This chapter starts with companions who are ready to book. It focuses on whether every ticket is actually obtained and a carer can sit near the person needing them; account checks and assistance have separate chapters.
What to have ready
Plan the travelling party
List each person's name, actual document and practical requirements before searching: who supervises a child, who cannot board independently and who needs an allocated seat. A note saying only that the family is going to Guangzhou is too vague for booking. If members buy through separate accounts, appoint someone to reconcile confirmations while each holder controls their own account and payment. Mark an unissued passenger as unresolved, and treat children using their own records and the appropriate ticket category. Decide in advance whether everyone must use the same train, whether separate carriages are acceptable and whether a sold-out option means changing the whole party or only part. This preparation prevents discovering during a countdown that a child and carer are being booked on different services.
Understand preference versus allocation
12306's selection instructions describe the diagram as a choice of relative seat relationships; when availability cannot meet the request, the system can allocate seats instead. Selecting a diagram therefore does not guarantee that row. Use only the functions offered for the current booking rather than expecting every train type, class or waitlist to present the same selection screen. Read the issued carriage, seat and class, then assess whether the arrangement supports your companions. A requested window or adjacent position and an allocated seat are different things. Avoid purchasing unsuitable positions on the assumption that strangers will exchange seats. Railway operational changes can also produce updated allocations in the trip information, so inspect the confirmed details again before departure.
Manage separate orders and partial submissions
Separate orders need their own completed payment and issuance even if date and train match. One successful order does not reserve the rest of the group. If using automatic submission, read whether the selected setting permits submission for only part of the party when seats are insufficient; do not unknowingly accept an omitted passenger when everyone must travel together. Maintain a private reconciliation list of issued travellers, order holders and original payment tools, and inspect each ticket when changes are needed. If one member receives a different train, assess supervision requirements and available alternatives before using the official change process, rather than borrowing a ticket on the platform. An existing waitlist may still be active, so reconcile unresolved requests after securing a replacement.
Worked example: keep the carer and child on one train
A parent, two children and a grandfather plan a domestic railway journey. The organiser records which adult supervises each child and whether the grandfather can use stairs or accept a distant seat. The first option has scattered allocations, so they inspect actual carriage and seat numbers instead of treating the selection diagram as confirmation. If those allocations cannot support supervision, they search for another service acceptable to the party. Where relatives make separate purchases, the organiser reconciles every issued ticket afterwards. At the meeting point, each traveller knows their carriage and the parent brings the children's own booked documents. Any station or train assistance for the grandfather is requested through the separate assistance process; adjacent seats alone do not book that service.
A family plan is confirmed only when every ticket is issued and the allocations support supervision.
Official information and enquiries
These are the reference and service entry points for this guide. Check current fees, eligibility, and schedules with the authority. The preparation date is not each source's official update date.