Gran Class upgrade

Hi John,

There's no upgrade path available to Gran Class using a JR Pass. At best the pass will cover the base fare of your trip but you'd have the still pay the entire Gran Class fare.

Between these cities, the full cost would be ¥ 38,720. That is a combination of the base fare:¥ 11,880 and the Gran Class fare is ¥ 26,840.

To answer your question, it would thus cost ¥ 26,840 extra. While if you used the JR Pass in Ordinary or Green Class (depending what pass you have), the journey would not cost anything.

I understand wanting to experience Gran Class but in terms of getting value out of your pass, it simply does not make sense.

Kind regards,
Daniel

Than you Daniel-san for your reply. This might be my last visit to Japan due to my age so I would like to experience Gran Class just this once. Another question if I may, as I can’t activate my exchange order before my arrival is there any way to pre book as Gran Class seats are very limited and my stay will be only 2 weeks. 🙇‍♂️

Hi Jay,

That's a reason I can't argue with :) There's no way to book it with the JR Pass ahead of your arrival in Japan.

You can however just reserve it as normal ticket through JR East:
https://www.eki-net.com/en/jreast-train-reservation/Top/Index

Hope this helps and you have a smooth journey to Japan!
Daniel

Thank you so much Daniel.🙇‍♂️

Regards
John