Reserving seats on trains?

[princess allie]

Can anyone tell me if you get seats together if you book your train journeys in advance? Or how to do it please.

We only ever get the train very occasionally and only locally. DH normally drives us everywhere. However, we live in South Devon and the journey home from London airports is always a real trial. Last summer, we booked the coach, but we hated it. We couldn't sit together and my DS was crying as he was just so tired and wanted to be near one of us.

For this summer I have booked a hotel with parking (refundable), we were thinking of getting a day room to get some sleep before the journey home, but are also thinking of getting the train. But we obviously want to sit together. Can anyone tell me if you book the tickets in advance are you seated together? Or is there an option to pay to sit together? Complete train novice here so any help will be appreciated.

[Guest]

We go down to Manchester airport from Edinburgh and always book 12 weeks out..you get to choose your seats when you buy your tickets.

[Oliver123]

You don’t have to pay to book seats. With advanced tickets booking seats is mandatory and you’ll have to do it. The system will nearly always give you two seats next to each other. Most train operators you can actually select a specific seat which I quiet like! Hope that answers the question

[macadoo]

It depends what train it is. With virgin we get to book seats (then sometimes have to throw someone out the seat) but London midland trains we can’t book specific seats and have to sit anywhere.

[hideinpockets]

If you are in Devon I imagine you will be on Great Western. You can’t pick your seats but I would say nearly always you will be sitting together if you book far enough in advance!

[daftmum]

Whenever I have travelled to London from Plymouth we have been allocated seats together. You can also choose from a few options, from memory I think you can choose which way you face, a table seat, and quiet carriage.

[princess allie]

Thanks everyone

[jas72]

Only thing is you can't choose who you sit next to

We did a trip to Belfast from Dublin and had to move because we literally couldn't talk to each other thanks to the 15 who got on with us were sat round about us and shouted the whole time with drink as well at 11am

We ended up sitting in the bar carriage with the permission of the guard who agreed he wouldn't like to be sat next to them either