Thames link help

[Anxioustraveller]

Hi!

I'm travelling from Nottingham down to Brighton today. I’m a very anxious traveller so I’ve booked first class in the hope it will give me a bit more space to breathe.

With Thameslink from St Pancras though it says the front of the train is first class and the rear first class carriage is declassified. This might sound crazy stupid but how do I tell which is which? Because doesn’t the train come into St Pancras and then go back out again so surely the front of the train will change?

Thanks from a very anxious traveller!

It will be a different train from a different platform. Replying quickly so you don’t spend any longer worrying

Thank you for being so kind.
Sorry I probably worded it wrong. I’ve only ever been on trains at St Pancras that come to a dead end and then go back out again hence why I thought it would have to change ends even if it was a different train. If that makes sense?
so there’s another bit of the station where the trains go through?

Yes it's a through train. St P is not its terminus.

Yeah they all go through. Each track is one way at StP so maybe you imagined it or came on a day when there was engineering or something.

Thameslink trains at St Pancras are running straight through from platforms A and B (having started at Peterborough or Bedford or Luton) and heading south. Head for section A on the platform (it's clearly marked along the edge) for the front carriage which sounds to still be classified first.

The Thameslink train goes from Bedford to Brighton and through London St Pancras on the way

Come down onto the platform then turn to far left. It's a lovely wide modern platform and I think even has carriage markings so you can see where to stand.

Also just to reassure you, Thameslink trains don’t have doors between carriages - it’s just a long corridor for one end to the other (although there is a door between first class and the rest of the train) so if you were accidentally at the wrong end of the train you can very easily walk to the other end through the train.

Thank you everyone 😭 so helpful. I might send you a message when I’m on the train this afternoon.

Haha deffo not imagined - everytime I come from the midlands St Pancras is the last stop - there’s only about 3 tracks upstairs where we come in though which is why I was confused!

The difference is you were in the mainline station of St Pancras (upstairs), which is a terminus. The Thameslink station is two levels below, so you'll come out and go down a couple of escalators into the Thameslink.

Oh thank you!! I’ll just follow the signs then I guess.

Yes head down, walk through the concourse, past the Eurostar section and piano towards the food outlets. Thameslink is on the left and has two platforms, one northbound, one southbound. Go through the gates and down to the southbound. Most carriages are standard class, all seats unreserved.

Oh yeah I forgot about the upstairs bit! That is a terminus of course. I was talking about Thameslink. But it is well signposted.