I dunno. Reservation seems very unemotional and bureaucratic, very disconnected from any soft and cuddly words. Nature reserves are land that has been set aside for nature purposes, Indian reservations are land set aside for the Native Americans, and nuclear reservation are land set aside for nuclear purposes. When you phone ahead to a restaurant/hotel/car rental agency and make a reservation, a table/room/car has been set aside for you.

Do you use a different word in the UK for these situations?