Sophie Foster, Deputy Travel Editor for Mailonline
14:19 30 June 2024, updated 16:33 30 June 2024
The travel influencer has ranked some of the biggest airlines operating in the UK from best to worst for plus-sized passengers.
Becky Price posts airline reviews on her TikTok channel under the username @xBeckyPricex and spoke to MailOnline about her experiences with Ryanair, EasyJet, British Airways and Tui.
UK travelers aged 20 to 22 rated each of the four airlines on comfort, seat size, accessibility (such as the availability of seat belt extenders), toilet size, aisle width, amount of legroom and service and friendliness. crew.
She explained: “I’m a plus-size girl and I make no secret of it. A lot of plus size people are afraid of flying because of the space available and whether they would fit.
“They can fly and they will also have wonderful memories abroad, but I would like the airlines to improve the space that is available. It affects everyone, whether you’re tall or wide.” Read on to discover Becky’s favorite airline for larger travelers—and the one she had a “terrible” experience with.
British Airways
Becky took an international flight from the UK to Cancun, Mexico with BA.
She said: “It was a big long-haul plane but the seats were small – I sat in an economy seat.”
Because of this, the TikToker gave British Airways a score of three out of five for seat size – the lowest score of any category.
Becky noted that “the space available for the seat is the biggest challenge, whether it’s width or depth, as well as whether the seat belt will fit or [if] tray table [will] be usable.”
In addition to seat size, the vlogger gave British Airways a glowing 4.5 for overall comfort, toilet size and aisle size.
Even though the seats were small, the seat belt fit — “the seat belt just guided me, it had a little bit of room,” she said — and she didn’t need to get a belt extender. These are available on all flights for larger passengers and add centimeter seat belts to ensure larger passengers are securely fastened.
One of the TikTok star’s main checks when leaving the plane is to pull up and stay flat — to help with food and drink.
Commenting on BA’s tray, explaining that she carries most of her weight around her mid-stomach, Becky revealed that she “could open it with just a bit of her belly on top”.
Becky gave the BA a four for legroom, a 3.5 for service and crew friendliness, and a five for accessibility.
“You get little extras like a TV and a blanket, so I enjoyed flying with them,” she noted, giving them the highest overall score of any airline tested.
Overall verdict: 4.5/5
Tui
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Becky flew Tui to Ibiza and commented: ‘I enjoy flying Tui, I’ve never had a problem with them.’
The mum, who usually flies as a family, said: “We were allocated row 23, we’re a family and I got an aisle seat.”
However, Becky remembered that the tray table was a bit of a problem if the front passenger decided to lean over. The TikToker said: “My first test is always the tray table – does the tray table open and extend all the way?
“I’m a UK size 20 to 22 and it opened all the way but there was no room to move and it was even worse when the front passenger put the seat back. It drives me crazy, how selfish, it’s only a two hour flight. But I could use a tray table.’
It awarded the holiday company a four for comfort, seat size, toilet size, aisle size, legroom and service, including crew friendliness.
Her seat belt test came out gold, with the traveler adding: “Seat belt passed and there was room left.” Tui only received a five out of five rating for accessibility.
Overall verdict: 4/5
Ryanair
Budget airline Ryanair didn’t go down well with Becky, who said her flight was “awful” – it was the worst rated of the four airlines she tried.
The airline received a two for comfort — partly because it said the flight was “unbearably hot” and partly because of the seat belt.
And while flying with Ryanair, Becky noticed some discrepancies with the size of the seat belts. Having previously flown from the UK to Hungary, she was able to fasten her seat belt without an extender.
But that was not the case on the flight to Tenerife, Spain. She said: “I recently flew Ryanair to Budapest and had no problems – but this time I needed a seatbelt extender for the first time in my life.”
Plus-sized passengers wish there was an easier and more discreet way to get extenders on all flights.
MailOnline said: “It would be great if there was an option when booking to automatically order an extension belt – some passengers are embarrassed by this.
“But girls, please don’t be shy and don’t be shy to ask for a seat belt extender, it’s no shame at all.
Ryanair scored two out of five for seat size and aisle size, 2.5 for legroom, three out of five for toilet size and four for accessibility and service.
Overall verdict: 2.5/5
EasyJet
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Budget carrier easyJet performed well. Becky noted that she has “comfortable planes” and “never needed a seatbelt extension” on one of her flights.
The vlogger flew easyJet to the Greek island of Rhodes and commented: “We were allocated row 31 which was at the back of the plane. The tray table would extend all the way, but the seat belt was shorter than [some] other airlines I have used and I used the full length of the seat belt.’
However, Becky said “the flight was lovely” as “the staff are always happy and helpful” and “the seat is comfortable”.
In her rankings, Becky awarded easyJet three out of five for aisle size, 3.5 for comfort, four for seat size, toilet size, legroom and service. Easyjet also received a five for accessibility.
Overall verdict: 4/5
Becky travels as much as possible and has visited Budapest and Tenerife this year – she has flights booked to Dublin, Ibiza and New York in the coming months. Becky always flies economy, whether with a low-cost carrier or a scheduled airline.
To see more of Becky, visit her TikTok account – @xbeckypricex – a Instagram the profile it has has over 18,000 followers. She writes about her “relative” life, fashion, travel and vlogging.