Scotland is a wonderful country, with some great food and scenery. Glasgow and Edinburgh are located just an hour apart by train, meaning tourists can see both cities with ease. I decided to take ScotRail First Class between the two places to see what it was like.
Tickets for the premium class are £5 more than standard class on this route and I paid £18 for my ticket. After collecting my ticket at a machine in Glasgow Queen Street station, I boarded the train.
ScotRail First Class
The British Rail Class 385 trains are relatively new, having entered service from 24 July 2018. Seating in the posh cabin is arranged two by one, with large tables between the seats. Once everyone was on board, off we went, departing on time.
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- Time to board the train!
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- I think I’ll sit in here.
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- A view of the seats.
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- Two tables of four and two pairs are here.
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- The other end of first class.
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- A luggage rack (which you can just see at left) and a three seater.
Soon after departure, the conductor came through and checked my ticket. He seemed to have a chat to everyone else about it being First Class, but no-one was sent packing or asked to pay more, so I suppose they really don’t care. I sat about enjoying the scenery on the quick trip.
The Haggis Box!
Once I arrived at Edinburgh Waverley Station, I took off for The Haggis Box. This is a small place that is located inside the Scottish Storytelling Centre and all they do is Haggis.
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- Traditional Scottish Haggis, Neeps & Tatties, and a Ginger Beer to wash it down.
For those that don’t know, Haggis is a Scottish savoury pudding containing sheep’s pluck (heart, liver, and lungs), minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices, and salt, mixed with stock. It’s quite delicious!! I wolfed that down and headed off to meet a friend for cocktails.
Overall Thoughts
ScotRail First Class provides people with a bit of extra space, a much smaller and quieter cabin, all for a very small price premium. For £5 why wouldn’t you?
Happily ScotRail trains have free Wi-Fi on board and it actually works. It was handy as we went out of mobile reception areas a few times along the trip.
Have you travelled on a Scottish train before? What do you think of it? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.
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Featured image by Matt Buck on Flickr via Wikimedia Commons.
Not sure if it was a Scottish train, but when I was visiting friends in Newcastle back in ’92, we took the train to Edinburgh for a few hours, not knowing it was a Scottish Bank Holiday. Needless to say the “good stuff” was mostly closed but we had fun for a bit and on the return got off at Berwick-Upon-Tweed because on the way up I said it looked “cool”. My buddy told me I was “naff” but we spent a nice couple of hours there and then he went into the whole “my friend from America” mode and… Read more »
Haha! I can imagine Berwick-Upon-Tweed would not be high up on the list of tourist destinations for people. It’s hardly London or Edinburgh! Sounds like you had a ball though, which is really good. Seems like it was well worth the visit then. It’s often about who you meet and the stories you hear rather than the places. I remember the people I’ve met more in some instances. Sounds like a good trip!
You mentioned buying your ticket at the train station. It’s been a few years so am wondering if that is best or buying in advance online or with app? Eurorail or Scotrail? I am not seeing the same rates…nearer £35-75. Also looking at options for open-ended, 2-day and what is best economical choice…? A little guidance for buying for this route between Edinburgh and Glasgow would be helpful 🙂 The HAggis box and ginger is a great added suggestion! Favorite stop in Glasgow for a breakfast nibble? Cheers
I bought my ticket online on the ScotRail website, then I collected it from the ticket machine. I would assume the best ticket prices are on their website and the more in advance you book the cheaper it seems to be. Couldn’t give you much more advice than that and I wasn’t around for breakfast in Glasgow. Good luck and have fun! 🙂
Thank you for your reply. Going to check out the recommended site – https://www.seat61.com/
Very good choice!
The British rail ceased to exist 20th November 1997. the trains in the UK are run by a number of train operating companies, none of whom own the trains. they ate leased from a stock owning company. So the class 85 has nothing to with British rail. it doesn’t exist
Well, according to Wikipedia, the train type is called “British Rail Class 385”, which is where I got my information. You’re correct in that British Rail as an entity does not exist, hence ScotRail and all the rest. I also read they’re planning to bring them all back together again as the separate operating companies is not really working. Could be a case of back to the future – we shall see! Thanks for the comment!
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Prior to COVID there was also a complimentary hot drink and shortbread. Hopefully they will return soon in First Class.
That’s good to know! I really didn’t know that was part of the service. I imagine it will come back soon enough. Fingers crossed! Thanks for that.
A good few years ago I was standing in Queen St on a Saturday morning with a hangover waiting to buy a ticket back to Edinburgh and noticed the people in front were buying 1st class and thought why not. In my fragile state the peace and quiet and a couple of cups of complimentary tea with biscuits was just what I needed.
Whilst I’m not planning a big night out in Glasgow anytime soon I hope they reintroduce the catering soon.
I think that was an investment well worth the extra cost 🙂