Gran Class Booking Online

I will be traveling at the end of the month with with a JR pass. Is there a way to purchase or reserve Gran Class seats online in advance? I see "purchase limited express tickets only" as an option on the JR East site. Can I just purchase that and pay the base fare and whatever else at the ticketing office?

The JR pass does not cover the GranClass seat fee, similar to not covering green car. I have not checked, but at best you would get the base fare covered and the seat fee is more than double.
For example, Tokyo to Sendai the base fare of 6k should be covered, but the seat fee is 14k. You are looking at 14,000 yen for that 93 minute ride.
You should be able to book the seat fee and reserve online, but that does not require a JRP as its not covered.

Thank you, very helpful!

Hi JCT, may I trouble you to check the price from Tokyo to Shin-Hakodate for the Gran class. And also is there a price difference for the seat fee between the regular & green seat pass. Thank you 😊

I used the https://japantravel.navitime.com/en/area/jp/route/ for the pricing. It is pretty good, but there might be a few differences (for instance, for timetables).
Base fare is 12,100 yen.
Seat fee is listed as:
- JPY 11,330 Reserved Seat
- JPY 20,200 Green Car
- JPY 28,580 Gran Class
There are a few other cool things that go with GranClass bookings (like the Tokyo station departure lounge), but I have never used it, and it seems silly to book if travelling on a JRP given you have to pay almost the full fare (the base, while substantial at 12k is not much given the 40k total).

Thanks JCT for your reply. Greatly appreciate it. Cheers 😊

Hi JCT,

I hope you don�ft mind I am piggyback-ing this post

In the example you have
- JPY 11,330 Reserved Seat
- JPY 20,200 Green Car
- JPY 28,580 Gran Class

If I have bought JR Green Pass, is the upgrade amount is calculated as 28,580 less 20,200 ?

Also, if I book the Gran Clas from Sendai to Hakodate instead from Tokyo, will we get the complimentary bento and drinks ? This will make the upgrade more justifiable

As I mentioned in your other thread, my understanding when trying to use a higher class on a pass you need to pay the full seat fee and only the base fee is covered. Usually people are looking at riding green car on an ordinary class pass. As it is so expensive, and visitors using passes are trying to save money, it isn't done often. And, if doing that upgrade, it might remove any savings you were planning on.
If you want to ride GranClass, you are probably not a rail pass user.