Gran Class Experience on the Hayabusa (Tokyo-Omiya)

[Nozomi4ever]

Hi guys ,

I just found this great video on Youtube showing it 's Gran Class service onboard by a passenger who took this train on the Tokyo-Omiya (Just one stop). Even though it 's pricey , the service onboard looks like worth it at all costs. :)

 

[Martijn Meerts]

Okay, I'm going to get me a gran class ticket whenever I get to Japan :)

[The_Ghan]

I love the LED around the inside of the windows.  Also, did you see how stable that glass of wine was?  The guy's got no taste though ... she should have been drinking shiraz!

 

Cheers

 

The_Ghan

[bikkuri bahn]

Also, did you see how stable that glass of wine was?  The guy's got no taste though ... she should have been drinking shiraz!

 

You can thank full active suspension for that- something that KHI (thankfully) didn't sell along with the plans to the E2.  The passenger is drinking apple cider, the service emphasizes food and drink using local area products (Aomori is famous for its apple orchards- in fact the best tasting apple juice I have ever had was in Aomori).

[spacecadet]

I would totally ride that class if I was riding that train.

 

A lot of people think first class (whether it's called "green" or something else) is not worth it on Japanese trains, but I think it totally is.  It's usually not even that much more money and you always get a lot more legroom with more comfortable seats, you get first choice from the food carts, more service run-throughs, and usually a much less crowded car.  And this GranClass is definitely a step up from a regular Green Car and the fares still don't seem that expensive to me.

[The_Ghan]

Whenever Mrs Ghan and I travel by train we try to go 1st Class.  It makes the journey that much more enjoyable.  Last year I dragged her through Europe by train (should have bought her a ticket - boom-boom!) and I know she would not have enjoyed riding cattle-class all the way.

 

Cheers

 

The_Ghan

[Martijn Meerts]

I buy first class depending on which train and which time of day it is. Going to and from work for example I pretty much never get first class, since I travel outside of rush hour traffic. If I decided to take half a day off though, I usually grab a first class ticket because it tends to get really crowded, especially on fridays when all the students go home for the weekend.

 

In foreign countries it depends a bit on the price and comfort of regular class. For example, the Acela regular class was more than comfortable enough, and first class would cost quite a bit extra for only a little extra service. The ICE in Germany however was well worth the first class ticket.

[spacecadet]

In foreign countries it depends a bit on the price and comfort of regular class. For example, the Acela regular class was more than comfortable enough, and first class would cost quite a bit extra for only a little extra service. The ICE in Germany however was well worth the first class ticket.

 

Yeah, first class on Acela is nothing special and can actually be problematic because of the facing seating arrangements and the lack of actual seat reservations (they tried seat reservations originally, and apparently the barbarians that ride that train refused to honor the seating assignments).  I rode it once and it's not really any more comfortable.  You do get seatside meal service (and the meal is included in your ticket price) but I don't think that makes it worth it.

 

The thing about Acela, though, is that it's an all business and first class train.  On the shinkansen, that would be equivalent to a train that's all Green cars and Gran Class.  I don't think Green class really rises to the level of "first class", people just call it that because until now there was nothing higher.  But it's really more like a mid-level class.  The regular business class on Acela is a lot like Green class on a shinkansen, except they don't come through with a snack cart.  (I think you do get a free drink in the cafe car, though.)