Seating plans: finding the right place
A seating plan indicates how the space of an enclosure is divided: pit, stands, stands, floor, blocks and rows. Reading it carefully before booking allows you to know what you are looking at: the distance from the stage, the viewing angle, the height and the atmosphere vary enormously from one area to another. This page brings together our speaker placement benchmarks and explains how to decipher an official plan, as the exact configuration changes for each show.
What is a seating chart for?
The seating chart is a map of an enclosure. It shows the location of the scene (or terrain), the division of zones and, most often, the numbering of blocks and rows. For placement, it is the reference tool: it helps you visualize the distance and viewing angle even before you have booked. Be careful, however, that the same venue does not have a single plan: the layout is reconfigured according to the type of event (concert, show, sporting event) and according to the location of the stage.
Room plans by speaker
Our placement benchmarks for the main French speakers. Each page details the zones and how to choose your place there.
Areas found almost everywhere
- The pit (or standing floor): the area closest to the stage during a concert, generally without seats.
- The “T0” seated parterre “T1”: numbered seats installed at ground level, on a reconfigurable part of the enclosure.
- The stands and stands: high seats, distributed in blocks and rows, with a wider view.
- The 'T0' tariff categories 'T1': a commercial division (cat. 1, 2, 3, etc.) which is superimposed on the zones and above all reflects the quality of the location.
Read a seating chart in four reflexes
- 1
Spot the scene
First locate the scene or terrain: everything else can be read in relation to this point. On a concert plan, check if the stage is at the end of the room or in the center.
- 2
Identify your area
Locate the pit, the pit, the stands and the stands. Ask yourself what you prefer: proximity, overview or sitting comfort.
- 3
Follow the numbering
The blocks are often numbered, and the rows go from closest to farthest away. A low row number is only beneficial if the block is well oriented.
- 4
Check the official show plan
The final configuration (stage size, open areas, places with reduced visibility) appears on the plan published by the organizer for the date concerned.
Categories and placement: two different logics
Do not confuse the 'T0' zone 'T1' (pit, stand, grandstand) and the 'T2' tariff category 'T3'. The area physically describes where you will be sitting or standing; the category is a commercial classification which brings together locations deemed equivalent. The same category can cover several areas, and two places of the same category do not always offer exactly the same view. To choose well, cross-reference the two: start with the area that corresponds to the experience you are looking for, then look at the category that relates to it.