Thank you for clarifying. I was worried about how that would work since cancellations need to be requested 4-hours before departure (for full refund less transaction fees), but we wouldn't know until then whether our WL ticket had cleared. Hopefully, we'll find out well before then.

Thanks again.

Jeez, this India train stuff is complicated. We're also trying to get enough spaces in the A1 sleepers to Jaisalmer, and I just wish I could buy an airline ticket to Jaisalmer instead. :)

From what I can tell, they load a sum total of 4 sleeper seats on each train, so booking ahead doesn't solve your problem if you're a party of more than 4 (we're 5).

So if I'm understanding these instructions correctly, take the 4 seats that are offered in A1, book another seat separately in A2, book a third reservation for one person in A1-WAITLIST, and then monitor things to see if the waitlist cleared. If it gets close to departure day without the waitlist clearing, and I don't want to lose any money, perhaps just cancel the waitlist seat?

Do I have this right? :)

I'm a noob too, but that sounds right to me.

Thanks. Any veterans out there on this topic?

I guess I can comb that Indiamike website for suggestions, but that will probably confuse me first. :)

yep ^

The following scenarios may occur :

1. A2 is confirmed, A1 ( waitlisted seat ) also gets confirmed before chart preparation -- Then you can go ahead and cancel the A2 ticket online .. details of charges here ..http://www.indianrail.gov.in/refund_Rules.html

2. A2 is confirmed, A1 ( waitlisted seat) remains W/l even after chart preparation.. -- IF its a E-ticket, it gets auto-cancelled , and refund will be processed automatically and credited to your original card.
IF A1 gets confirmed at chart preparation -- THEN you need to cancel A2 and apply for refund of the same.. This is cumbersome and details given here..http://erail.in/rail/faq/e-ticket.html

P.S -- Am not sure of your train no, but if it is 14659 Delhi - Jaisalmer then the usual seat availability is only 4 in this train..Unless lot of w/l's, am not sure if they will add /modify the coach layout..

Thanks, guys. So I guess I should go in and book a waitlisted A1 sleeper seat for my 5th pax. If it clears, it seems like my cancellation fee for the A2 seat is only about US$1.40.

Of course, if the waitlist seat doesn't clear in advance, it sounds like I've got more trouble to deal with! :)

best of luck.. keep us updated :)

Railway fare increases
 

FYI, we boarded our first train this morning (12333 Varanasi-Allahabad in 3A). The conductor greeted us at our seats and informed us that fares had increased as of Jan 22, and he needed to collect the difference from us. I guess that fares for reserved seats aren't guaranteed, and you must pay any difference upon boarding. In our case, the difference was a whopping 71% increase. I thought I was being scammed, but he looked official, and gave me a receipt. Later, I confirmed the new rate was accurate on the railway website.

I was concerned that all of our booked train travel would be hiked by a similar %. But I was relieved to learn that the rest of our legs only increased a small amount (Rs. 15-100 each).

So just a heads-up for those with seats booked prior to Jan 22...be prepared to pay the conductor onboard.

Thanks for the heads up. I certainly would have thought that was a scam, because it would be difficult to imagine that there could be a price increase on a prepaid ticket and that the conductor would then collect the difference in cash. Heck, when I was recently riding a train in Thailand, seat61 told me that the train staff might tell me there was no dining car when there is one in order to collection commissions for bringing us food; sure enough they did it. So I'd be naturally leery of trusting anyone, especially when it sounds so "dubious" and involves doling out cash!

I think you will find that there a lot of things in India that will have you thinking, 'That can't be right'. :)

It's a government tax increase, which is why you had to pay it. If the base fare increased, you wouldn't have to pay.

Thanks. If it was a tax increase, any idea why the amount of increase varies so much? Our short trip from Varanasi to Allahabad jumped from Rs. 278 to 475 ( a 71% increase) while our trip from Allahabad to Agra only increased 3%.

the big jump from varanasi to allahabad may be because of the kumbh mela....

While the availability of tickets maybe as issue during this peak period, I guess the tax rate / amount won't differ ?