airlines in December for a May flight to Paris and got our seat assignments at the time of booking, well before a 90 day period. I know airline policy can differ but I'm just wondering if by using Travelocity, Orbitz, etc you aren't given the opportunity to book because of the discounts. I've used travelocity within the US but not Europe. If I book early like you did, I'd also want to get my choice of seats and know that I do actually have a seat on the plane. Just wondering what others have experienced. Jennie have a great time in Paris, September is a wonderful time to be there. Deborah

DeborahAnn:

You know, that thought actually did occur to me. I'd be interested to hear if anyone else had this same experience on Northwest.

Thanks for your good wishes! I am very excited about this trip!

Jennie

I purchased a ticket on Orbitz in October 2002 for March 2003 roundtrip to Rome on BA. I was assigned a seat number at the time. It asked if I preferred aisle or window. I requested aisle and a seat number was assigned. All went well.

I just purchased a ticket through Orbitz that was 2 legs out, 3 legs back... two of the return legs were operated by US Airways (the rest were United) and those were the only two that didn't allow me to change them online. Don't know why :D

I just purchased a ticket to Madrid via Orbitz and was curious as to why I received a seat assignment for my return but not my departure. I'm departing 6/6. I was going to call the airline a few days in advance to confirm my flight and figured they would give me a seat upon check-in. Should I do this now? Now I'm concerned...

Michelle, I have yet to figure out the rhyme and rhythm of seat assignments. Sometimes I feel like it's at the whim of the airline personnel and how accommodating they want to be but I hope there are definite guidelines they follow. I would guess that if you book close to the time of your travels and the plane is heavily booked they do not assign anymore seats, with your return you may have booked far enough ahead that you were given an assignment or the flight wasn't heavily booked yet. I'd call again just to be sure, kind of like getting a second opinion and if you can't get an assigned seat get to the airport as early as you can to get the best seat possible. I think I would do just about anything to avoid a middle of the row seat on an international flight. Good luck and have a great trip. Deborah

It may or may not be relevant, but European carriers don't like to give seat assignments prior to check-in for security reasons. If you are flying on a codeshare flight or have a connection within Europe, you may be encountering this obstacle. Doesn't seem to apply to Jennie, but might in some other cases.

Happy Saturday everyone!

In my case, I think I'll probably just wait another month and try again. It's just in my nature to be a mega-planner (I've been planning this Sept.-Oct. trip since LAST July! Ha-Ha!) and I wanted to get them done early.

Thanks again for all the advice!

Jennie