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Seats and waiting clients

This page is for group bookings and classes where a single appointment has limited capacity. Use it when you need to configure seat limits, allow one client to reserve more than one seat, or work with waiting clients.

Where the main rules are configured​

The main settings are in the group appointment itself:

  • "Max. number of seats" defines the total group capacity;
  • "Max. seats per client" defines how many seats one client can reserve through online booking;
  • "Accept online bookings" enables online booking for that group;
  • "Accepts waiting clients" allows the client to stay in waiting status instead of being rejected immediately.

If you also want clients to see how many places are left, that is configured separately in Public profile and visibility.

How seats work​

In a group appointment, the system tracks total capacity, not only the number of joined clients. One client can take more than one seat, but only if:

  • the group has enough free seats;
  • the value in "Max. seats per client" allows it;
  • there is no rule in the flow that limits the request to one seat only.

This matters because availability in group activities is calculated by seats, not only by number of participants.

When a client becomes waiting​

A client can enter "Waiting" status during online booking when:

  • the group no longer has free seats;
  • "Accepts waiting clients" is enabled for the appointment.

If the group is full and this setting is off, the online request is rejected instead of entering waiting status.

In practice:

  • this is most commonly used for a single place in a full class;
  • "Waiting" is better than a manual note because it stays visible in the booking flow and can be processed automatically.

What happens when a seat becomes free​

If the group has waiting clients and a seat becomes available before the group starts:

  • the system checks waiting clients in the order they joined;
  • it moves them out of waiting into the normal online status;
  • it notifies employees that a client has joined from the waiting list.

This means that when "Accepts waiting clients" is enabled, the operator does not need to move each client manually every time someone cancels in time.

Limits when reserving more than one seat​

When a client tries to reserve more than one seat online, the system applies extra checks:

  • the requested count cannot be higher than "Max. seats per client";
  • there must be enough free seats for the whole requested count;
  • if there are not enough free seats, the request is rejected instead of splitting seats between confirmed and waiting;
  • when a group option uses benefit cards, more than one seat cannot be reserved in a single request;
  • when payment uses a membership, more than one seat cannot be reserved in a single request.

This matters for operators too: if a client wants several seats, the system does not automatically split the request into confirmed and waiting seats.

Group options, benefit cards, and memberships​

If the group service has separate pricing options:

  • the client must choose a valid participation option;
  • if the selected option accepts benefit cards, a valid provider must be selected for that exact option;
  • if the selected option has no available seats, booking for it cannot continue.

With benefit cards and memberships, the online flow is optimized for one seat per request. This reduces errors when covering a visit and validating the exact group option.

What the operator sees​

From the group appointment screen, the operator can see:

  • the total group capacity;
  • the maximum seats per client;
  • whether the group accepts online bookings;
  • whether it accepts waiting clients.

In client lists and in the appointment itself, seat count can also be shown per client. This helps distinguish one client reserving multiple seats from several separate participants.