Toward the end of this coming April my husband and I are going to be in London (our first trip to Europe) and we plan on taking the train through the English channel from London to Paris. Should we buy our tickets now? How long is the train ride, and is there a particular seating recommended? Any insights would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you in advance for the help!
Yes. Buy them ASAP. You have likely already missed the lowest prices. Buy at Eurostar.com. Ticket prices only increase as more seats are sold. The trip is 2 hrs 15 min.
To add to the good advice Laura has given you, the seats are all about the same. Doesn't matter. You will need to be at the London train station about 45 minutes to an hour beforehand. You go through a security check, then French passport control, then to the waiting area. If you don't allow enough time to get to the station, you may miss the train, since the screening usually closes some time before the train leaves. There are shops both before and after security/passport control.
When you arrive in Paris, you may want to take the metro, especially if you don't have a lot of luggage. There is often a long tine for taxis at the train station and traffic can be very heavy during the day. Of course, the metro may mean lugging your stuff up a flight of stairs. . . .
The Eurostar to Paris leaves from St. Pancras Internatonal station in London. You can buy tickets for the Paris metro at St. Pancras should you wish to use the metro when you arrive in Paris, though you'd probably be happier taking a taxi to your hotel. It is a short journey (2 hours 15 minutes) and not particularly scenic so it doesn't matter where you sit, really. Do get your tickets on line asap. Prices are rising even as we speak.
