Hi all,
Based on advice received in response to questions about my itinerary in an earlier thread, I'm planning to take the ovenight train from Beijing to Xi'an with my family when we visit China in August, and then return to Beijing on the high speed train. I've started looking into train schedules and train tickets, and saw that for my return, the various "G" train options in the afternoon have both 1st and 2nd class seating, with about a $50USD difference in fare between the two. I've seen online that one difference between the two classes is the number of seats across (2 and 2 vs. 3 and 2), but that doesn't seem to warrant the extra cost. Are there other advantages to 1st class that would make it worth paying extra?
thanks!

The leg room is about the same, but the 1st class seat width is about 2-3" more, & they will give you a free beverage in 1st.

also not as many kettles and gate lice in 1st vs 2nd per my experience with the HSR from SH to BJ. I do not know about Xian kettles.

I really don't see much benefit in 1st other than space/wider seats. If you're not large-sized, traveling for pleasure with the family, and not needing to set up computer and get work done, etc. then just save yourself the cash and go 2nd class. There's no guarantee that on any particular train, you'll find more tranquility and civility in 1st class vs 2nd; IMO opinion, it's just the luck of your particular train departure and specific carriage your seat is in. BTW, I don't find Chinese Kettles (or peasants) nearly as obnoxious as some of the Chinese nouveau riche...who are more likely to be in 1st class.

There is also an electrical plug in first class.

You can recharge your cellphone or ipod etc.

More space for luggage.

And that is about it.

The benefit of F class on trains, IMO, is a less crowded, more relaxed experience. Depending on the route, this may or may not be an issue. When there's luggage and my energy levels at stake, I will often pay the premium for F. Then again, I try and be very flexible on dates/time and keep that premium at or below 30% of the second class/economy ticket.

That middle seat on the 3 seat side of the 2nd class train cars is not a fun place to be. Tolerable for an hour or two, terrible for anything longer.

2nd class has plugs under the seats, Ed.

Like I've said before in other threads, I usually hang out in the dining car, so class of service is a moot point for me.

COOL!!!!

Thank you.

Good information. Learn something new.

Will check it out next week.

When buying tickets, it's pretty easy to tell the ticket people that you want seats on the D/F side of the train.

There's a recent trip report of this journey on here - http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-...n-beijing.html

I did Beijing -Xian a couple of weeks ago on a G train and opted for first, because, well - it's first
Depending on how many is in your party there was a separate 'cabin' in first with two rows of 3 seats facing each other with a table in the middle and more 'window space'. This cabin was enclosed up to about neck height.

I usually take 1st class seats as they have more sitting space.

Too bad my chinese sucks big time or I can book seats online via the official website...

Maybe I'll get my friends from china to create an account for me and teach me where to click what hehe...

Almost always 1st class, which is fine for up to 5-6 hours. On longer journeys, I'd opt for a CRH premium sleeping berth or a "business class" seat.

Never underestimate Chinese rudeness towards strangers on any journey, the same people are the most considerate on this planet when dealing with their own relatives.

The free snacks on 1st are rubbish, but soft drinks very welcome. Stock up on fast food before you board the train, anything sold on board is borderline horrible.

A power socket is seen under the seat on the Harbin-Dalian high-speed train,

I've done biz class on BJ-SH exactly once. While it was might comfortable, you still get the same crappy food as everyone else, and the extra $200 is a bit of a stinger.

Currently it seems that "business class" seats or "VIP seats" exist on most trains. Not all. For example, on Xian-Guangzhou, out of the 6 trains, 2 have neither VIP nor business seats - and these 2 include the express, G98, which still takes 7:40. 2 of the other 4 have VIP seats - price 1548 yuan 5 jiao, where first class is 1301 yuan 5 jiao - and the remaining 2 have Business Class but no VIP seats - priced at 2658 yuan 5 jiao.

On Beijing-Guangzhou, no VIP seats are offered - all three trains have Business Class only. Since first class (at 1380 yuan) is not fine (the duration is 7:59 to 9:38), the only way is, obviously, business class, costing 2724 yuan.