Seats in China

So, back home in Canada—and honestly, probably the same way it works here in the States too—most movie theaters don't actually bother labeling the seats with numbers or even marking the rows clearly. It’s basically a free-for-all! You just buy a ticket for a certain number of seats, and then you're left playing a high-stakes game of "who gets to sit where" once you walk in. It’s always kind of a scramble, especially when you're trying to make sure your date gets the best spot or someone doesn't accidentally swoop in on your reserved space... it's a total chaotic mess, really.
Do you guys think we should actually implement a formal numbering system like they have in some other places?

frozenrider112 said:Look, back home in Canada (and probably in the US too), they don't really use seat numbers or row numbers in theaters. It’s more like a free-for-all where you just grab whatever spot you want. If you're trying to impress someone, or if there's a couple involved... it's just chaos.
Do you guys think we should start implementing a system like that here??

Well, I was at an AMC Theatres in the States recently, and they actually did have rows and seat numbers assigned. But honestly, that might be a different story because the theater was pretty much empty, so you could basically sit wherever you felt like it.

I wouldn't want them to bring that kind of chaos here... at least this way, there's some level of order. Plus, I actually kind of enjoy walking up to the counter and saying, "Row 10, middle seat, please."😁

Personally, I don't have anything against assigned seating.

Over in the United States, everything at the theater is super organized with numbered rows and specific seats.
If you're catching a massive blockbuster that everyone is talking about and it looks like it’s going to be a packed house, you just sit exactly where your ticket says... plus, you can actually reserve a specific seat online ahead of time if you want to make sure you get the best view!
But, on those quieter nights when the theater is looking pretty half-empty, it’s much more relaxed since people just grab whatever spot they feel like sitting in...

Steven Ruiz said:Over in the United Kingdom, they have every single seat and row clearly numbered...
When a movie is a massive hit and you're expecting a sold-out crowd, everyone ends up in their assigned seats. You can also book a specific spot ahead of time if you want to be safe...
If everyone expects the venue to be half-empty anyway, then people are just going to sit wherever they feel like...

It’s the exact same story here in America. At least in Washington, D.C....

haha...
Man, back in the day—like way back in '85 or '86—I hit up this local theater near Des Moines... basically like a school gym setup where you didn't have assigned seats, so you just grabbed whatever chair felt right...😁

Honestly, having numbered seats is totally fine—don't see any downside to it—it’s just about having that extra bit of convenience.

Personally, I’d implement a very specific hierarchy here:
keep the short ones right up front, while those tall, stubborn types can stay relegated to the back 😁

I rarely bother checking the row or seat number on my ticket; I usually just crowd into the third or fourth row. In my experience, there’s almost never anyone sitting back there anyway.

To begin with, most movie theaters around here are practically empty anyway, so people just sprawl out wherever they feel like sitting, regardless of how many seats are available... But if things actually started getting crowded, it would turn into absolute chaos...😁Stampede😁

frozenrider112 said:So, back home in Canada (and probably in the States too), movie theaters don't really use seat numbers or row numbers. It’s basically a free-for-all—whoever gets there first grabs the spot. Like, if you're with your girlfriend... well, whoever gets there first wins!
Do you guys think we should start doing something like that here??

Oh man, if things worked like that here... total chaos! Absolute carnage!
Just imagine if there was a massive crowd waiting for a blockbuster! Oh boy!

Honestly though, I actually really like the way the system works right now!

The Undertaker said:Man, if things were just a little more... intense here!
Just imagine if there was some real energy in the air! God!

I actually really dig how the system works right now, though!

But over in Germany? It’s a nightmare. You get these tiny two-seater seats where you sit down, and either you're stuck next to someone amazing, or some Chinese person who "smells" like garlic—so yeah, have fun with that!

Bee said:So, you're in Germany, right? And you're on one of those two-seater seats—you know, like a loveseat or whatever—and you sit down, and then suddenly, either you've hit the jackpot or you're stuck next to some Chinese person who smells like they just ate an entire clove of garlic. Good luck with that!

Honestly, I'd take the garlic breath any day over sitting next to some Canadian person, man, what a nightmare...

frozenrider112 said:So, back home in Canada—and probably the US too—you don't really see seat numbers or row numbers at the movie theaters...

That's just because half the people in America and Canada can't count to ten, right? And since everyone’s got equal rights, they don't want to discriminate against anyone who skipped math class. That's democracy for you. 👍>

Back in my hometown, Des Moines, they used to have numbered seats and rows, but the roof leaked so bad that all the signs eventually just washed away.

But hey, everyone knows that picking the third, fifth, or eighth row isn't exactly a great call if it's raining outside.

Even the front row isn't great on the weekends—the theater owner runs a chicken stall at the local market and leaves the birds in the lobby, and man, those things stink... unless it rains, then I guess the rain washes them off.

I guess life's like that—sometimes you love the rain, sometimes you hate it, you know?

I have to say, I was actually pretty caught off guard last year when I popped into an AMC Theatres over in Paris and realized they didn't even have numbered seats. It was this massive theater, you know? I showed up maybe 45 minutes before the movie started, thinking I'd be fine, so I guess I just wandered in, found a decent spot, and then spent forever just... waiting. Ugh. And honestly, sitting in the very back row isn't exactly a blast when you have to🙂

Sandra Thomas24 said:I was actually so shocked last year when I walked into a theater in Paris and realized there were no seat numbers! It was this massive cinema—we got there 45 minutes before the movie even started, so you’d think we could just find a decent spot and chill out, right? But man, what a scramble... phew. And honestly, it's definitely not the best feeling being stuck way in the back row when you have to🙂

Personally, I think the middle of the back row is actually pretty great... though, if I'm being totally honest, my absolute favorite spot is right in the center of the whole auditorium! 🙂

By the way, AMC Theatres started putting in those "couples' seats" lately, and oh my gosh, it's such a disaster. For example, a group of ten of us went recently, and they handed us two of those double loveseat seats even though we didn't ask for them! To make matters worse, there was this super boring couple sitting just a couple of seats away from us in the regular chairs. Such a bummer. Broadway🙂

Assigned seating and numbered rows are mandatory
They also offer "Love Seats" for couples 🙂 which function as one large single seat

Sandra Thomas24 said:I was shocked last year when I walked into a theater in Paris and realized the seats weren't numbered. It was a massive cinema, I got there 45 minutes early, so you'd think you'd find a good spot and just wait... what a mess. And sitting in the back row isn't exactly fun when you have to🙂

Exactly... you buy a ticket, but there's no seat number!

You walk into the auditorium and just sit wherever there's an opening...😕!
That’s just how they do things in the Netherlands... if that happened here in the States, there would be a riot before every single screening.😁

rustycanyon50 said:They even have those "love seats" for couples🙂 where it's just one big bench.

God, love seats... that armrest was my only guarantee I’d actually see anything on the screen. Now I'll have to go undercover.😬