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Do you find difficult to sleep sitting upright in an airline seat? If you have ever had 4 or 5 seats all to yourself, you will understand what a difference an empty row can make to a long flight. Imagine being able to sleep flat on a 7ft flat bed in Economy Class. Some people just get lucky and end up with nobody sitting next to them on a quiet flight. This article will show you how to get lucky every time, and wind up with a whole row of seats all to yourself.

An empty row of seats essentially means you are the sole occupant of a number of seats and can spread out and use the extra space for yourself. Airlines commonly try to leave middle seats free, when the plane is not full, to give passengers more space. An empty row is more than this though, as it allows you to stretch out and lie down flat. This is ideal for sleeping in, especially since most Economy seats do not recline very far.

The space available in an empty row will depend greatly on the aircraft and the seat configuration. Some airlines choose to lay out their aircraft differently, or to have the aisles in other places. For example a typical Boeing 777 aircraft has a 3-3-3 configuration – 3 seats next to the left window, then an aisle with three seats in the middle, then another aisle with 3 seats next to the right window. American Airlines has chosen a 2-5-2 configuration, which means that there are 5 seats in the middle and only 2 at each row next to the windows. Knowing the layout of the aircraft can help you when trying to secure an empty row. Seatguru.com has seat maps for all major airlines.

To acquire an empty row of seats, you must first find out how busy the flight is. Obviously if the flight is full then it will not be possible. My Bonus report <How to check how busy your flight is> can show you how to do this in advance. Failing that, you can always ask at check in – though this will mean you will have already booked your flight and be unable to move to a quieter flight. When you ask, be specific and say: “Can you please tell me how many empty seats there will be onboard?” If you ask the generic question “How busy is the flight?” then you are likely to receive a non-specific response.

Once you have established how busy the flight is then simply check in as normal. Based on what you now know, you can predict whether there will be any empty rows. What most people don’t realise is that the check-in procedures for an airline actually close about 30 minutes before departure. After this, very few people will be moving seats and this gives you a chance to find out if there are any empty rows. However if you try to get a seat allocated in an empty row prior to this then it is possible someone who checks in later could be sat next to you.

As a rule of thumb, if the Economy cabin is less than 50% full, you will almost always find empty rows of seats. Groups of people are always sat together so the more groups there are then the high the chance of securing an empty row. Try to pick a flight that is likely to have a lot of groups travelling together. Holiday destinations such as Florida will have a lot of families, tour groups and couples. Business destinations such as New York are likely to have a lot more individual travellers. Business travellers are also usually a lot savvier when it comes to choosing seats so you have less chance of an empty row on flights to major business destinations.

If the Economy cabin is 75% full, that means 1 in every 4 seats is free which means there is still likely to be a few empty rows. There is usually an empty row on all flights under about 85% full. I have found empty rows in flights where the only free seats were the three that I had to myself, so it’s always possible.

The best place to secure an empty row is at the boarding gate. There will be a ticket desk either as you enter the gate or just prior to the boarding aerobridge. Be warm, friendly and polite as you approach the person at the desk. Remember they will be busy and you are taking up their time. Ask them “Hi, I was told the flight wasn’t full and was wondering if you can check which rows are currently empty, I’d like to stretch out and get some sleep if that is possible”. Most gate agents will look on their system and if there is an empty row one of two things will happen.

The best scenario is that the gate agent moves you to the new seat. However, if they don’t have time, for whatever reason, they may simply tell you which row numbers have nobody sitting in them. Officially you aren’t allowed to move seats until the aircraft is at cruising altitude and the seatbelt sign is off. Try telling that to the businessman eyeing up those empty seats though! The best strategy is simply to go sit down in the empty row as you board the aircraft. Be aware that seats towards the rear of the aircraft in the middle section are among the last to get filled by the staff. This means the further back you go, the more likely you are that nobody will be sitting next to you. You know that boarding has finished when the aircraft door is closed. This is usually followed by an announcement to turn off cell phones and electronics.

It won’t always be so simple however. If you have a row of seats with a window, be sure to position yourself at the aisle seat to you block access to the row. If someone wants to sit next to you, ask them what their seat number is to make sure they have the correct seat. The best empty rows are those in the middle of an aircraft as they usually have 4 or 5 seats which are a lot more comfortable to sleep on. However these seats have two entrances which means you can’t block them with your body. Imagine that a flight is busy and a businessman is sitting next to 2 people beside the window. Across the aisle you have 4 seats to yourself. It is possible the businessman in this example may try to sit in on of your 4 seats – preventing you for being able to lie down and sleep.

You can prevent this from happening by some careful tactics. Let’s assume you are typing to occupy 4 seats by yourself. Sit in one of the two middle seats as other people will be dissuaded from sitting immediately next to you. Next, place you bag under the furthest away aisle seat – people will assume this seat is occupied. Place your shoes under the nearest aisle seat. Place any pillow and blanked in a pile on the furthest away aisle seat. This creates numerous barriers which people will perceive as blocking them from sitting there. It might sound harsh but you do want a good night’s sleep, right?

Despite my barriers I have once had someone try to join me in my row. I told them that I had asked for this row because I wanted to sleep flat (which was true). They simply accepted this and moved to another row. I don’t advise starting an argument with anyone, but be firm and you will get what you want most of the time.

The things to watch out for are armrests. While most should move all the way back, some only move to a vertical position and not back in line with the reclined angle of the seats. This means they can stick into you as you try to sleep. The seatbelt buckles and straps can also get in the way, but it is possible to squeeze these between the seat cushions. You can always keep one around you in case of turbulence. The metal connectors between the seat and the seatbelt can dig into your back as you try to sleep. In this case, simply take a spare blanket (you should have 3 or 4) and run it along the corner of the seat backs. You should also have plenty of pillows to get comfortable.

This guide can be used on any airline, but does not guarantee you an empty row as there are many factors outside of your control. The general rule is the quieter the aircraft, the higher your chances are. Try using my bonus guide <How to find out if your flight is busy> to determine in advance if you flight will be busy. You can use the tools I show you to find patterns in availability – perhaps the Friday evening flight is always full, for example.

Follow the process and wait until check-in has closed before asking about empty rows. Remember that you are likely to be the only person using this strategy on the aircraft and therefore if you follow it correctly, you will be rewarded with an empty row all to yourself. Always be polite and friendly at all times and enjoy a good night’s rest, for once, in Economy.