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London to Amsterdam by train

How difficult would it be to get from the London Heathrow Airport to Amsterdam Centraal?

Approximately how long are train rides from Heathrow to St. Pancras to Brussels to Amsterdam? And how often do they run? Would I need to validate my eurail pass in St. Pancras or the airport?

Also, I haven't purchased the reservation on the eurostar yet because I'm wanting to make sure our flight gets in on time and we allow for enough time to make it to St. Pancras. Is this alright? Or do the trains generally fill up?

Let me know! Trying to do all the math before we leave! Less than 3 weeks! :)

Posted by
8700 posts

It's a one-hour Tube ride on the Piccadilly Line from LHR to King's Cross/St Pancras. Trains run about every five minutes. Your pass won't be good on the Tube, but the fare is only £4.50.

There is a mandatory minimum check-in time of 30 minutes for the Eurostar.

You will need to validate your pass at St. Pancras. Here's a quote from the Eurostar page in the Railpasses section of this site: "Travel with a Passholder discount ticket must take place during the validity period of a railpass that covers one end of that day's Eurostar route (Britain, France, or Belgium). This trip does not use one of your counted travel days on a flexipass. However, both flexi- and consecutive-type passes must be validated. For instance, if you have a Passholder ticket from London to Paris and a Eurailpass for use on the continent, then you must have the Eurailpass validated at the station in London before boarding the Eurostar train. Class of service for this trip (first or standard) need not match your railpass."

For more details, go here.

I think it would be wise to buy your passholder ticket for the Eurostar in advance, but a better source of information than me would be the experts at Budget Europe Travel Service. Call their US toll-free number.

After you get to Brussels, you have two choices for getting from there to Amsterdam. 1. Buy a passholder's ticket for a high-speed Thalys train. 2. Jump on any IC train.

I think that there is a limited number of passholder fare tickets sold for Thalys trains. Again, ask the experts at BETS.

Go to www.eurostar.com for timetables for London-Brussels.

Go to www.thalys.com for timetables for Brussels-Amsterdam. The trip takes 1hr53min.

IC trains from Brussels to Amsterdam run once an hour and depart at 18 minutes past the hour. The trip takes 2hr48min.

Posted by
18 posts

First time traveler, so I apologize for my ignorance...

What is the Piccadilly? I saw some connection between Heathrow Terminal 4 and St. Pancras being 2 hours or so. I believe I was on the bahn.de website.

And would I just be able to buy a ticket for the Eurostar at the counter, provided I leave the 30 minute time frame window for checking in & boarding?

If my flight arrives at 7am, could I make it to Amsterdam by 6pm or so? Expecting long days for travel.

Posted by
8700 posts

The Piccadilly Line is one of the lines on the London Underground, commonly called the Tube. The Piccadilly Line runs directly from Heathrow to King's Cross/St Pancras. From Terminal 4 to King's Cross/St Pancras the travel time is 1hr2min. From there it's a very short walk to St Pancras International, the station for the Eurostar.

Yes, you could buy your passholder fare ticket at the counter, providing that seats are available. Ask the people at Budget Europe Travel Service if there is an allotted number of passholder fare seats for each Eurostar train and if it is possible that they would be gone if you try to buy one at the last minute.

Yes, you could be in Amsterdam around 18:00. Schedules on Saturdays and Sundays can be different from those on weekdays. What day of the week will you arrive in London?

Posted by
18 posts

Is there any reason I was seeing close to a 2 hour travel on the bahn.de website?

An hour looks so much nicer! :)

We'll arrive at Heathrow at 7:05am on Thursday, April 1st. How much time should I plan for going through customs?

Posted by
4132 posts

I'd fly, if possible. I mean, you are already at the airport.

Posted by
18 posts

I thought about that - the flying.

I see a fare on British Airways for $132. But I've already spent money on the railpass, so why not just get a passholder fare for $86? It's only a difference of $46. But still, that's $46 that I'd be putting towards hostels and food and whatnot.

But what about this British Airways strike that is going on...? Or will be going on...?

I don't know. What would you guys suggest?

Posted by
18 posts

Do the prices on easyjet fluctuate? Because right now, the prices seem a lot higher than you're indicating.

How long is the bus ride between the airports?

And the flight I've been watching on Orbitz is for British Airways. I'm just concerned because of the strike. Based on their website, it seems that some flights are still operating while others "may" operate off other carriers, and others will be canceled.

Posted by
8700 posts

The DB site doesn't show timetables for city transit systems like the London Underground. The nearly two-hour route you saw was for taking various National Rail surface trains requiring multiple connections.

You should allow up to one hour to clear immigration/passport control.

If your flight is on time, you will be able to catch the 11:04 Eurostar to Brussels. If your flight is late enough that you miss that train, you should have no trouble catching the 12:57 Eurostar.

As I said in an earlier note, from Brussels you will have your choice of buying a passholder fare ticket on a high-speed Thalys train to Amsterdam or simply hoping on the next InterCity train (an hour slower, but "free" with your pass). Check the timetables on the DB site to see which train to Amsterdam will get you there the fastest. It's possible that you will have a shorter connection time if you take an IC train; but because Thalys trains are faster, you might arrive in Amsterdam just as soon--or sooner--by taking a Thalys train, even with a longer connection time in Brussels.

Edit: Yes, fares on easyJet or any budget airline are cheapest if booked months in advance and fairly expensive if booked at the last minute. Fares keep going up as more tickets are sold.

If your plane were late getting to Heathrow, causing you to miss the strict check-in deadline which all budget airlines have, your ticket would be worthless. You would have gone through the time and effort to transfer to another airport, all for nothing.

If you're worried about BA, you could check fares on BMI. There is a flight that leaves Heathrow for Amsterdam at 10:30.

Or stick with your original plan, use your railpass, and take the train. The pass gives you flexibility, which will work in your favor if you're late arriving at Heathrow.

Posted by
4555 posts

Jenny...as the cheaper tickets are sold on discount airlines, the prices go up. With only 3 weeks until your travel, it's no surprise there are no super-discount prices left.

Posted by
8700 posts

Ryanair does not fly to Amsterdam from anywhere, including any London airport.

Posted by
18 posts

Thank you to everyone who has replied and helped me! And especially thank you to pointing me towards skyscanner.net - showing me more than Orbitz!

We decided that we'll be traveling long enough on March 31st and the first half of April 1st, so we booked a flight and we're simply hoping that everything is on time & the strike doesn't continue longer than expected, and we'll just start enjoying our vacation!

"Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst." If something goes wrong, we'll worry about it if/when it happens.

Thanks again to all!! :)
15 days.

Posted by
18 posts

Oh one other thing...

Do Eurostar prices fluctuate often as well? The passholder fare was $86 for the longest time, but is now $130! And the youth fare is just about the same.

Running low on seats, perhaps? Hmm.

Anyways, if all goes according to plan, we'll spend the same amount (or slightly less) and get to Amsterdam 4 hours earlier than planned. AND we won't need to activate our rail pass so early!

Posted by
8700 posts

I just learned that I will need to retract my suggestion to fly BMI. Service from Heathrow to Amsterdam will be suspended after 28 March.