Premium Economy: For the Best Value in Travel, Book the Middle of the Plane

If the thought of spending several hours cramped up in an economy class seat is too unbearable, but you don't need all of the bells and whistles (and cost) of booking business class, a premium economy seat might be just the sweet spot for you.

It's not a lie-flat seat, but Premium Economy can be a godsend when flying long-haul overseas, with more spacious seats (and plenty of legroom), better service and amenities, and even better food than what you get at the back of the plane. Of course, it varies from airline to airline – not all cabins are created equal … and some airlines even name them differently.

Delta Premium Select offers a better experience, with more legroom, wider seats, and amenities like noise-canceling headphones, an amenity kit, and dedicated service, too. Singapore Airlines offers an even comfier ride to destinations all over Southeast Asia (and even one in Europe). A recent cheap fare flying SAS Plus premium economy also included a larger seat, solid service, and even lounge access. I've also flown premium economy on KLM to Amsterdam, British Airways to London, and plan to spend more of my points and dollars on seats in the middle of the plane in the coming years. 

But here's the best part: While it's not always dirt cheap, we've seen a recent trend of low premium economy fares. Thrifty Traveler Premium members have received a slew of premium economy deals to Europe and beyond under $900 roundtrip – and sometimes, half that price.

Here's how you can score a comfier ride across the ocean for the price of a typical economy fare … or less.

What Is Premium Economy?

Premium economy is a solid middle ground between regular economy and the fancy lie-flat seats at the front of the plane.

Premium economy seats aren't as nice or spacious as the first class or business class cabins, but they're a distinct step up from economy. They're typically far more spacious (both in width and legroom) and feature more amenities than regular economy in most cases. Often times, it looks a lot like what you'd find in domestic first class.

Premium economy varies from airline-to-airline, but in most cases you're likely to get some version of the following:

• A slightly wider seat
• More legroom, often with a legrest
• A little extra seat recline
• Extra amenities (headphones, amenity kits, etc.)
• Dedicated flight attendant service
• Better inflight meal service
• Free checked bags
• Lounge access (in some cases)

Unfortunately, many airlines cut back their premium economy catering budgets during the pandemic, meaning the dining options might resemble what you get back in economy. Lately, things have gotten better but it's still a far cry from the meals many airlines used to serve before travel all but ground to a halt.

Still, it's a big step up – and for most travelers, this is plenty of luxury when taking to the skies. Some airlines will price these seats like the luxury they are, with extremely steep multi-thousand dollar roundtrip prices. In fact, the airlines brag about how profitable premium economy is for them to their investors every quarter. 

But like all airplane seats, sometimes the airlines have to offer steep savings to fill up their cabins. And that's where we come in!

Over the last few months, we've seen an undeniable new trend emerge: A slew of deeply discount premium economy fares to Europe, Southeast Asia, and even the Middle East… at 50% off (or even more) the usual prices. In just the last two months, we've sent Thrifty Traveler Premium members more than 10 dirt-cheap premium economy fares – often for less than the typical economy class price tag on the same route.

Delta Premium Select to Europe or Dubai from $603 RT!

Delta's premium economy offering – branded Delta Premium Select – is a truly comfortable seat akin to domestic first class. I enjoyed my experience in those seats, even if the catering was sub-par. It's way, way more comfortable than extra legroom economy, a.k.a. Delta Comfort. 

And if you can secure Premium Select for less than $1,000 roundtrip to Europe…do it!

These fares were so insanely low that we thought it must have been an error, declaring this deal a mistake fare. Thankfully, it was no mistake and Delta ended up honoring all these rock-bottom prices.

From cities coast-to-coast, Delta outdid itself with these stunning roundtrip fares in the comfy middle of the cabin. 

But that wasn't all for Premium Select. Just a few weeks ago, we found these fares for just a few hundred more that get you all the way to Dubai (DXB)! Delta was the primary carrier on these flights, but it included some routes with KLM Premium Economy (which I've flown and loved!), Air France, and even Virgin Atlantic, too. 

You won't find a better price than that to the Middle East. In many cases, these are the same price as Main Cabin! So why not upgrade your travels?

Air France and Virgin Atlantic to Europe from 15k Each Way

To fly premium economy to Europe, you don't have to spend your cash, however. These next two examples of deals we've sent in the last few months are great ways to burn some of those points you've been stacking up. 

In this first example … it's not very many points at all.  

Thanks to a 30% transfer bonus from Capital One to Virgin Atlantic, these 21,000-point roundtrip fares in premium economy to London (LHR) could be had for as few as 15,000 Capital One miles! 

These Virgin fares do come with higher taxes and fees – about $550 in all. That's a tougher pill to swallow, but is why they're able to charge just 21,000 in points. 

You won't have to worry about the nastier surcharges on these Air France premium economy fares, though.

This deal from Washington, D.C. (IAD) to Paris (CDG) for just 30,000 miles each way was another excellent use of points. 

SAS Premium Economy to Europe 

SAS Premium Economy is the most reliable way to book premium economy to Europe. SAS runs a sale seemingly every other month, lasting about a week, where fares dip into the $800s, $700s, and even $600s roundtrip. 

I think it might be one of the the best deals in travel. 

Not only are the fares the same cost as main cabin economy in many cases, they come with all the bells and whistles of premium economy. A bigger, wider seat, free checked bags, priority access and boarding, and, for SAS, even lounge access! 

If you need a premium economy seat to Europe, sign up for SAS's email alerts and book during their next sale. It's a surefire way to get the best deal possible. 

United Premium Economy to Europe from $982 RT

If you want to go with a major U.S. airline instead, United also put out a tantalizing sale on premium economy fares to Europe recently. 

Flying nonstop from Newark (EWR), you could get these routes to Spain, Italy, and Ireland under $1,000 roundtrip! 

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Singapore Premium Economy to SE Asia (& Germany?)

The best premium economy I've ever experienced was on Singapore Airlines. I flew Singapore Airlines on the longest flight in the world – from New York (JFK) to Singapore (SIN) – more than 18 hours total. And it flew by.

The seat was comfy, the food was excellent, the service was prompt and helpful for all 18 hours, and I couldn't believe how comfy an 18-hour flight could be. That's exactly what you could be flying if you booked this deal. 

This Singapore Airlines deal is another relatively reliable booking. Singapore often prices these flights from JFK and Newark (EWR) more closely to economy than it does its other routes. Why? Because the specialty planes that fly these two longest routes in the world don't have any economy seats, period. Even in the way back, premium economy is all you'll find! 

Connect onward to places like Bali (DPS), Phuket (HKT), and Bangkok (BKK), too. If you're calculating miles per dollar, this is the single best deal in travel and in a super comfy seat, to boot. 

Interestingly, you can also fly Singapore Airlines to Germany. Thanks to a funky fifth freedom route from JFK to Frankfurt (FRA), you can book one of these over to Germany for … say … Oktoberfest!

This deal with Oktoberfest availability was sublime, and we heard from several subscribers who snagged these seats for just 63,000 points roundtrip this year!

Japan Airlines Premium Economy from 42k Points Each Way

I can't for sure say Japan Airlines Premium Economy is the best in the world, because I have never flown it. But nobody who has flown in these seats can say anything but that!

Flying to and from Tokyo (HND, NRT), Osaka (KIX), an Nagoya (NGO) and the U.S., these fancy new premium economy seats on the A350 look like a dream.

The prices? Also a dream! Using your American Airlines AAdvantage miles or your British Airways Avios, you could secure these seats for as little as 42,000 each way from Hawaii (HNL) or 50,000 miles each way from the east coast, too. 

Vietnam Premium Economy for $1751 RT

There's only one airline flying nonstop to Vietnam from the U.S. and that's Vietnam Airlines. So if you want to fly premium economy there, you need to connect in Asia, or hope that they run a big sale for some reason…

After months of digging, we found these excellent fares on this nonstop flight from San Francisco (SFO) to Ho Chi Minh City (SGN) for just $1,751 roundtrip. It's at least half-off the usual price, which is unusual because they have no competition on this route. 

Book first and ask questions later if you see a deal like this again!

American Airlines Premium Economy to Australia & Hawaii

American Airlines Premium Economy sales aren't routine, but they also aren't rare. The airline prices its middle-of-the-plane seats competitively when you use points and miles, and that leads to some awesome deals like this one to Hawaii. 

Disclaimer: I booked this deal! I'm flying to Maui next March thanks to this sizzling flight deal and these ultra-competitive rates. I had a main cabin ticket booked on another airline and cancelled it so I could book this for the exact same price. A real no-brainer! 

While most of American Airlines's planes won't win style points – with the airline's new, premium Boeing 787s being the exception – you'll get a nearly identical premium economy seat to what you'll find on Delta and United. We recently flew AA's premium economy on the nearly 11-hour flight from Naples (NAP) to Chicago (ORD) and found the experience to be extremely pleasant – way better than regular economy. 

But you can fly much, much further than Hawaii in these fancier seats. How about Australia? 

This deal to Sydney (SYD) included availability for just 45,000 miles each way. 

Bottom Line

Premium economy can be the perfect mix between the cost-savings of regular economy and the service and amenities of business class. It's not a lie-flat seat, but there's no denying it's a comfier ride on a long-haul flight.

Best of all, we've been finding more and more great premium economy deals via Thrifty Traveler Premium, helping our members get somewhere fun better rested … often for the typical price of coach!

Lead photo courtesy of Delta Air Lines