PARIS ON A SHOESTRING

Eurostar train from London to Paris

This is what you will encounter when traveling by train from London to Paris and back to London from Paris by Eurostar, the high speed passenger train which travels through the channel tunnel. Eurostar is probably the easiest and the most enjoyable way to get to Paris, but unfortunately most of the time not the cheapest option. Eurostar (starting at St Pancras London) reaches Paris in about 2 hours and 15 minutes.

This will not only be useful for the first time traveler but the regular traveler can benefit with the tips and tricks we provide. Eurostar provides Luxury, comfort and if booked in advance, good value for money. Train travel has it’s own advantages like unlimited baggage allowance and plenty of leg room. One of the restrictions is that Pets, are currently not allowed on Eurostar, however registered guide dogs are allowed.

How to Book Eurostar Tickets

For best rates we always book tickets online through the Eurostar web site. Booking is confirmed with an email which contains the confirmation number.

Best return fares for standard class

• Night clubber £42 is the cheapest, however with 3 restrictions.
  • This is only valid for travel during the weekend (Saturdays or Sundays)
  • Departure after 16:00
  • Returning before 10:30 the next day
• Standard youth starts from £40 for people who are 26 or younger.
• The best return fare that we use most off the time currently costs £59.

You have to be careful of the the time of travel, while early morning tickets to travel around 6 am are much cheaper (and much more attractive because you get to arrive early in Paris), if you are traveling from outside of London, make sure that public transportation is available to reach St Pancras on time. Once we had to pay £75 for a taxi, since we couldn’t reach in time for checkin (at least 30 minutes before departure). Having to pay extra for transport can easily negate the savings you made on the tickets.

Where and how to collect Eurostar Tickets from

We had to collect our tickets long before the day of travel as we had to provide the Eurostar tickets to obtain Schengen Visa (from the French Embassy in London). If you do not require visa, tickets can be collected on the day of travel, by visiting one of the many booths located at St Pancras terminal. You simply enter the confirmation number and use the same credit card (only for verification) that you used for booking online. The tickets will be printed and there are free ticket wallets (quite useful to keep the tickets together and makes a good souvenir) on top of the machine. While this is a very smooth process, if you come across any problems at all there is help available at the Eurostar counter and customer service which is conveniently located near the ticket dispensing machines.

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