Eurostar Train from Paris to London

Arrival at Gare d'Austerlitz, Paris

We arrived on time in Paris on our train-hotel after a bumpy night, the rails in Spain are not what they could be, the rails are much better on the French side of the border making for smoother ride. Train-hotels are designed for Europeans in mind, it's practical travel, This type of train is now being replaced slowly by the new High Speed Trains who can do the same trip in half the time. From the Gare d'Austerlitz we took a taxi to the Gare du Nord which is on the other side of the city, you have to cross the Seine River to get to it, with luggage it was an 18 Euro ride in light traffic.

Gare du Nord is a huge rail station in a less fashionable neighbourhood of Paris, the EuroStar Train leaves on the hour in a specially designed area of the old Station. It has it's own entrance and Duty Free Shopping given that London is considered an International Destination. We took the elevator to the Second floor and went through check-in, tickets and passports in hand, then a first passport check by agents who are there to detect any false documents, then UK Immigration for passport inspection as you are leaving the Shengen Zone and finally X-ray baggage inspection by French Custom, done for security only. This is a high speed train and we are flying towards the tunnel and the crossing of the English Channel, which takes about 25 minutes. At each departure the EuroStar is full, a very convinient way to go to the UK from Paris, far more convinient than the plane since you arrive at St-Pancras Station in Central London.

Once in the departure zone, you cannot leave it, there are two coffee shops, and about 5 Duty Free shops and a currency exchange desk, (Euros to Pounds) but nothing else. The departure zone is not very clean and given it is heavely used all day by thousands of passenger, it seems that better or more thorough cleaning should be the rule. The public washrooms (despite the fact that we are in France) are not clean at all, you go if you really have too. The seating area is also not very clean and I was surprised given that the EuroStar is a private concern you would think they would be a little more concerned with image, but it does not appear to be the case.

Boarding is done 30 minutes before departure and it is well organized by car number and fairly fast.

You can if you want reserve a seat in the Quiet Section of the train, 5 cars are so designated, meaning NO kids and NO cel phones. There is also a Business Class for people who wish to work or talk quietly, two cars are Bar Cars.

Some 85 minutes after our departure from Paris we reached Calais where the EuroStar entered the Tunnel and 20 minutes later we were out on the otherside in England. Some interesting stats on this journey, it is 20 Km from Calais to Ashford across the Channel, the train travels at about 300 Km per hour, the chunnel is 195 meters below sea level, the lenght of a tunnel is 50.4 km, there are 3 tunnels one for passenger trains, one for service or emergency and one for trucks and cars being transported across on a freight train. Total time of the trip from la Gare du Nord is 2hrs and 35 minutes, that is a lot faster than taking a plane and going to airports. 

The St-Pancras Station has been totally redesigned and expanded but has retained all of its architectural beauty. London is a bit cold tonight and cloudy but otherwise fine.