How to Book General Tickets Online: A Comprehensive Guide

Booking general tickets online is a convenient and efficient way to secure your event or travel tickets. Whether you're purchasing concert tickets, airline flights, or train journeys, this guide will walk you through the process step-by-step.

Step-by-Step Guide to Booking General Tickets Online

Booking a general ticket online typically involves a few straightforward steps. Here’s a general guide you can follow:

1. Choose Your Event/Travel

Identify the event or travel service for which you want to book a ticket. This could be a concert, a train journey, or a flight. Once you know what you're purchasing, proceed to the next step.

2. Visit the Official Website

Go to the official website of the event organizer, travel service, or a trusted ticketing platform such as Ticketmaster, Eventbrite, or airline websites. These platforms are reputable and ensure a secure transaction process.

3. Search for the Event/Route

Use the search function to find the specific event or travel route you're interested in. Enter the relevant details such as the date, location, and time. This helps you narrow down your options and find the perfect ticket for you.

4. Select Your Ticket Type

Once you find your event or travel option, choose the type of ticket you want—general admission, specific seat, or any other type available. Specify the quantity you need for the event or journey.

5. Add to Cart

After selecting your tickets, add them to your cart or proceed to the checkout process. This is where you can view the total cost and confirm your selections.

6. Provide Personal Information

Fill in your personal details as required, such as your name and email address. It’s important to ensure this information is correct to avoid any issues.

7. Payment Information

Enter your payment details. Most sites accept credit or debit cards, but some may offer alternative payment methods like PayPal. Ensure that the payment process is secure and verifiable.

8. Review and Confirm

Review your order summary to ensure everything is correct. Then confirm your purchase before moving forward. Confirming your order is a crucial step to secure your tickets.

9. Receive Confirmation

After making your payment, you should receive a confirmation email with your ticket details. Save this email as it may contain important information like QR codes or booking references.

10. Access Your Tickets

Depending on the service, you may receive digital tickets via email or you may need to download them from the website. Some events may also allow you to pick up physical tickets at the venue.

Specific Considerations: Indian Railways

In the Indian Railways, the general quota is available in both reserved and unreserved tickets. If you need to buy general quota reserved tickets, you can book them through the IRCTC official app or its aggregator apps or websites. In all these ticket booking platforms, the general quota is auto-selected at the initial level.

You need to follow a prescribed procedure for booking the ticket, including creating a user ID, filling in the required credentials such as boarding and alighting stations, the date of travel, class of travel, and the train to be selected. You must also choose the mode of payment and confirm your booking in the preview stage. After making the payment, your general quota gets booked in reserved tickets.

It's important to note that you can only book reserved general quota tickets up to 4 months from the date of booking. However, for unreserved tickets, you can only book them online within 20 km to 20 minutes from the alighting station.

If you need to travel unreservedly, download the Unreserved Ticket System app from the Google Play Store and create a user ID on your mobile. Log in with the same mobile when traveling, fill in the required credentials such as boarding and alighting stations, the number of people, the type of train, and the mode of payment. After making a successful payment, you will receive a confirmatory message. This message is sufficient to travel in the second-class coach, and you can show it to a ticket inspector when required.

Remember to adhere to the travel rules, such as alighting the first departing train or before 3 hours from the time of booking, and abide by the type of train you are traveling in.