Irish rail seat reservations

R

rob30

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I have decided to do the green thing and have booked a few return trips with irish rail, from dublin to kerry at weekends. I have reserved my seats.
I am slightly nervous as the trains in my student days were a total free for all.
Does this system work or are you likely to get bolshy people who occupy your seat, and staff who couldnt care less, or has irish rail had a cultural revolution?
 
On the newer trains your name is electronicly written above your seat. On the older trains its stuck to the window with a bit of paper! Normally some train staff around so if someone is sitting in your seat they will ask them to move for you! So the trains have really sorted out the booked seating!! Take your internet print out with you so it will show your exact seat and number!
 
If they do have the seating allocation sorted it would be a real bonus. I would really switch to the train when travelling further than Dublin to Limerick.
Also, no info on website, but are there power points on the carriages?
 
It works fine if you are getting train in departing station eg Heuston.
However if you get on train a couple of stops further down the tracks, as the train fills up, no one pays any difference to the reserved notice, least of all the ticket inspectors.

A seat is a seat & they have paid their train fare too!!!
 
i think if you go 1st class on the dublin-cork trains there are power points at each 4-seater booth don't think the same applies in standard class
 

Buying a train ticket doesn't guarantee you a seat.
Staff should really make sure pre-booked seats are available from the station they're booked from, but in the real world not many people are going to give up a seat they've been sitting in for the last half hour or whatever. In Scotland I've seen that situation arise & the person with the booked seat was moved to first class. No idea if they'd do the same here.
 
Yes booked a seat to/from cork a couple of weeks ago. Had visions of the train being jammed and a 90 year old Nun sitting in my seat. As said before however, your name is on the seat & there's a guy on the carriage in Heuston checking. The thing I found most annoying was I couldn't tell from the online booking which way was facing forward. When I called up to make a change, they didn't know either.
 
well, fair dues to irish rail. The system worked well on the bank holiday rush, and it was on time!
 
Tiger, on the screen where you pick your seat, there is also a side-on image of the train so you can tell which way you will be facing
 
My sister travelled from Dundalk to Conolly return and booked her seats online; didn't make a blind bit of difference; no reservation sticker/label on seat. The passenger who was in her seat on the outward journey refused to move as there was no reseveration notice; she had to stand the whole journey. She got her seat no problem on the way back (still no label though)
 
yah, your name comes up electronically above the seat on the Dublin/Cork train. However, when I reserved one on a friday, it was reserved in the area where you are asked to give up seat is an elderly/disabled person needs it. That says it all - you reserve the seat and give it up, or you do not reserve and sit in the nearby free seat!
 
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