Avanti West Coast seat selector

[Bletchleyite]

Yep, regular Trainsplit, see the highlighted links in yellow. Picture is a screenshot of the last screen before payment on Trainsplit showing the seat selection links.

There is one case where it won't work - if you've got the last ticket(s) in a given Advance quota level or the last reservations available on the whole train - if the links aren't there that may be why.

 

[Vespa]

Booked my tickets for London in September 1st Class.

I have noticed on the Avanti West Coast website there is still no seat picker only "seating preference" which is not quite the same thing.

 

[trainophile]

Booked my tickets for London in September 1st Class.

I have noticed on the Avanti West Coast website there is still no seat picker only "seating preference" which is not quite the same thing.

Should have used Trainsplit!

 

[mmh]

Booked my tickets for London in September 1st Class.

I have noticed on the Avanti West Coast website there is still no seat picker only "seating preference" which is not quite the same thing.

Hmm. About a week ago (see previous post), after Trainsplit didn't offer me a seat selector I booked on the Avanti website, and it had a seat selector. It was an awful user experience, clunky and overly complicated to use, but it worked.

(As an aside, when I put 4 passengers in, Trainsplit automatically filled in the Railcard box with "Small Group," but didn't explain what this was and that I didn't need a Railcard I'd never heard of. The Avanti website just automatically applied a discount. Both of them have their faults clearly!

 

[trainophile]

Train split doesn't "offer a seat selector" as such, but allocates you a seat with the clickable option to go to a selection page if you wish to view it or change it. I find it really useful for Avanti, unfortunately it doesn't always work for LNER or TPE.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Train split doesn't "offer a seat selector" as such, but allocates you a seat with the clickable option to go to a selection page if you wish to view it or change it. I find it really useful for Avanti, unfortunately it doesn't always work for LNER or TPE.

That is a seat selector, what else would you call it? It's a piece of software that allows you to select a seat if you wish. A piece of software that allows you to select a seat is a seat selector.

 

[trainophile]

That is a seat selector, what else would you call it? It's a piece of software that allows you to select a seat if you wish. A piece of software that allows you to select a seat is a seat selector.

I was referring to mmh's post above:

"after Trainsplit didn't offer me a seat selector"

I wasn't sure if mmh knew what to look for.

 

[mmh]

Train split doesn't "offer a seat selector" as such, but allocates you a seat with the clickable option to go to a selection page if you wish to view it or change it. I find it really useful for Avanti, unfortunately it doesn't always work for LNER or TPE.

It didn't offer me the option to change my seats. Avanti's website works in the same way as you describe Trainsplit doing. It auto allocates seats, then you can go and change them. It was a faff and a half, but it worked. Sadly I didn't get to see how much of a faff it is on Trainsplit, as I didn't have the option.

That is a seat selector, what else would you call it? It's a piece of software that allows you to select a seat if you wish. A piece of software that allows you to select a seat is a seat selector.

Quite. I'd find a train booking website which forced you to choose a seat so annoying I would never use it. I've never seen an airline website do that, and they invented this malarkey!

 

[trainophile]

It didn't offer me the option to change my seats. Avanti's website works in the same way as you describe Trainsplit doing. It auto allocates seats, then you can go and change them. It was a faff and a half, but it worked. Sadly I didn't get to see how much of a faff it is on Trainsplit, as I didn't have the option.

That's odd. Perhaps it was having a technical problem that day.

 

[mmh]

I was referring to mmh's post above:

"after Trainsplit didn't offer me a seat selector"

I wasn't sure if mmh knew what to look for.

I did. @Bletchleyite had told me. It wasn't there.

 

[matt]

Booked my tickets for London in September 1st Class.

I have noticed on the Avanti West Coast website there is still no seat picker only "seating preference" which is not quite the same thing.

It me pick my seat when I booked the other day.

 

[Bletchleyite]

I did. @Bletchleyite had told me. It wasn't there.

Ah, I remember that case - unfortunately seat selection doesn't work on any website if there is only one ticket left in the quota level, as they all work by grabbing a new ticket in the chosen seat and putting the old one back in the quota. If done the other way round there'd be a risk that someone else would buy it in the interim and so you'd end up with no ticket. Similarly if it's a walk up ticket you have and there's only one reservable seat left on the train, but in that case there'd not be one to change to anyway!

 

[Vespa]

Should have used Trainsplit!

Certainly will next time.
I miss Virgin Rail seat selector system, it was miles better than Avanti.

 

[Paul Kelly]

unfortunately seat selection doesn't work on any website if there is only one ticket left in the quota level, as they all work by grabbing a new ticket in the chosen seat and putting the old one back in the quota

This is apparently being fixed with a new seat reservation API that retail sites are supposed to move over to by roughly the end of the year. The capability to change seats while holding onto the same ticket is already in the (new) underlying system but can't be accessed through the existing API.

 

[Bletchleyite]

This is apparently being fixed with a new seat reservation API that retail sites are supposed to move over to by roughly the end of the year. The capability to change seats while holding onto the same ticket is already in the (new) underlying system but can't be accessed through the existing API.

Good stuff.

 

[littleduckling]

I'm currently trying to book a journey and can't seem to be able to select a seat no matter what I do. i've tried both trainsplit and trainscanbecheaper, and i've tried several different outbound and return times. The option to select the seat, as shown in images in this thread, is nowhere to be seen. Does anyone know if this is still available? Thanks in advance

 

[Adam Williams]

I'm currently trying to book a journey and can't seem to be able to select a seat no matter what I do. i've tried both trainsplit and trainscanbecheaper, and i've tried several different outbound and return times. The option to select the seat, as shown in images in this thread, is nowhere to be seen. Does anyone know if this is still available? Thanks in advance

How many passengers were you looking for?

 

[littleduckling]

How many passengers were you looking for?

It was for 2 passengers. I saw someone above mentioning they were given a seat picker option on the Avanti site, so I've just tried on there, for the initial dates and times I tried, and I've indeed been given a seat picker option. A very clunky experience but it worked!

 

[Adam Williams]

It was for 2 passengers. I saw someone above mentioning they were given a seat picker option on the Avanti site, so I've just tried on there, for the initial dates and times I tried, and I've indeed been given a seat picker option. A very clunky experience but it worked!

Currently it's unavailable for multi-passenger bookings, but it's something there's a desire to re-enable in the future.
@ianbale may be able to provide more context on what led to that happening.

 

[Wolfie]

Certainly will next time.
I miss Virgin Rail seat selector system, it was miles better than Avanti.

Pretty much everything Virgin WC was better than Avanti. I have yet to see a single improvement. Let's see what the Pendolino refurb brings.....

 

[Bletchleyite]

Pretty much everything Virgin WC was better than Avanti. I have yet to see a single improvement. Let's see what the Pendolino refurb brings.....

They got rid of the silly talking bogs, to be fair, but that aside it really is a dross, minimum effort type of operation. A bit like an Arriva operated local bus service.

It is better than XC, but that is like saying staying in Slough Travelodge (not an experience to repeat) is better than a night in prison.

 

[Wolfie]

They got rid of the silly talking bogs, to be fair, but that aside it really is a dross, minimum effort type of operation. A bit like an Arriva operated local bus service.

It is better than XC, but that is like saying staying in Slough Travelodge (not an experience to repeat) is better than a night in prison.

Love that analogy!

I have to say that Arriva in Telford, where l have most experience, offer a pretty decent local bus service. Just had an influx of newer buses. I am assuming from Cannock, which l understand was loaded with old heaps before its sale.

 

[mmh]

They got rid of the silly talking bogs, to be fair, but that aside it really is a dross, minimum effort type of operation. A bit like an Arriva operated local bus service.

It is better than XC, but that is like saying staying in Slough Travelodge (not an experience to repeat) is better than a night in prison.

What is actually different from when it was Virgin? The trains are the same. The routes are the same. The staff are the same, one of which spent half an hour helping me on Monday which meant she worked past her end of shift, rather than passing me on to another colleague. (I will be writing with praise for her)

It's now run by a different consortium. Other than that I see no difference whatsoever.

 

[Bletchleyite]

It's now run by a different consortium. Other than that I see no difference whatsoever.

Drab livery, broken website, just a general feeling of "meh".

 

[Vespa]

Drab livery, broken website, just a general feeling of "meh".

Fish rots from the head downward as they say.

Ex Virgin staff may be great, the new intake less so, there's a sense of doing the minimum for the most money they can get away with.

It all starts from the website which is the customer first contact, not impressed.

I got a minimum wage attitude in Euston lounge and the Avanti adding onerous conditions to using first class lounges.

 

[Blinkbonny]

Coventry to Birmingham used to be £1 something cheaper on a Virgin only ticket. (Perverse really as their's was by far the best service.)

Avanti still wanted to be the cheapest, so they pitched it to be 10 pence cheaper instead. Pure manipulative money grabbing. Who in their right mind would give up the flexibility of three possible services in order to save 10p?

Yet no doubt many that know no better fall for it.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Coventry to Birmingham used to be £1 something cheaper on a Virgin only ticket. (Perverse really as their's was by far the best service.)

It was to fill seats that would otherwise be empty because of people travelling Euston-Cov. They did similar for Stockport-Manchester.

Avanti still wanted to be the cheapest, so they pitched it to be 10 pence cheaper instead. Pure manipulative money grabbing. Who in their right mind would give up the flexibility of three possible services in order to save 10p?

Yet no doubt many that know no better fall for it.

10p cheaper is the same silly game Northern plays, and it's just so it comes up cheaper on a journey planner. It makes business sense, but it really is very silly and just adds to the confusion with no real saving.

 

[mmh]

Drab livery, broken website, just a general feeling of "meh".

As I suspected, no change. However I have experienced positive change. Smarter new seat coverings, a general cleaner feel to the trains, and bilingual recorded announcements (which I'm sure the forum wisdom claimed were impossible last year)

 

[Goldfish62]

Drab livery, broken website, just a general feeling of "meh".

Yet still manages to be better than GWR.

 

[mmh]

There is currently another reason to use the Avanti website for booking, other than a seat selector which copes with bookings of more than one passenger.

Until the end of the year, they will refund any advance tickets until 6pm the day before travel, with no fee. I took advantage of that this week, after accidentally booking 4 tickets in the wrong direction. I filled in the comment form one day, and the next day had confirmation that my fare was being refunded to my card - not in "e" credit or vouchers as the website suggested would happen.

That's superb service in my opinion