The most recent time I flew on Air Transat we (an aunt and I) opted for the Option Plus service for an additional $99 return. The staff on the plane can identify who gets Option Plus because there is a sleeve over your headrest with Option Plus on it. If you have paid for this service and you don’t see a sleeve on your headrest, make sure the staff know that there should be one.
This service gives you seat selection at booking, an extra checked bag at no extra charge (the first 23 kg bag is included in the cost of the flight – $886.48 Canadian return Toronto to Manchester), priority baggage handling and check-in, priority lane for boarding, and a number of free items: a 300 ml bottle of prosecco ($8.75) and a snack ($3 for a small tin of Pringles or a Kit Kat bar) before the meal on the flight, a small bottle of wine with dinner ($6.75), and a blanket ($9) and a head set ($9). After the bottle of prosecco neither of us wanted the wine so we took the small bottles with us and enjoyed them at our destination. The wine is the California Barefoot (Chardonnay white and Merlot red).
We also opted to spend an extra $20 to sit in the 2×2 seats rather than in the standard seats of three abreast on the sides of the plane. However we only did this on the flight to Manchester as we were not traveling together on the way home as I stayed a couple of weeks longer than my aunt. The extra $20 was worth it as you do get some more space and leg room.
The food on the flight to Manchester was not great though my aunt liked it well enough – hot ham and brie sandwich. The best thing was the mini celebration oatmeal and chocolate cookies. The breakfast slice in the morning was sweet banana bread. I did not eat mine as I’ve seen this item before. I was prepared with my own Cliff bar. The food on the return flight was much better – a choice of either beef and mashed potatoes or chicken and pasta. Also, the calzone they served just prior to landing was much more edible than the outbound sandwich. I did not receive a bottle of prosecco on the return flight but received a large glass of wine in addition to the bottle of wine – which is still in my fridge. If you want to spend another $25 per flight you can order (up to 48 hours ahead of time) a meal from Chef Daniel Vézina or take a chance that there might be a spare one on board.
The price of the extras on the flight would have been $36.50 each way. Add to that the cost of a second bag ($100) if you have one, and the Option Plus is a good deal. We ended up not having a second suitcase on either leg of our flights so we paid essentially $26 for priority check-in, boarding and baggage handling. Right now there is a 20% sale on this service which makes it well worthwhile whether you have a second bag or not.
The planes we flew on did not have individual TV screens in the seat backs and it was not worth trying to watch the small screens dotted around the plane so we did not watch the movies. Unless you are seated right near one of the small screens (as my aunt was on her return flight) they are not much use. I noticed one of the movies had sub-titles – impossible to read from any distance, especially if you’re a Silver Traveler! I guess they expect people to have their own devices with them and can download entertainment to watch but with the limits on baggage, who needs to carry something else just to watch a movie on the plane. Only their Airbus A330 planes have individual screens. I read as I can never sleep on a plane.
