I refused to swap my airline seat for a couple on their honeymoon… why should I ruin MY journey so they can sit together?

• A man refused to give up his pre-booked seat to allow newly weds to sit together 
• But passenger won praise online for his stance, despite trashing couple’s hopes  

It is one of the most hotly-debated topics on the internet right now – in what circumstances would you give up your seat for a fellow traveller?

Only this month a train passenger won praise for calmly challenging a young woman who refused to budge from the seat he had booked and paid for.

While an insistent mother was widely scolded for demanding another passenger give-up her reserved train seat so she could sit near her three children.

Now, in perhaps a surprise twist, an airline passenger has been applauded for taking a stand against a newlywed couple wanting to sit together on their honeymoon.

The couple were en route to their sun-kissed destination when the groom asked the man in a window seat if he would move so he and his beloved could sit together.

Voicing his frustrations on Reddit, the disgruntled passenger said: ‘They asked me if they can change seats with me to which I politely refused and gave them my reasons. One of the reasons was my size and aisle traffic.

‘I always get bumped by someone when I am on the aisle seat. One time, my elbow was badly hurt because the trolley hit me. I (have) avoided the aisle seat ever since’.

Travellers’ have applauded one man for refusing to budge out of his seat when asked by the newlyweds (stock photo)

Taking his frustrations to Reddit he said in a resurfaced post: ‘They asked me if they can change seats with me to which I politely refused and gave them my reasons. One of the reasons was my size and aisle traffic.

It was the second and longest of three flights he was taking that day so ‘wanted to sleep and relax’.

The other man sat on the aisle seat of his row also ‘tried to persuade’ him to change seats and began ‘making a scene’ when he refused acting if he was the ‘scrooge in the couple’s honeymoon’.

In his recently resurfaced post, the passenger asked the online forum: ‘I didn’t budge and all the people around me, including the crew, looked like they hate me. Am I wrong to refuse changing my seat?’

Most of those on the online forum gave a resounding no – the man was not in the wrong for refusing to move.

One said: ‘If they wanted to be seated together so badly, they should have paid extra to reserve seats together.

‘It always boggles my mind that they don’t plan through like that, and then expect others to just give up a certain seat that passenger paid for specifically.’

Another pointed out: ‘Newlywed entitlement is a thing. The proper bottom line has been stated here many times.

‘You booked and paid for that seat you should in no way feel bad or guilty for not giving it to someone else who couldn’t be bothered to plan ahead or pay extra.’

A third added: ‘Every time this story comes up the person is not the a****** for refusing to move. You booked your seat specially. Sucks to be them but not your problem.’

It remains a hotly contended debate among the frequent flyer community, with some passengers even refusing to give up seats for children (stock image of passengers on a plane)

It remains a hotly contended debate among the frequent flyer community, with some passengers even refusing to give up seats for children.

In a resurfaced Reddit post, one airline passenger who was on a transpacific flight from Japan to the US had a window seat, while the ‘toddler daughter was in the middle next’ to them. The mother was also in the middle seat but the row behind.

Explaining what had happened the Redditor said: ‘[The mother] asked me – and just me – to switch with her so she could have my window seat (next to her daughter) and I’d take her middle seat a row back.

‘Hell to the f*** no. Not my problem they didn’t book together.’

He added: ‘The audacity to ask just me and expect an inferior trade on my side.’

To make matters worse, the airline passenger said they were ‘surrounded by others’ from the mom’s tour group and she ‘could’ve asked for a three-way trade instead.’

Some showed surprise he would rather sit next to an unaccompanied toddler than move seats.

One wrote: ‘As a parent of a toddler, I’m surprised that you preferred to sit next to someone else’s unaccompanied toddler, vs just moving.

‘Sure, someone else could move, but either someone has to move, or someone has to sit next to a flying toddler.

‘I honestly don’t know which is more annoying for the other passengers.

‘It’s not always possible for families to book seats together for some reason, and go figure, sometimes they need to fly places.

‘I don’t know what the answer is here but being infuriated about a mom trying to watch their own kid is dumb.’

Another asked on the now deleted chain: ‘Why were you so eager to sit next to a stranger’s toddler daughter?’

In February New York-based Surya Garg revealed on TikTok that she was faced with a similar situation when she was asked by a mother if she would swap seats with her teenage son.

In the video she said the mother had asked her if she would give up her window seat, which she had paid extra for, so she could sit with her son who ‘had to be a minimum of 16 or 17 years old.

When she asked where the woman wanted her to move to, she was directed to a ‘middle seat like a couple of rows back.’

Then, when she asked who the woman’s son was, she was shocked to discover he was not a child but ‘like a 6ft 5in man.’

Surya said she ‘didn’t really know what to say’ to the mom at this point and ‘didn’t want to look like an ‘a** hole.’

However, she decided to decline the woman’s request and explained to her that she had paid extra for the seat.

After being told ‘no’, Surya said the mom ‘makes the nastiest face at me I’ve ever experienced’, and then went about ‘muttering profanities at me’ for ‘the entirety’ of the flight.

Baffled by the experience, Surya asked fellow TikTokers: ‘Was I in the wrong here? I need someone to tell me.’

The consensus on TikTok was that Surya was in the right. One said: ‘I’m starting to think isn’t “bad planning” I’m thinking people are counting on “the Good Samaritan” so they don’t have to pay extra for a seat.’

Another joked: ‘You’re not wrong. She just had separation anxiety from her 204-month-old son.’

A third added: ‘She could have asked whoever was sitting next to her son to switch with her. People are so entitled. You did nothing wrong.’

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