how to get from Earl's court in London to St. pancras EARLY

The Tube doesn't run early enough for you. Whether you take the bus or a taxi, you'll need to arrive at St. Pancras International before 05:00. The Eurostar's check-in deadline is 30 minutes before departure.

According to www.viamichelin.com, it's 8km from Earl's Court to St. Pancras International and the estimated driving time is around 15 minutes. I can't give you an educated cost estimate, but for that short distance the taxi fare shouldn't be too bad.

According to the taxi fare guide for London (see below), a cab at that hour will run about 35-40 GBP

Taxi Fares

Frank, thanks for posting the taxi fare guide. 8km = 5.8 miles. So it looks to me like the fare will be under £30, even at the higher rate for the time of day.

According to Google Maps directions, it's 7.1 miles from the Earls Court Station to St. Pancras. That would make it between 35 and 40 GBP.

I just checked maps.google.co.uk and got a distance of 5.6 miles and a driving time estimate of 20 minutes.

Your hotel or B&B can probably get you the best rate. Our B&B at Earl's Court got us a good deal (think it was o/a 20/25 GBP) because of the wee morning hour. Tell us here on the BLOG that you are making advance reservations for the EUROSTAR. My $70 ticket..each way (advance purchase with restrictions) was a heck of a lot cheaper than the $300 this Japanese guy was going to have to pay when he was attempting to get a same day ticket. Be sure to check out the Eurostar web page if you haven't already done so.

True, Tim, you can go a more direct route streetwise that is 5. 6 miles. That according to google will take 24 minutes. The route I was first shown was 7.1 miles and took 21 minutes. (Google Maps also once said I could go from one end of L.A. to another in 20 minutes...an hour and a half later......times on Google Maps are estimates without traffic based on posted speed limits, traffic lights and stop signs.)

London cab drivers are supposed to take the fastest route. Driving through central London will undoubetdly take longer than going north from Earl Court and then taking the Westway onto Marylebone to St. Pancras. Less chance of congestion. And London can get early morning congestion. That's why if you want to drive in London, you have to pay a congestion charge. There is a lot of congestion.

So let's say the cab will be between 30 & 40 GBP with reservation and time of day.

Thanks, everyone, for the information! We are going in May, and right now I could book our Eurostar tickets for $98. Is it too soon, or should I get them now?

We're just trying to best utilize our time. Paris is going to be shorter than we wanted, so an extra couple of hours will help, I suppose. No plans the evening before, so it will be an early night....hopefully catch some ZZZZs on the ride over. We're early to bed, early to rise type of people anyways...so hopefully it will work out well. Thank, Marie, for the info....we'll probably book soon. We're 5 months out......(WOW!)

Jodi...if no plans the night before, why not take the late train to Paris rather than take the first train the following morning?

Yes, that is probably a good idea and would probably be easier than getting up at 4 am! We are considering it.....

Once I buy my airline ticket I've comitted myself to the trip (barring disaster). My last trip I bought two roundtrip Eurostar tickets London to Paris 4, maybe 5 months ahead of time. I buy the cheapest ticket I can knowing that if it all goes to hell in a handbasket I'm out of luck on any non-refundable purchases. Sometimes you have to play the reasonable odds. Just curious, why the determination to get the earlest train? You'd have to be up and at it at o-dark thirty. You'll probably end up snoozing most of the two hour + trip and arrive tired. Plus you probably can't check in at your new accommodation till after 11 (although most places will allow you to leave your bag).