Getting from London to Paris- Eurostar or Fly?

Door-to-door, the train will be three or four hours faster and a lot less pain in the tail.
Also, that hundred bucks is going to disappear pretty fast when you plug in the cost of getting to and from the airports.

I've done both, and I have to give a +1 for the train. We've done it, and it's so much more relaxing than fighting your way to Heathrow/Gatwick and from CDG. Agree with the cost too....those airport connections will burn through that $100.

Kids dig trains :)....and given that I come from a 5-generation railroading family, so do I.

My rule of thumb on London->Paris / Brussels goes:

• Flying into a London airport: fly out without entering UK
• Staying near an airport: fly, but marginal decision if going to CDG rather than ORY or BRU
• Starting from inside London: rail

no contest.. train.. train is faster when you figure in the time you need to be at airport ahead of flight( 1.5 hours) and the time to get to and from airports into city centres( another 1.5 hours) and cost ( not sure about london, but for paris, from airport to city cost is 9.75 euros per person on RER.. or taxi at 50-55 euros,so translate that into dollars)

Whole experience.. train is nicer.. take a picnic.

Eleanor, I prefer the train. Much easier than spending a couple of hours going through Heathrow security and taking the RER or Bus in from CDG. Still, you do have to get to the St Pancras train station which is next door to the Kings Cross tube station. Thus, you are on the Piccadilly tube line, with luggage, out to the end of the line which is Kings Cross. Also, for the Eurostar train, you have to be checked in 30 minutes before departure.

It's nice that you are travelling really early but if you have a chance to be in that area with a couple of hours to spare, the great British Library is next door to the St. Pancras train station (the other side is Kings Cross). It's free and quite a treat. It has a great cafeteria on the second floor. Secondly, there is a bit of Harry Potter stuff in the Kings Cross train station if you can find it. If no time, just head for Paris.

This may not be an option for you (as in you probably would have noticed the lower prices) but if you buy early enough on the Eurostar you can get a great deal. Five of us are going from Paris to London in May and we bought tickets recently for a little over $300 total for the 5 of us.

The extra time you need to be early at the airport adds in to the time comparison with Eurostar. The actual flight may take less time than the train, but the whole airport experience (and travel to the London airport/from the Paris one) will make it take longer than the Eurostar. I think the Eurostar would be a smoother experience overall.

Eleanor,

If you can swing it, id take the train. You would get to experience a sample of European trains. Really nice.

The security lines are shorter too.

happy trails.

Eleanor,

I most definitely agree with the others, take the train! It will probably be considerably faster when all is considered, and it will certainly be a more pleasant experience compared to going to the airport, check-in, security and all the other usual airport annoyances. If you buy your tickets well in advance (the cheaper tickets are usually non-refundable), considerable savings are possible. Check the excellent Man In Seat 61 website for details.

Be sure to arrive early for the EuroStar, as you MUST check in at least 30 minutes prior to departure or you won't be riding. Also note you'll have to go through an airport-style security and clear French Passport control at St. Pancras.

I'd suggest using a slightly later departure in the morning. That will allow time for a leisurely breakfast at your hotel (which you'll likely be paying for anyway), and then arrive in Paris in early afternoon after a relaxing rail trip. If you arrive too early, the rooms at your apartment may not be available yet, so you'd have to store your luggage before going out touring.

You'll arrive at Gare du Nord, and it's easy to get from there to the 7th. Were you thinking of using the Metro to get to your apartment? If so, you'll likely be using Ecole Militaire station.

Happy travels!

Oh, the train, the train. Relaxing, fast, fun. Buy tickets early for some savings. Don't need first class. All seats great. Easy, peasy.

As others have said, take the train. Book ASAP (up to 180 days allowed) at eurostar.com to get a discount fare as low as £39.00. There is an allotted number of tickets at each of several discounted fare levels. The cheapest ones sell out very quickly. Last-minute tickets are very expensive.

Train is better as others have said, but if you fly into the London City Airport, it's on the Dockland LIght rail line and easy to get from there into the centre of town. Definitely easy and cheap compared to landing in Heathrow or Gatwick.

Just be careful if you consider London City Airport. I've looked into it several times but the closer location balanced with the fact that it is usually the most expensive of London's 6 airports for plane fares means I've never flown from there. It is a good hike from Bayswater, too.

Just keep in mind that if you fly, you also have to add in the pain, time and expense of getting out of central London to the airport and from the airport into central Paris. In most cases, that makes flying much longer and more expensive than taking the train, where you're city center to city center.

Is it $100 less total or $100 less per person?

IF $100 less overall, Eurostar is a no brainer. The amount of extra time you need at St. Pancras is a lot less than you need at any airport. And the experience is far more pleasurable.

Not to mention that the $100 will quickly be eaten up by the cost of getting four people out to Heathrow (or Gatwick) and in from CDG (or Orly).

And the Eurostar is much more comfortable than a plane. The seats are wider and more comfortable. I usually can't get comfortable on planes to sleep but fell asleep right away on the train. I also found it much easier for connections as the tube and metro are in the same station, compared to the usual hikes from stations to the airport. I have not flown inside of Europe since I dislike flying so others may have different opinions.

Eleanor - hope you don't mind me honing in on your post as I have a very similar question. I need to get from Manchester (UK) to Paris and it's looking like the train and plane are the same price (about $180) -- if I fly FlyBe. The flight is 1.5 hours; the train 6.5 hours. LOVE trains, but thinking the plane makes more sense -- until I read all the posts here. Keep thinking you still have to get to the station early and there's the changing stations in London. Would you all still recommend the train in my situation? Thinking the extra leg (Manchester-London) may turn it the other way?

Elaine

Elaine, it depends on which airport you land at in Paris and where your lodgings are. Take into consideration how much time it will take to get to your hotel to drop your luggage. Speaking of which, do you know the baggage limits on the flights? Don't forget that you may have to wait a while at the luggage carousel on arrival. Eurostar arrives at Paris Nord.

I would fly from Manchester to Paris unless I was really against the plane for phobia/environmentalist reasons.

Euston station where you arrive from Manchester, and St Pancras where the Eurostar departs, are in easy walking distance or a short bus ride, however.

Train, without any doubt.

How do you plan to get to the airport in London? And from CDG to central Paris? Cabs would more than eat up your $100. The fast Heathrow train (Heathrow Express) for 4 would, also. Even the cost of Underground or bus would eat into it significantly. Combine that with the time to get to the airports and it's just not worth it, IMO.

If I were in London, I'd give myself about an hour to get to the airport (more at rush hour), unless taking the express train. Add that to the 2 hours I like to arrive at the airport ahead of flight. That's 3 hours. Then the flight (1 hour). Then an hour to 1.5 to deplane, get bags and get into Paris. You're looking at 5-6 hours travel time, door to door.

For the train, depending on where your hotel is, 30 minutes to reach the station and arrive 30 minutes ahead. Then 2 hours on the train, then another 30-45 to town. You're at about 4 hours.

Also, flights can easily be delayed, by a few minutes or a few hours. The train is rarely delayed any significant amount.

Note that I am famously conservative about time frames, and am always significantly early for things. Do people cut it a lot closer, especially in the 2 hours before flight part? Yes, but I'm not comfortable with the risk.

I think what your actual dilemma here might be is the fact that you have kids with you. If you were by yourself or traveling with just your wife I would go with the airport but airports can be a nightmare with kids.

There are loads of hotels closer to the station that would be more suitable and this would mean so much less hassel in the morning. There is one hotel in kingscross that is pretty much part of the station.I think some of the Hotels can check you through with out going through all the hassle of security as well
http://www.cntraveller.com/news/2013/february/eurostar-transfer-service-from-london

"have permission to take passengers through security, bypassing any
queues, and onto the train, up to 30 minutes before departure."

I would imagine that this would make it a lot easier and justify the extra $100 spend for a smooth train ride and an easy check in. Airports wreck my head so I always try to avoid them.

ronanwals, your links refer to two different hotels. The hotel linked to is the one attached to Kings Cross station, the news story refers to the Renaissance St Pancras Hotel. As to whether the claim of faster access is worth paying extra for, half an hour is the standard deadline for checking in at St Pancras. The Renaissance St Pancras has some very mixed reviews on Tripadvisor and guests are often disappointed that most rooms are in a modern addition rather than the famous Victorian head building, which is now mostly private flats.