Jan 5, 2014 - 1 min read

JR Shinkansen E5, GranClass Car

Shinkansen's first-class carriage introduced in 2011

By Takako Sakamoto

Community writer

Tohoku Shinkansen 'Yamabiko', stopping at JR Fukushima Station. Streamlined car in colorful red, green and pink is beautiful

'Yamabiko 213' departs Tokyo, bound for Sendai

Hexagonal emblem of GranClass, painted on the platform

Inside the GranClass carriage, there are only 15 seats in the car

All leather-covered, auto-reclining seats

Information about the auto-reclining seats

When you order beer, Ebisu beer will be served, which is the highest-class beer in Japan

Free snack and sponge cake; you can have one each

GranClass corridor, in the bathroom there was a washlet (shower toilet) installed!

Mt. Fuji at twilight, viewed from the GranClass carriage

On March 5, 2011, the Tohoku Shinkansen extended its line to Shin-Aomori. Along with this expansion, the new Shinkansen Series E5 debuted. The Series E5 Shinkansen has the newly developed GranClass Car, which is considered to be the first first-class carriage in Shinkansen history. Yet this new carriage is not well known in Japan, probably due to the Tohoku/Kanto Earthquake and Tsunami which hit East Japan a week after the debut of the carriage. Right now, the Tohoku Shinkansen is the only Shinkansen Line where you can enjoy the GranClass. In the near future some of the Shinkansen cars on the Hokuriku and Nagano Shinkansen Lines will introduce this class. For further information please refer to the Homepage of JR GranClass or my article on Japan Travel.