Did you know, the train travels around 173 miles/hour and it only takes approximately 2 hours and 17 min to get from Paris to London and/or Paris to London? The only high-speed train option for either trip is Eurostar.
The train service in Europe is wonderful. It is clean and the high-speed trains get you across the country very quickly. We were pleased with the train and service once on board. The boarding and security process at St Pancras Station was a bit cumbersome and long, even more so than going through an airport. Read below...
Booking Eurostar
There are 3 different class options on Eurostar when traveling between London and Paris. Standard, Premier, and Business Premier. What is the difference? Check out the 3 images below.
We were in Standard on the way to Paris and Standard Premier on the way back to London. The only difference between the two of these classes was that Premier had a meal served to you and an attendant taking your order so you did not have to go to the food and beverage car. Otherwise, I thought the seats were just as comfortable in both areas. I also walked to the Business Premier car and I did not see a big difference in seating just the amenities and the fact you skipped all of the lines and boarded much faster.
Traveling to Paris
We arrived at the station an hour and 45 min prior to our departure time, per the guidance of both the Eurostar app (I checked the night before and morning of, just like you would airlines, for any delays and departure details). Here are the recommended arrival times to London train station from Eurostar. You can see below, you can save half the time by upgrading to Business Premier.
Here is what we found when we arrived. If you travel either Standard or Premier you would wait in a very long line that took about an hour to get through. However, business class ticket holders did not have a line and walked right through to security. If you are short on time or simply do not wish to wait, paying for the upgraded ticket would be worth it. We actually saw the line when we arrived and attempted to upgrade our tickets at the station kiosks but Business Premier was already sold out.
After you wind through a very long queue, you get to the first entry point which has you scan your ticket (set up similar to entry to a subway).
When you enter the first security point to scan your ticket. Make sure you either each have a ticket in hand or on your phone, or you will have to pass your phone back to the others in your party, as there is a turnstile that only allows one person at a time to go through.
It is also very cumbersome if you are carrying a lot of luggage with you. We were packed for a 10-day trip and taking all of our bags from London to Paris with us. Imagine, carrying all of that luggage through a subway experience.
Next, your luggage gets scanned. Just like you were going through TSA at the airport. Only, you can take liquids through and you do not have to take off your jackets or shoes. There is also no upgrade, like a Pre-check or Clear. Everyone goes through the same line unless you purchased Business Premier, then you have the same steps only a separate line.
Third, you will go to a customs agent to scan your passport. But don't put your passport completely away as there is a Fourth check (which is a second customs stop. The first one is for England passport officials and the second is for French customs officials.
Now, it is finally time to board the train. All of this took just over an hour for us to get through. Most of your wait time is due to people not being prepared at each step.
Our Tickets
Below are the tickets we had for our travel to Paris and then back to London, as we booked one way vs round trip. We were not sure what date we would be traveling back to London at the time of booking.
Here were the original costs of our 2 tickets/way. Our original bookings were Standard for both ways. Once we arrived in Paris, we wanted to try one of the upgraded packages on the way back. Business Premier was already sold out, so we choose Standard Premier. It was an extra $85/ticket. We wanted to travel Business Premier for one of the legs to see what the difference was and if the price was worth it, as it would have been an extra $200/ticket. But they were completely booked. There is only one car on the train for Business Premier.
The Train ride
Once you board the train, you store the larger luggage in a rack near your boarding entrance but your smaller bags can be placed in a rack above your seat. The seats were comfortable and the train was clean. The ride went by so quickly and the train attendants were so friendly. I had to use the restroom on the train and one of the attendants noticed I was waiting a bit for someone to come out and escorted me to another restroom up in business premier.
There are also food cars with light snacks, coffee (they can make you any french coffee as they have a full espresso machine.), or cocktails. I did not have a snack but I did get us both coffee. If you ride in Business or Premier class you have someone walking around to take your order.
It is really cool to take a train and go from one country to the next in such a short time, just like driving across states in the U.S.
Paris Gare du Nord Station Experience
This was truly an experience. Everyone in London was so friendly and helpful but as soon as we stepped onto the Paris station we did not find that same experience. We were searching for a restroom and people just pointed. BTW...the toilets (as they are called, are downstairs (not the steps to the Rental Cars, but the opposite side of the building steps)
We were prepared to pay for public restrooms in Paris (just in a heads up if you were not aware), but we thought a credit card would work and we did have Euros on us (French currency) in case they did not take a credit card. But you MUST use a credit card that has 'tap' ability, not insert for any of the toilets at the train station.
The other challenging part of the station was the line for taxis. It was long and we waited almost an hour to get a taxi. It was entertaining watching the attendants at the station negotiate with the cab drivers how many people and luggage each of them could take.
My recommendation is to find where shared rides can come to the station and call an Uber/Lyft instead. We did this when we arrived back at the London station as the line was just as long.
Paris to London
When arriving at Paris Gare du Nord station the line seemed to move much faster. They also have a similar setup for lines for the 3 different class tickets. However, the process to board was much different.
First, you go through security. The security checkpoint was pretty much the same. I also have to say the line moved much faster in Paris than it did in London.
Second, you only went through only one customs and that is the U.K.
If you made a purchase and need to register for tax reimbursement, you will do so after you go through security and customs, and just before heading to your gate, there is a tax-exempt window and several kiosks over on the left. We were worried we would miss them but. they are at the end of the process. Make sure you have your paperwork easily accessible (the store gives you the paperwork) and if you purchased an expensive item, like a bag
Make sure you have your purchase handy in a carry-on bag BUT make sure you are not using it as your bag. I was stopped after submitting my paperwork at the kiosk, they wanted to see the bag to make sure it truly was a new purchase. I did have my tags removed and it was not in a shopping bag, just in my carry-on luggage.
This was truly a wonderful way to travel between countries and I will absolutely travel this way again in the future.
Cheers,
Lisa
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