We are planning to take Eurostar from Brussels next spring before boarding a cruise departing Southampton.
Is it possible to get off the train prior to reaching London? We have been to London and thought if we could depart the train prior to London along the southeast coast we could work our way to Southampton via bus or local train. Any suggestions?
Thanks!
A few stop at Ebbsfleet, or Ashford. Looking at a weekday in the near future, 12:07. 14:11, 17:11, 19:37 stop at Ebbsfleet Int'l. The 16:11 stops at Ashford Int'l.
Ebbsfleet is a useless station for your purpose, it is on the edge of London and caters from the "park and ride" market from outer London and adjacent areas. Train connections only into and out of London.
Ashford is a better option, it has connections along the south coast. But, if you are going to Southampton that is SW from London (Ashford is SE) it would be quicker to go via London. If you are planning to stop off on the way, you have lots of nice options: Rye, Lewes, Brighton, Arundel, Chichester, Portsmouth all on the rail line.
Ashford also has very few trains stopping there. Current Eurostar timetable is here: https://content-static.eurostar.com/documents/427437_Timetables%20Core%20destination_Issue%2081_UK%20EN.PDF
Yes. Ashford has very few Eurostar trains, and is not very convenient if you are going directly to Southampton. (You can go from Ashford to Hastings and then follow the coast all the way round, but it's a time-consuming all-stations trip)
