Check in Eurostar

[peteb]

Bizarrely, given the flack St. Pancras has had, our outward journey 1201 last Tuesday went very smoothly, despite a crowded waiting area. At Gare du Nord yesterday they'd corralled people into pens according to train. This worked ok up to a point, but then there was a lot of crossover traffic going from the pens to the UK scanners on the left and the EU passport lanes on the right. Also the baggage scan being after the passport checks (seems the wrong way round) causes blockages, do you can't go through scanners till the melee has cleared beyond. And for some reason, a pen of 1810 passengers was sent ahead of several pens of waiting 1710 passengers. What I found strange was the number of empty seats in standard coach 10, (at least a dozen or so) given that announcements were saying that trains were very busy!

This made me think, if you've gone through passport control, and only then have your bags checked, then they find something dodgy/offensive/illegal sufficient to warrant you being hauled out by the security forces, how are you dealt with? Technically you've entered the UK by then............it seems weird doing it that way and not as per an airport, doing security first then going through border controls for a non-schengen destination. Does anyone know why it's this way round?

 

[signed]

Gare du Nord experience would be so much better if they actually enforced the 60min check-in time at the ground level preventing early people to go up.

That queue on the first floor, before the checks is panic-inducing causing people to come earlier and earlier

Passports machines on the French side being horrendously slow/unable to read only adds up to the situation.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Although it was very hot we saw no rain (or cloud even) on the French side of the tunnel, but it was very grey once in the UK.

The storms were to the west of Paris in the afternoon and moved up towards the Channel and across to Kent in the evening.

Multiple videos on Twitter from Meteo France showed huge hailstones, some the size of tennis balls. Lightning maps showed a solid band of lightning west and north of Paris itself which looked to be some 20 miles wide and 40 or 50 miles long.

Hence my wondering, because such an intensity would certainly be enough to cause disruption across all modes?

 

[Trainbike46]

Bizarrely, given the flack St. Pancras has had, our outward journey 1201 last Tuesday went very smoothly, despite a crowded waiting area. At Gare du Nord yesterday they'd corralled people into pens according to train. This worked ok up to a point, but then there was a lot of crossover traffic going from the pens to the UK scanners on the left and the EU passport lanes on the right. Also the baggage scan being after the passport checks (seems the wrong way round) causes blockages, do you can't go through scanners till the melee has cleared beyond. And for some reason, a pen of 1810 passengers was sent ahead of several pens of waiting 1710 passengers. What I found strange was the number of empty seats in standard coach 10, (at least a dozen or so) given that announcements were saying that trains were very busy!

St Pancras has had a lot of border booths added, as well as new ePassport gates. Those things have massively improved the border and queueing situation, though as you say the waiting area beyond security isn't really big enough (or people go through security too early!).

 

[Taunton]

If you were to arrive at St Pancras Intl at 0559 for a 0704 train to Brussels, would you be allowing yourself enough time to check in for this train. I appreciate ES says 90mins, but at this time of the morning, would it be that busy that an hour wouldn’t be enough.

The only issue with this approach, I don't know Eurostar's arrangements but have found this at comparable airports, is where due to a staff agreement anyone who starts shift before 0600 gets paid full night rate for the shift. Thus only one gate gets staffed before this time, and by the time those coming on duty at 0600 have got into position and opened up ifurther gates t can be 0620 or later.

 

[NCT]

I've caught the 0616 to Brussels a number of times and have never found the number of lanes open to be an issue.

 

[DesDobramento]

Picking up on recent comments - at London St Pancras, there can be up to 3 departures in an hour, and queuing (often out into the concourse even when there is no disruption) is in organised line by departure time - intending travellers should adhered to the advertised 'check-in' time especially at this time of year which is the beginning of the 'busy' season, and early morning departures are often full, not with those travelling for business reasons but for visitors from other countries travelling around Europe for holidays.

At Brussels, those travelling in the 'business class' have no priority through passport control.

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[SephenWorceste]

The lounge at St Pancras is never going to feel spacious. A low ceiling, little natural light and so many pillars all work against it. A document linked on this site suggested that there was a short term plan. Most of which seemed to be implemented by my trip last month.

More capacity for the two border checks. I suppose you just give the two governments more money. More capacity at the security checks. Machines that process people faster were mentioned. This would allow check in at an hour to thirty minutes prior to departure. Embarkation of trains bought forward to half an hour before departure. With these measures and a train every half hour there would never be more than one train load in the lounge. When there is more than one train every half hour it might still be difficult. Adding more trains particularly for other operators would require substantial building works.

How about something more radical. Combine the checkin, UK border and EU border in to one. Only security check one in four passengers.

 

[Hadders]

I travelled on the 07:04 from St Pancras to Brussels last Wednesday.

Despite my ticket telling me to be at check-in at 05:50 I took the 05:47 from Stevenage to St Pancras, arriving at 06:14. I attempted to buy a newspaper (impossible at both St Pancras and Kings Cross at that time of the morning as WHSmith at both stations were closed!) and checked-in about 06:25.

There were lots of people in the queues, although it was moving pretty fast. I don't think these were people for the 07:01 Paris or 07:04 Brussels, but for the 07:30-ish departures.

Security was a breeze, straight through. Passports was the best I've seen St Pancras since Broxit. A manual check UK exit check, French e-gates than a manual stamp from 'Monsieur'. Departures area was very cramped (and no newspapers on sale either!). Boarding commenced about five minutes after I got through passports. I decided to let the masses board the train, took a vacated seat in the departure lounge then sauntered up the ramp about 10 minutes before departure!

Coming back I was on the 19:27 from Brussels. I checked in about 18:40. Straight through passports and security. The waiting lounge seemed quite cramped although if you walked right round to the far end there were loads of seats.

At St Pancras it looks as though they are building additional departure waiting area under the exit ramps. There's seating in place so I wonder how long it will be before this area gets opened up? I suspect yo will have to use the platform exit ramps to get to the platforms from this area with appropriate security controls needing to be in place to make sure departing and arriving passengers don't mix.

I took Eurostar to Paris back in January. The Gare du Nord experience was not good. Long queues, lack of seats in the departure area etc. Overall not a good passenger experience.

It's all very well telling people to arrive earlier but there needs to be sufficient waiting capacity for people to be seated in relative comfort. In addition if Eurostar want you to arrive 60-90 minutes prior to departure then flying suddenly becomes more competitive time wise.

 

[Trainbike46]

Coming back I was on the 19:27 from Brussels. I checked in about 18:40. Straight through passports and security. The waiting lounge seemed quite cramped although if you walked right round to the far end there were loads of seats.

The last two times I was at the Brussels station, the departures area had the feel of a building site where the workers kind of just left partway through? With a badly located shop in everyone's way, that is. Has it improved at all?

At St Pancras it looks as though they are building additional departure waiting area under the exit ramps. There's seating in place so I wonder how long it will be before this area gets opened up? I suspect yo will have to use the platform exit ramps to get to the platforms from this area with appropriate security controls needing to be in place to make sure departing and arriving passengers don't mix.

I have used the departure area at the arrivals side once, at a very busy time. It has separate security and passport checking from the main depatures area. you do indeed go up using the exit ramps. It is only used for passengers on specific trains when it is used. The door layout they have allows them to switch the ramps from accesible to the arrivals area or the departures, to keep the areas separate.

It's all very well telling people to arrive earlier but there needs to be sufficient waiting capacity for people to be seated in relative comfort. In addition if Eurostar want you to arrive 60-90 minutes prior to departure then flying suddenly becomes more competitive time wise.

Yes, early arrivals are a problem. It would be better if they sugessted people arrive between 30-60 minutes in advance, and don't let people join the queue until 60 minutes before departure at the earliest.

 

[Hadders]

The last two times I was at the Brussels station, the departures area had the feel of a building site where the workers kind of just left partway through? With a badly located shop in everyone's way, that is. Has it improved at all?

It was the first time I'd used Brussels Midi so I don't know what it was like before. It did have the feel of a building site in places so I guess (hope) that work is still going on. Walking through the shop to get to the waiting area felt like being in an airport.

I have used the departure area at the arrivals side once, at a very busy time. It has separate security and passport checking from the main depatures area. you do indeed go up using the exit ramps. It is only used for passengers on specific trains when it is used. The door layout they have allows them to switch the ramps from accesible to the arrivals area or the departures, to keep the areas separate.

That's interesting. I dodn't know that area was already in use.

 

[Jamesrob637]

Eurostar try to stagger the times to minimise overcrowding at the terminal as much as possible - get there too early and you're there before the people who have come for the previous train(s) have cleared.

The tickets will tell you how early they want you to be there. Last time I travelled mine said 45-60 minutes, I'm going again next month on the same service (11:04 from London) and the ticket says to arrive by 09:49, so 75 mins before. Curiously, the one I've booked for July says, for the outbound leg from London, "Please arrive at a kiosk in the station at the time indicated above", rather than the usual "Please arrive at the Eurostar departures in the station by XX:XX local time". The only times "indicated above" are the departure and arrival times - if anyone takes that literally it would cause them problems! The return leg says to arrive at 12:01 for a 12:56 departure from Brussels, so 55 mins.

Back on topic, I would have no worries at all about arriving at 0559 for an 0704 departure.

We took the 11:31 from London to Paris last Sunday (8th) and there was quite a queue because people for the 11:04 Amsterdam train were checking in too. We allowed 75min which was fine.

 

[WolvertonWorks]

13:31 from St P to Paris on Sunday 26th May - line opened at 12:00 on the dot and we joined it and worked our way round, through the ticket scanners and security then everything came to a halt for what seemed a very long time, maybe 10-15 minutes, because, we think, the e-gates had gone down. They started moving everyone through the manual passport checks and as we went through they appeared to get the e-gates back in action. Because of the delay there wasn't a long wait until boarding but the waiting area was pretty full.

Return was from Lille at 18:36 on Tuesday 10th June. Managed to join the queue at just the right time, we thought, so we were only about 10th in the queue. We were using Interrail passes with reservations. Scanned reservation and it was rejected - staff member looked at it and asked if we had passes, yes we said so we were told to go and join the Premier queue and a chap checked our passes and let us through. Would have been helpful if there had been some signs telling those with passes they needed to join the other queue.

Quickly through security and getting passports stamped and plenty of room in the waiting area - felt so much nicer than St P but I guess they don't have the volume that St P has to deal with.