Identifying reserved seats on British trains

Identifying reserved seats on British trains - Free stock photo of adult, airplane, architecture

Is there a clear way to tell on British trains (generally) which seats/tables are reserved seats? In Germany we definitely made some mistakes accidentally taking seats that were eventually reserved, in part because they weren't clearly indicated in some cases (and some because we didn't know what to look for).

In this question I'm referring to National Rail trains, not London Underground or similar which would not have reservations (I assume). Medium to longer distance trains, such as London-Manchester or London-Sussex.



Best Answer

Train seats have a slot on top of them. In this slot a paper card is placed on which is printed between which two stations the seat has been reserved. After some googling I found this image. In that image you can see those cards.

Train image with reserved seating cards

This makes obvious that the seat is reserved at some point of the journey. To find out if it is reserved on the part that you care about, you can start reading the card. Sometimes it takes a while to find one that is not reserved for the duration of your journey. I've also seen it happen that the someone accidentally pushes such a card, causing it to fall on the floor. The system is certainly not fool-proof, but in general works rather well. Advantage over the German system is that those cards are very hard to miss.

On some trains (put rather few in my experience) the system with a little electronic screen above the seats is used. I believe this is also used in Germany, so in that case you have a good idea what to look for, but it is much easier to miss than the paper cards.

When you board the train at its departure station it can happen that the personnel still needs to put the cards in place. Don't be surprised, just read what it says and eventually move to another seat if that happens.

When you occupy a seat reserved by someone else, the same thing as in Germany usually happens: the person claims his seat in a friendly way, you apologize and move to another seat.




Pictures about "Identifying reserved seats on British trains"

Identifying reserved seats on British trains - Brown and Black Wooden Chairs Inside Room
Identifying reserved seats on British trains - Women Training for Synchronize Swimming
Identifying reserved seats on British trains - White Train Bench and Door



How do you know a seat is reserved on a train?

How do I find my seat?
  • Look for the coach letter on the outside of the train. This will save you from having to walk the length of the train when on board.
  • Look for your seat number. Seats numbering starts from one end of the coach and finishes at the other.


  • How do I know if my ice seat is reserved?

    If you do have a reservation, the seats will be marked by a small electronic displays somewhere above each pair of seats.

    How are seats numbered on a train?

    A seat numbering plan shows how to seats are laid out. Seat & berth numbers are often not consecutive, for example 21 & 25 are an upper & lower bed in the same 2-bed sleeper.

    What is a reserved seat ticket?

    Venues usually have "reserved seating or allocated seating." This means you are given a row and a seat number and therefore know before the event where you will be seated.



    5 Tips for Using Trains in England! 🚂




    Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

    Images: MART PRODUCTION, Pixabay, cottonbro, Pixabay