Yo, I took this train from Itarsi to Mysuru in Jan 2024. Here's what I noticed: 1. First things first, the food from the pantry was bomb. The Thali had a big-ass chole-paneer mix curry, dry aalu gobhi sabzi, 2 chapathis, rice, dal and a sweet (sonpapdi), and salad. The cost was Rs 150. I also grabbed some Rabdi, Shreekhand, and Matka Dahi for Rs 40. Had some Tomato Soup for Rs 20 and Tea/Coffee for Rs 20 (it was alright but super sweet). There was even milk available for babies, and they gave hot water for free. They had packed chips, kurkure, and aloo sev bhujiya too. I tried the Mirchi bhajji and Dal vada, which was Rs 30 for 2. And the Veg Pulav with Pickle satchet was Rs 90. Yum! 2. They kept refilling the water at all the major stations. Score! 3. The OBHS staff did a great job at changing the dustbin covers, so there was no trash spilling everywhere. 4. They gave towels to all the AC passengers in the bedding packets. 5. The train came with LGD WAG-9 from Itarsi to Guntakal, so no crazy speeds. From Guntakal, they switched to LGD WAP-7 till Mysuru. 6. The toilets were clean the whole trip, and there was always water in the coaches. No worries there. 7. At Nagpur, you can buy small oranges for 50 bucks or big ones for 100. The small oranges were sweeter, for real. 8. They've got drinking water refilling going on at all the stations now. Saw it at NGP, BPQ, and GTL. 9. Guntakal had loads of breakfast options. I got Onion uthapam for Rs 90 (3 pieces, perfect for brunch), with coconut chutney and sambhar on the side. Also had a Masala dosa for Rs 50 and 3 idli with 1 vada for Rs 50. Didn't try the Lemon Rice or Veg Pulav. 10. The train stopped for 40 minutes at SBC because they were unloading HCPV coaches. TL;DR: This train is legit awesome for railfanning and travelling. Get on it!

Yo, whenever you drop by Secunderabad Jn, make sure you try out some dope Badam milk/Rose milk and sweets like Doodh Peda/Basunti/Milk cake/Malai laddu from the Vijaya Dairy Parlour. It's right there on Platform 1 of Secunderabad Railway station, fam. Trust me, their quality is top-notch and the flavor will stay on your taste buds for a hot minute, my dude. (BTW, back when I was living with my parents in Secunderabad, till I finished 12th grade, my grandpa from Chennai used to come visit us all the time. And right before he caught the Charminar SF Express on Platform 1, I always made sure to get my hands on some badam milk/rose milk, and I usually snagged Doodh Peda & Malai laddu packs to take home whenever I had the chance. Solid memories, man.)

Jab bhi tum Secunderabad Jn par jaoge, toh please Badam milk/Rose milk aur Doodh Peda/Basunti/Milk cake/Malai laddu jaisi mithaiya Vijaya Dairy Parlour se zaroor try karna, jo Secunderabad Railway station ke Platform 1 par hai. Ye log bohot high quality ke hote hai aur inki taste tumhare munh mein bohot der tak rehti hai. (Jab main apne maa-baap ke saath Secunderabad mein rahta tha, tab mere grandpa Chennai se humse bohot baar aate the. Aur unko Charminar SF Express se Platform 1 par send-off dene se pehle, main hamesha badam milk/rose milk try karta tha aur mostly Doodh Peda & Malai laddu packs ghar le jata tha, har mauke par)

If you're traveling from one end to the other in Chair car coaches, be prepared for some serious back pain. These seats have no flexibility like those in LHB coaches. Plus, the seating layout is cramped with 3x3 seats and minimal space in the aisle. Unlike ICF coaches where there's more room for luggage laying around, in Garibrath, big bags and suitcases won't fit under the seat. So, if you're carrying a lot of stuff, it might mess up your trip. The luggage racks are small too. The seating arrangement forces you to sit straight and you can't even move much. At night, it gets worse with the annoying LED lights above you that won't turn off. People resort to covering their faces with a cloth to avoid the brightness. It's common to see passengers placing their bags in the aisle, making it hard to reach the toilet. Some waitlisted passengers even end up sleeping in the passage. Others block the doors, causing inconvenience to all. To improve your journey: avoid traveling end to end in Garibrath CC; consider upgrading to 3AC for more comfort. If you can't get a 3AC ticket, try Tatkal or opt for another superfast train like BCT/AK RAJDHANI.

Agar end se end tak travel kar rahe ho chair car coaches mein, toh tayyar ho jao kamar dard ke liye. Kuch wajah hai: Yeh seats flexible nahi hoti hai, pushback nahi hota. Jaise LHB coaches ke seats hai. Iske alawa, yeh seating arrangement 3❌3 seats hai jisme corridor mein bahut kam space hota hai, dusre ICF (2S) coaches ke mukable. Jahaan par bahut space hota hai aur luggage🛄 ya toh luggage rack par ya seat ke neeche rakha ja sakta hai.💺 (Pic attached). Lekin Garibrath mein bade size ke luggage jaise bag🎒 aur suitcase seat ke neeche nahi aayenge. Garibrath CC mein excess luggage ke saath travel karne par tumhara safar kharab ho sakta hai, kyunki luggage rack mein kam jagah hoti hai. 3❌3 seating style ki wajah se, khud ko nahi hila sakte, seedhe direction mein baithna padta hai. Raat ke samay, yeh haalaat aur bhi kharab ho jate hai, jaise ki LED💡 lights seedhe upar se hamesha jalte rehte hai. Yeh frustration create karte hai. Mere observation ke hisaab se, kayi saare log is chamakdar lights se chutkara pane ke liye apne chehre par rumal ya towel rakhte hai. Bahut log...

It took me 2 freaking days to travel from South Central to Agra-Delhi. Worst train ever, man. 99% of the folks in my coach didn't even have reserved tickets. They act like they own the place and ask you to move so they can sit. And to top it off, the ticket checker didn't even show up. Just forget about cleanliness and being on time with this train, it's not even worth talking about.