I'm practicing my online purchasing skills on the SNCF site. I understand about lower fares being available the earlier you search. I've seen where sometimes you can print the ticket, and other times (routes) you can pick up at station.

Now - I haven't figured out how you can specify a particular seat. I see the "options" button that opens a little window and offers you "window or aisle", but nowhere can I see how to select a seat, say #53, like you can on most airline sites. Is it not possible? Other posts discuss seating in the 'carre' around tables, or facing forward, etc. How do you actually get to choose a seat that specifically? (My objective is to try to pick seats that face forward, esp. on the Thalys trip)

Thanks for your insights...

p.s. my routes would be 1) AMS Centraal - Paris Nord (Thalys) and 2) Paris Montparnasse - St Pierre des Corps (TGV).

I just assume only the choice "window or aisle" is possible and you cannot pick a particular No.nor a table seat when you reserve online yourself. I have had so far seats such as 13,14,17,18, always by the door. I don't comlain for the Prem price of EUR25. Maybe those less desirable seats are especially taken for the Prem reservations? I wonder about other people's experience on this.

I haven't ever tried to do that as I'm not that picky, but I don't think you are going to get layouts of all train cars and be allowed to pick your exact seat. I think you are assigned one and can only pick window/aisle. I don't use the English section, but I think what you see as "options" is called "placement" on the French site. You can then only pick window or aisle (or indifferent) for certain trains. If you are allowed other choices, they will show up (such as solo seat, side by side, etc.)

If they don't show up, you can't get them, as I understand it. It may be because of the class you chose (you may have more options in first class--there were many more options listed on the test I just did for AMS-Paris Thalys in late July asking for first than second class). I don't think you ever can select exact seat number. I did not see an option as to the direction you are facing, however. I think some other guy trying this said the same thing (the one with the family) about not seeing direction choices.

That's all I can figure out.

I never found a way to ask for a specific seat, only to select train or aisle. However, if you want more of an idea of what might be available, put your first selection in your basket, then go through, and make another reservation. You'll be assigned another seat this time. From there, when you check out, you can select the one you prefer.

I was looking at the "Smilys" rate... I think it may be right to say the higher the rate category, or the larger the party being booked, that more options are presented. But at least it doesn't seem that I am missing a step or anything, so we'll take what we get.

Thank you all!

I don't think there's much else you can do on SNCF. However, have you tried the Thalys web site for that route? I was just looking at parts of it and it does show car configurations with seat numbers, seems to show a lot more detail than SNCF--although I don't know if you can book on there.

Oh, so that's "kiosk" compartment.

http://www.thalys.com/be/en/guide/di...he_trains.html

Oops, above post was meant to another thread.

Hi TN,

Unlike airplanes, where some seats are over the wing and others might not recline, all of the window seats on a train car have the same view and all of the seats are identical.

In sum, it doesn't matter.

Ira, in my usual AR manner, I'm trying to get seats that face forward as we travel. We've had rear-facing seats the last two times, and it can cause a bit of 'nausea' for the window person sometimes. I saw those seating configuration charts, and I remember our seat numbers from last time, and that the table half-way thru the car marked the point where seats faced the way I wish we'd had. So... just trying a bit of micro-managing...

I will book the best I can figure out, and maybe check at a ticket window when we arrive to see where the reservations actually are. Otherwise, we'll enjoy just being on a train between wonderful places.

Hi TN,

Aha. By carefully squinting at the diagram so kindly provided by kappa, I see that the seat direction changes in some cars.

I know... but nowhere does it let me choose Seat#53 vs #73...only 'aisle/window'.
Anyway, I could be wrong on which range of seat numbers is facing forward, so I guess I'm being too picky.

I think you have to give up on picking your exact seat. We usually do first class on longer trips including the TGV, and when booking at the SNCF office for three trips this past few weeks we were told that it was "impossible" to guarantee that we could get two of those seats with a table between them (of which there are a couple in each first class car). Even the employees can't specify (the girl said the computer will assign and that they can only check for window or aisle just like you can do on line).
Interestingly, since we couldn't book those seats and felt we would probably be two of four in a group, we might as well go second class instead of first and save a few euro. Oddly enough, when we got on the train, our two seats were an aisle and window, not next to each other, but rather diagonally opposite. Figure that one out.

Hi TN,

One of the things to keep in mind about trains is that any given car can be reversed upon being connected to the train, so that on train X, seat Y in car Z might be facing forward, but it could be facing rearward on another train.

And don't forget that depending on your route, your direction may switch. For example if you are facing forward when you arrive in Florence, you will be going backward when you leave. Many stations are "dead ended", meaning you go out backwards from the way you arrive.

What is really nice are the Spanish AVE trains where you yourself can switch the direction the seats are facing. It's really nice, it's like a lever and you can just flip them around.

actually, I'll have to take that back, it wasn't the AVE train where folks were doing that (including me once I saw it), it was a local regional express line between Seville and Cordoba. I thought that was quite nice as I'd never seen anything like that on other trains.

Yup. I concur with Patrick and I appreciate all the feedback. We'll pick our window or aisle and take what comes. Thank you all!