gkrnjlr

My sister and I are leaning towards taking the train from EDI to LON with hopes that it'll be a scenic route....? I noticed that some cars on the train have a table and only two seats. As much as we do enjoy meeting others we would like to have a table for just the two of us. How do we reserve those seats? The dates we are going to be traveling are not available yet, but when I start a trial reservation those tables for two are not available even on the furthest day out.

Can you tell me how to get a table for 2?

Thank you!

stut

Easy - these are first class seats. Book through VTEC's own website, and as part of the process, you'll be given the chance to change seats, and a seatmap will pop up.

Best side is the right hand side. Note that the really scenic bit is north of Newcastle (although there are certainly points of interest further south).

alanR

OP is heading south, so they need to be on the left hand side

Swanhunter

When booking the seat selection function is a bit clunky. The basic steps

* After you have selected the train and ticket type you go to the first confirmation page which summarises the trip.
* On the right there is a Order Summary box with a red button labelled View Your Seat.
* Click this and a window opens with the seat plan.
* Click Change Seat and the map will open allowing you to sit where you want.
* Do not forget to hit Confirm when you are done.

Very occasionally trains end up in reverse formation so your carefully selected left hand seats end up on the right. In which case just look for 2 unreserved seats and move - this is allowed.

Also worth travelling on a weekday as the free catering offer is pretty decent. VTEC First beats flying hands down.

stut

Oops, yes, my skim reading fail, there...

gkrnjlr

Thank you for all your help! Some of schedules say "Overtaken" what exactly does that mean?

UKtravelbear

It means a train that departs later than yours actually arrives at the destination before yours because it skips some stops.

big_mac

They are probably the Virgin West coast services via Carlisle and Birmingham to London Euston - which is quite different to the East Coast route (and quite a lot longer).
If you want to select your seat, I think you will have to use the correct website for the route - either Virgin Trains or Virgin Trains East Coast.