Eurostar Paris to London check in time

I like to be there at least an hour ahead. You do have to fill out an Immigration card when leaving Paris which you don’t (or didn’t before Brexit) leaving from London.

I’ve not rented a car but I went with a friend to find theirs and it was in an underground garage. Make sure you know how to get to the return entrance.

Dougmac, I don’t drive often but i’ve seen people warn that Google maps drive times are optimistic. I would check against Via Michelin to see how the projected times compare.

Normally I try to arrive at Gare du Nord about an hour before departure time. Usually that’s a bit too much but there are times I’ve been glad of the cushion.

However with the “zealous strike” of the French customs workers at Gare du Nord through most of March, there were times when people were stuck waiting three to five hours to get through check-in, the two passport controls, and security. Eurostar had to cancel several trains, and advised people not to travel if they didn’t have to. Hopefully that will NOT be the case when you are here, but I say it as a reminder to keep checking the Eurostar website and Twitter feed in the days leading up to departure to stay abreast of any issues.

I've only returned from Brussels, but it would be similar (note that the Brussels train stops in Lille, France ... ) If and when BREXIT happens, you can expect the process to take even longer. But they DEMAND that you arrive early enough for the tedious process where the UK tries to prevent even Americans with vaguely Irish names like my wife of many years from taking jobs away from Brits! You MUST check in well in advance of the train departure time. You also have to find and walk to the right coach for your reserved seat, lugging your bag.

Have you read this page?

https://www.eurostar.com/us-en/travel-info/your-trip/check-in

It says things like:

Standard and Standard Premier
On most routes
Please arrive at the station 45-60 minutes before departure.

This'll give you enough time to go through the ticket gates, security and passport control.

The ticket gates close 30 minutes before departure and if you're late, the train can't wait.

Pam, Kim and Tim,

Thanks for your replies. We haven't bought our tickets yet, but I want to order soon to keep the prices down. I have the Eurostar app on my phone from the last trip and we used our phones as our boarding pass.

I'm hoping Brexit or strikes at Gare du Nord don't affect our travels. Fingers crossed!

Edit: Wow, I checked for our travel dates and tickets were $97-$120 standard fare. Just for grins, I was looking at what would happen if we waited until a few days before travel, so I put in for this coming Sunday (this was posted Thursday). Tickets go to $213-$272! Ouch!

Oh yes, Eurostar tickets get very expensive indeed if not bought in advance!!

DougMac, was that $97-120 price 6 months ahead? And for r/t I assume? Weekdays are less expensive from what i understand. I’m buying r/t tickets at 4pm today... 6 mos ahead. Will see then what the price will be.

Went from Paris to London last June and I arrived at Gare du Nord 1 hour beforehand and had plenty of time, ven had time for coffee/snack before embarking.

Where are you dropping off your rental car? Make sure you allow time to get to Gare du Nord from the car rental place if outside Paris

Well, on a Sunday maybe the traffic around the Gare du Nord won’t be as bad but yesterday I caught a Thalys to Brussels and thought I would have to get out of my taxi and walk the last 500 meters. When I’ve taken a taxi from my hotel to GdN before leaving an hour ahead of train time has always been sufficient (30 minutes for the drive from the 7th, 30 minutes for me to cool my heels lol). Yesterday was a great jam up where the driver asked me if I wanted to walk! He was describing which street I should take when he somehow saw a break was coming. The train was also delayed by 15 so that was good. Anyway, I’d definitely allow more time that you think you might need.

It's better to be at whichever station Nord or St Pancras one hour prior to the scheduled departure...better to wait before they let you in and being pressed for time.

DougMac, was that $97-120 price 6 months ahead? And for r/t I assume? Weekdays are less expensive from what i understand. I’m buying r/t tickets at 4pm today... 6 mos ahead. Will see then what the price will be.

Susan, this is pricing checking a little more than a month out.

We were trying to get to London by 4:00, but this is no longer a necessity. However, I'm thinking the deeper we go into Sunday afternoon, with folks who popped over to Paris for the weekend looking to return, the more crowded things will get. We're hoping to firm things up and buy our tickets tomorrow.

We tend to arrive too early than too late. I agree about Google driving times being optimistic. We'll be taking our Garmin, which as long as there are no unexpected delays, gives a pretty accurate travel time. I'll put in the trip when we are there and do a sanity check a few days before the actual trip.

DougMac, yes, a month out, and on a Sunday, prices are high.
Tried to get tickets but have to wait until 180 days before the day we return, not the day we’re going... so i have to wait til 4/12 to buy.

I just bought r/t Paris-London, standard class, leave & return on a Tuesday, 6 mos ahead for $57 each way.

Thanks all. Tickets have been purchased.

After some discussion, we decided to take the 4:30, arriving in London @6:00 London time. Everything is in place. Our apartment in Loches is paid for. Car is rented. I've got a Michelin paper map of France and France card for the Garmin.

What Eurostar app do you have?