GNER trains first class

Conanius · 4 Dec 2006 at 00:49

Mad old tory said:
I@m gonna take issue with Conanius here and say if it's not much more, first class is def worth it on FGW. Mainly due to the extra room and free coffee. I tend to book in advance and get firstminutefares which are about the same as getting a single with my YP railcard. Really is a no-brainer and similarly with the £10 weekend supp that most companies do. Wouldn't pay double the fare for it though.

I've been doing London Paddington - > Cheltenham Spa for the last 3 months, and done standard every time, never needing to spend the extra 10 quid first costs (if you book fast enough in advance) I feel ive got more than enough comfort back in cattle class ....

Last time I went first class I genuinely didnt feel it was worth the effort of the extra 10 quid.

But then again, im more concerned about the time the train takes, not the comfort whilst im sat in it.

Luke · 4 Dec 2006 at 07:57

I travel from Doncaster to Kings Cross every day on GNER. I couldn't raise the extra £4k the First class season ticket would have cost me!
I've got 4 free upgrades to use as part of the season ticket holders package, but in all honesty, I've not had the cause to use them.
Standard class on these trains is more than adequate. There are power sockets at all seats, at 6'1" I find the legroom ample and travelling peak times I always get a seat and tend not to be exposed to the scumbags I hated sharing a carriage with on suburban rail services into London.
My only criticism is that although I get a wifi connection in standard, I have to buy time on it, and it is very expensive:
30 minutes - £2.95
60 minutes (1 hour) - £4.95
120 minutes (2 hours) - £7.95
unlimited 24 hours access - £9.95

Although in isolation those prices aren't too bad, cosider that I'd want them every day, then it becomes prohibitively expensive.

[TW]Fox · 4 Dec 2006 at 08:14

Conanius said:
I've been doing London Paddington - > Cheltenham Spa for the last 3 months, and done standard every time

So how would you know what the quality of First is like? It's excellent on FGW, large comfortable seating, nice tables, good decor and plenty more space due to the 2+1 table configurations. And no screaming kids.

Samtheman1k · 4 Dec 2006 at 08:15

vonhelmet said:
What? That makes no sense.

I would gladly pay extra for a seating area without screaming babies.

nin9abadga · 4 Dec 2006 at 09:16

it's worth asking for an upgrade on the train, sometimes they'll let you in for a few extra quid, i've done it a few times on midland mainline from london to nottingham, paid £6 on the train to upgrade. it wasn't a commuter run ofc but it could be worth remembering!

nin9a

Admiral Huddy · 4 Dec 2006 at 09:22

I'd love dine first first class from London to Edinburgh first class on the flying scotsman. I saw it as kings Cross the other week and it looked superb. Pure class!

[DOD]Asprilla · 4 Dec 2006 at 09:23

vonhelmet said:
What? That makes no sense.

Makes perfect sense.

Having the choice of someone teking up the rest of the table around me with screaming kids and babies or sitting in a nice, quiet civilised area is a bit of a no brainer.

How is my attitude crummy? I'm not harming anyone. I'm not telling anyone that they annoy me and storming off. I'm jsut sitting in a quieter part of the train and paying for the privilage.

I think you have issues.

Luke · 4 Dec 2006 at 09:27

Admiral Huddy said:
I'd love dine first first class from London to Edinburgh first class on the flying scotsman. I saw it as kings Cross the other week and it looked superb. Pure class!

I've never actually seen the FS. All the trains I use are marked up as "Route of the Flying Scotsman", but I've not seen the train itself. I didn't know it even ran still.

[DOD]Asprilla · 4 Dec 2006 at 09:29

emailiscrap said:
I've never actually seen the FS. All the trains I use are marked up as "Route of the Flying Scotsman", but I've not seen the train itself. I didn't know it even ran still.

Not been on it myseilf, but it looks like a real train should look.

Samtheman1k · 4 Dec 2006 at 09:58

[DOD]Asprilla said:
Not been on it myseilf, but it looks like a real train should look.

Full of chavs and covered in graffiti?

Admiral Huddy · 4 Dec 2006 at 11:42

emailiscrap said:
I've never actually seen the FS. All the trains I use are marked up as "Route of the Flying Scotsman", but I've not seen the train itself. I didn't know it even ran still.

You wouldn't know it from any other train from the ouside but the one I saw was spotless and shinny .. But inside was a different class.

CryptKeeper · 4 Dec 2006 at 11:56

I go Edinburgh-Aberdeen on GNER a lot, always in std class as its usually quiet on this route. But at XMAS I booked First class just to see what its like really.

British trains just aren't that great. I recently took the ICE train from Holland - Germany and it was amazing. Even the regular FC on mainline german/dutch trains is fantastic.

Vonhelmet · 4 Dec 2006 at 20:19

[DOD]Asprilla said:
Makes perfect sense.

Having the choice of someone teking up the rest of the table around me with screaming kids and babies or sitting in a nice, quiet civilised area is a bit of a no brainer.

How is my attitude crummy? I'm not harming anyone. I'm not telling anyone that they annoy me and storming off. I'm jsut sitting in a quieter part of the train and paying for the privilage.

I think you have issues.

It's "first class", not "no-baby class". I guess the issue I have is the assumption that there will never be babies in first class.

Perhaps if you want no noise you should go to the quiet coach, though I'm not sure that mandates no babies.

[TW]Fox · 4 Dec 2006 at 20:24

vonhelmet said:
It's "first class", not "no-baby class". I guess the issue I have is the assumption that there will never be babies in first class

It's a reasonable assumption though. There are very rarely children of any sort in First Class. Obviously there are sometimes, but generally not. Far less chance of a journey interupted by screaming kids in First.

Beansprout · 4 Dec 2006 at 20:31

Anyone done Plymouth >> Bristol with Virgin and who knows whether they have wifi and whatnot in First? It's only £15 or so to upgrade so I might if it does, if you follow

yermum · 4 Dec 2006 at 20:39

CryptKeeper said:
I recently took the ICE train from Holland - Germany and it was amazing. Even the regular FC on mainline german/dutch trains is fantastic.

We are buying our son a model train set for his birthday/xmas pressie and we were admiring a model of this very train at the weekend. It looks impressive even on a small scale.

[TW]Fox · 4 Dec 2006 at 20:51

yermum said:
We are buying our son a model train set for his birthday/xmas pressie and we were admiring a model of this very train at the weekend. It looks impressive even on a small scale.

I don't recommend you buy him a model, especially if you think he might develop an interest in model railways. Problem is that all continental models are HO guage, whereas UK models are generally OO guage. The two are not easily compatible as the scales are different - OO is 1:76 and HO is 1:87.

Stick with UK stuff if he is to develop a collection

[DOD]Asprilla · 4 Dec 2006 at 20:54

vonhelmet said:
It's "first class", not "no-baby class". I guess the issue I have is the assumption that there will never be babies in first class.

Perhaps if you want no noise you should go to the quiet coach, though I'm not sure that mandates no babies.

I only ever travel first class now on GNER and I've never had a baby in the same coach so it's not a complete assumption.

I'll travel where I please if you don't mind and it's absolutely no business yours why I pick the coaches I do.

You appear to travel by high horse.

NickXX · 4 Dec 2006 at 21:04

Used to travel on Virgin First class when I was at Uni. The free food and quietness was a major bonus on the Friday evening Manchester to London line. Standard class was always rammed.

Surely it's only £10 off-peak? In which case standard class will be fairly quiet anyway. I swear Virgin First class used to cost a fortune if you travelled at a decent time.

Vonhelmet · 4 Dec 2006 at 22:15

[DOD]Asprilla said:
I only ever travel first class now on GNER and I've never had a baby in the same coach so it's not a complete assumption.

I'll travel where I please if you don't mind and it's absolutely no business yours why I pick the coaches I do.

Eh, it's my business when you discuss it on a public forum.

[DOD]Asprilla said:
You appear to travel by high horse.

It has been said.