Eurostar from Paris to London Class and Price

esfitterer,

i havent been on that train in about 3 years.

but from my experience, i did the low cost route. dont remember what they called it but i know it wasnt first class.

"worth it" is subjective and up to you and how you like to travel. for me it wasnt "worth it". Just so you know the difference from what i saw between the 2 classes was one (1) seat. The first class car had a 2+1 seating, where as the other had 2+2. If you can get the more expensive class for less money, of if you're loaded and the 100 or so bucks dont faze you, then you may want to upgrade. Once you get onboard the train, take a walkabout and head on up to "premier" and see what you think if its "worth it". The seats in "premier" were more cushy and appeared to be more like a recliner than a seat. But i will say this, so far on ALL of my coach plane rides, those seats in "standard" beat the coach seats by a mile.

I found 2nd class just fine for my budget and backside. Also, for a 2h20m ride, it all depends on how much you want to spend for that short? of a trip.

Food isn't a big deal on European trains since I've never traveled on one that didnt allow you to bring your own food, which i do. Also, if i remember correctly there is/was a food car on the Eurostar where they sold Carnet (Paris subway tickets). I didnt try any of the food since i brought my own.

if you care to, here is a link to Seat61.com for the Eurostar. There some pics of the "standard" and "premier" and the food car. Those pics are just like what i remember when i took the train a couple years ago.

happy trails.

There is nothing wrong with standard. The trip takes only something over 2 hours. Take a sandwich. I always buy the cheapest standard ticket. The seats have always been at the end of the car; that makes stowing luggage and getting off the train faster/easier. When you arrive at St. Pancras, there will be many opportunities to have a meal or shop. The station is full of shops and restaurants.

The standard seat is like business class on most airlines, quiet, well lit, reclining (a little) seat, armrest, lots of foot-room, big windows.

Standard Premier seat is even larger (do you need even larger?) with included little cans of soda or wine, coffee or tea and a small airline style but cold "meal" (much less fancy than previously) which I have generously described as a cold snack.

Worth paying triple the price for that? Not for me. I used to when it was a large tasty hot meal - not now. If you want a hot meal now you have to really push the boat out and pay a fortune for Business Premier. Same seats though.

Do you really need this for 2 hours?

"Will I be fighting others just to sit with my wife in Standard" - No, everbody gets a reserved seat which is printed on your ticket. You can decide when you book whether you want two seats side-by-side or facing each other. The seating plan is here (link from abovementioned seat61 website).

esfitterer I have taken the Eurostar for my fifth time this past summer. I wouldn't pay extra for Premier service etc.. I had once booked standard and was put in a Premier train car( they were short a car and put a hold car of standard tickets holders in the car so we didn't get the meal ,, but had the "advantage" of the different seating) It was comfy and nice.. but I find the Standard cars just fine.

As said.. you are assigned a seat( you will actually pick it from the seating plan when you book , at least you do when you book via the official Eurostar site) so theres no worry about standing!! The journey is fairly short, and you can get up and walk to the concession car( don't consider it a dining car,, its just a car with a stand up counter concession that does premade sandwiches , a few salads and some grilled sandwichs , as I recall anyways, haven't bothered to visit it for last few journeys) . We always bring our own food and drinks on the trains in Europe now, including the Eurostar. You can even bring wine etc.. !! We pick up food before trip or night before and have a nice picnic as we travel,, you will see many folks doing so!

Standard is just fine. If journey was 8 hours long maybe splurge.. but really.. for only over 2 hours.. just relax and enjoy spending the extra money one would spend on first class for a nice bottle of wine!

Wow - thanks for all of the thorough responses. The advice is great - I really appreciate it everyone!

I took the Eurostar from London to Paris in September. I bought the least expensive standard class seats 6 months ahead. As noted above, you will have a seat reservation. Several weeks later friends let me know that they were going to join us on part of our trip. One of those friends is 6'7" tall. He looked into the first class seats and ultimately decided to sit in standard class with us. I moved our reserved seats to a car where we could share a table. He did not complain of not having enough space. The trip only takes 2:15. If you can't go that long without eating, you can bring a sandwich or go get something from the dining car. I prefer to save my money for fun things, not for a 2+ hour train ride.

Just a tip on which coach to reserve. The London end of the Eurostar is always coach #1, going to Paris the coach is #18. It makes a bit of difference if you want to be first in line at the metro or the taxi rank. Coach 1 is 1st class but look at the diagram and reserve the coach closet to #1 headed to London. It's a long walk to get to your seat in Paris but a short jaunt to the transportation upon arrival in London.

Another thing to keep in mind is the direction your chosen seat faces. Some face forward and others back. When I bought my ticket for the Eurostar, I selected what I thought would be a forward-facing seat. But based on the direction the train was traveling (west, from Paris to London) my selected seat faced backwards. I disliked that because the view wasn't very good, and at the end of the trip I felt a little blechy from riding backwards for 2.5 hours. I don't know if the Man in Seat 61 website addresses this but if you care about your seat direction, it's worth checking.

Hi, I travel between London and Paris about six times a year. The trip is 2 hours and 20 minutes. All of the seats are reserved, so you will have an assigned seat. Your seat may or may not be facing forward, but there is not anything very interesting to see (other than the fish swimming by during the 20 minutes in the tunnel). I almost never opt for first class seats. A possible advantage would be that your train car would be at the beginning of the train when you arrive in London, so that you could be at the beginning of the taxi queue (although there will be folks waiting from other trains), if that is important to you. I always take the Tube in London, so that doesn't make a difference to me. Also in 1st class, you would be served food (not very good food and not worth the extra $). In coach class, you have to walk to the bar car to get food, which is also not worth the money. The seats in first class are somewhat more spacious, which is important on a longer trip, but for me this is not worth the extra cost between London & Paris.