Gordon Ramsay explains why he makes his children fly economy while he’s in first class
Topics: Gordon Ramsay, Celebrity, Parenting
Gerrard Kaonga
Featured Image Credit: Song Haiyuan/MB Media/Getty Images
Topics: Gordon Ramsay, Celebrity, Parenting
Gordon Ramsay once revealed his reasoning for making his children fly economy whenever they travel.
Having a celebrity parent probably comes with some perks, like travelling more than most and having access to a lot of money. So you would be forgiven, as a child, for thinking that meant you got to enjoy all the things your parents did.
But world-renowned chef Gordon Ramsay made it clear he isn’t a fan of this idea.
The 58-year-old celebrity chef has six children with his wife, Tana Ramsay, whom he married in 1996. Their eldest child is 26-year-old Megan, who is followed by her twin siblings, Holly and Jack, both 25.
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His daughter, Tilly, arrived in 2001, and in 2019, the couple welcomed a son, Oscar, before having another son, Jesse James, in 2023.
Because of Ramsay's work in the US on shows like Hell's Kitchen, MasterChef, and Kitchen Nightmares, the family often divide their time between the UK and Los Angeles.
In a 2021 interview with The Sun, the dad-of-six said that when the family are travelling, his children fly the 'cattle' class, while he and Tana sit in first class.
He continued: “When it comes to holidays, I told them, ‘Don't you dare waste that f****** money flying first class from here to New York.
“We all f****** take off together, we all land together. Think what else [you can] do with money.
"When they ask if they can pop up to us for some nice food, we say ‘No you f***ing can’t’, so now they take their own picnics on board, and they’re absolutely fine in economy.
“I mean, what 14-year-old needs to sit in a reclining chair?”
Ramsay also revealed that the reason why he and Tana have this rule is to keep their children 'grounded', as he added: “It’s so important to [my wife] Tana and I that they stay seriously grounded and motivated.”
It's a rule Ramsay has seemingly maintained for a while; he'd previously told The Telegraph in 2017 that he didn't let his children sit in first class because they 'haven't worked anywhere near hard enough to afford it' and 'they do not need the space'.
After his comments caused a stir, the TV star defended his decision, telling The Mirror: "I do not want them sat there with a 10-course f***ing menu with champagne.
"I am not embarrassed. It is my wife [Tana] and I’s choice to discipline them and to keep them real."
However, the Hotel Hell star isn't the only celeb parent with this rule.
Singer Robbie Williams and his wife Ayda Field, with whom he has four children, have also previously spoken about enforcing this rule for the same reason.
Speaking to the Sunday Times in 2013, Ayda said: “My kids fly economy whenever we fly. I turn left, and they turn right. That’s terrible. I mean, people will think I’m such a d***.
“There’s no interest in raising brats. My kids will know [economy] is where they will sit in a plane until they can pay to put themselves in a different part of the plane.”