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Review: Virgin Train First Class King’s Cross London to Edinburgh
I think the question that every traveler asks themselves when they see the difference in the cost of coach and first class is whether or not the premium is worth it? Well, I have to say for our Virgin Train trip it was defos worth it. It’s not that the cabin was so posh or the seat was insane, it just made things sooooo much easier. With that being said, we only paid about $40 more for first class than we would have for coach. Here’s what it’s like to travel on Virgin Train First Class King’s Cross London to Edinburgh.
The price for 3 tickets…roughly $90 a ticket for first class. An outstanding deal for a 4.5 hour train ride from London to Edinburgh.
Virgin Train First Class King’s Cross London to Edinburgh review is part of the NFL in London, Scotland, and Dublin Trip Report:
- British Airways Club World A380 LAX- LHR
- London Edition – A Ritz Carlton Hotel is SOHO SEXY
- Marriott Park Lane, London
- Intercontinental Park Lane, London
- Virgin Train First Class Lounge King’s Cross
- Virgin Train First Class King’s Cross London to Edinburgh
- Caledonian Edinburgh, A Waldorf Astoria Property
- Caledonian Afternoon Tea in Peacock Alley
- Balmoral Afternoon Tea in the Palm Court
- No. 1 Lounge at Edinburgh Airport
- Aspire Lounge at Edinburgh Airport
- Intercontinental Dublin
- Lufthansa First Class Ground Services Frankfurt
- Lufthansa First Class Lounge Frankfurt Terminal 1
- Lufthansa First Class 747-8 FRA-LAX
You get access to a lounge
The train stations in London are quite nice with lots of cafes, coffee shops, restaurants, and stores where you can buy bips and bops. But…why would you want to pay for stuff when you can get it free in the lounge?
You get lots of perks and amenities
- Guaranteed seat with a table.
- Food served to the table
- I would have pics of this, but the workers were on strike and therefore the food service was coffee, sandwiches, snacks. Nothing like the normal service, unfortunately.
- Table plugins for power
- Free Wifi
These may not seem like a big deal, but when you’re on a 4.5 hour train trip this makes the journey SOOOOOO much easier. Look, if the cost was a couple hundos more would I think it was worth it…probably not, but it was $40. When you add in the lounge you’re not talking a big premium to be able to eat at a table, guarantee a seat, have power and free wifi…oh and they give you booze for the price of, “on the house.” That’s my favorite price.
The Cabin
Typical seat with a table
Arrival at Edinburgh Waverley
You could not arrive more central to Edinburgh. Walk out the Prince street exit and you’ll find yourself facing the Balmoral, and Edinburgh’s high street: Prince. Walk along the park, enjoy the Edinburgh castle, and you’ll run into the Caledonian flanking the other end. That’s where we ended up staying…review to come.
Would I do it again?
In a heartbeat. $90 and 4.5 hours to get from London to Edinburgh in first class is super cheap. In fact, I’d argue it was quicker than flying when you add in taxis, airport transit, etc. Whether this is the option you take in the end, I would highly recommend investigating it. It was also a great opportunity to hang with the fam, enjoy the countryside, and also be able to look things up on the computer that we’d like to do in Edinburgh. B to the Yaw!
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Welcome Offer
Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3x on dining, including eligible delivery services for takeout & dining out
- 3x on select streaming services
- 3x on online grocery purchases
- (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travel℠
- The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
- 2x on all other travel
- 10% Anniversary Bonus
- Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel℠ and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver ( primary ), purchase protections, etc.
- Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
- Redeem in Chase Travel℠ for 1.25 cents per point
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
- Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2027.
- $95 Annual Fee
We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.
Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.
Main Cast:
Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.
Supporting Cast:
Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is exceptional starter card and offers transferrable Ultimate Rewards, and pairs well with other Chase cards.
If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex® and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash® , Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.
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