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What happens if UK connection to Eurostar is late?

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johnnychips

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I'm travelling from Doncaster to Gent in Belgium on Friday, catching the 1616 from Doncaster, then the 1904 from St Pancras to Brussels, the last train. What would happen if there was a delay on the ECML and I missed the 1904. I booked all tickets with Eurostar.

Would I get offered a seat on the first train on Saturday?
Are they obliged to put me up for the night?
As it happens, I HAVE to be in Gent by 0930, and I think this would just be doable via a train to Dover, ferry to Calais and train via Lille Flandres. Would this be reimbursable?

TBH I would expect most answers to be 'no'.

Do you think my travel insurance would cover it?

Thanks

PS - just an incidental. It wouldn't help me, but why are no foot passengers allowed on the Ramsgate-Oostende ferry?

John
 
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starrymarkb

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If your UK ticket is marked CIV then various protections kick in. I imagine they'd hotel you, you would certainly be put on the first train if there is space available at no extra cost (as a standby passenger - if the train is fully booked I doubt they'd bump someone else)

If you choose a reroute I don't think they are liable, but I could be wrong.

As for foot passengers, it might not be worth it given low numbers since E* and budget airlines, freight is where the money is on ferries.

Some Travel Insurance policies will cover delays, but check your excess and policy..
 

Yew

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Unless your Ticket is to London CIV, eurostar don have to give you a seat on the next train. However I doubt that they would refuse that to you.

I am unsure if a Ticket from London to London CIV would cover you from a legal standpoint if a train was late.
 

starrymarkb

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If the ticket was bought through Eurostar as a through fare then it would almost certainly be "CIV" endorsed
 

Yew

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Then as long as you dont miss your EC train, you will be fine :)

If you do run into any trouble, feel free to post on here, and I'm sure we can try to assist
 

Mike C

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If you missed your Eurostar service due to delays or cancellations on NR service on the outbound journey, you will be placed on the next available Eurostar service to your continental destination at no extra charge.

Regarding your hotel question, I am not sure. It might be worth calling the main booking line on 08432 186 186 and asking them.
 

johnnychips

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If you missed your Eurostar service due to delays or cancellations on NR service on the outbound journey, you will be placed on the next available Eurostar service to your continental destination at no extra charge.

Regarding your hotel question, I am not sure. It might be worth calling the main booking line on 08432 186 186 and asking them.

Thanks Mike. It is academic, as I would have to get there somehow. There is a train from Calais to Lille at 0635 then a connection to Gent, and I hope I would be able to get to Dover for some sort of night ferry. Anyway, this is very pessimistic!
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Oh no I can't

P and O website:

Foot passenger check-in: Foot passengers can only travel between the hours of 08:45-19:05 Dover-Calais and 07:05-20:55 Calais-Dover.

What is this all about? Passengers don't have to sit in their cars outside these times do they?
 

dvboy

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If you miss the Eurostar departing 1904, your next option is 0757 Saturday to Bruxelles-midi, you would be in Gent at 11:57.

I assume they would put you up for the night.

Not sure why P&O don't take foot passengers overnight, although there are reduced facilities on board the night sailings, perhaps the public transport connections at either end don't run at night, and they don't want people walking around the port.
 

johnnychips

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If you miss the Eurostar departing 1904, your next option is 0757 Saturday to Bruxelles-midi, you would be in Gent at 11:57.

I assume they would put you up for the night.

Not sure why P&O don't take foot passengers overnight, although there are reduced facilities on board the night sailings, perhaps the public transport connections at either end don't run at night, and they don't want people walking around the port.

Thanks. That's a good explanation about foot passengers. DFDS (?) don't seem to mention them on their website to Calais or Dunkerque, so I've emailed them.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
They don't.

Last possibility is Liverpool St dep 2100 via Hoek VH arrive Gent 1027!
 

Oscar

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I'm pretty sure as well that any hotel cost if you stayed overnight in London is reimbursable. I was once delayed travelling from Bruxelles-Midi to London St. Pancras and missed by East Coast connection: Eurostar refunded the £92 I spent on a Travelodge. This was a time of snow disruption (20th December 2010) but I don't see why any special rules (apart from no compensation) would have applied which don't apply normally in case of disruption.
 

lj9090

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I phoned up the Eurostar domestic ticket office recently to add on a domestic ticket to the 19.04, and asked this very question.
Bob at the other end confirmed that E* would provide a hotel, but I would need a note from the incoming operator to confirm the delay, as you'd expect.

Quick note on the domestic office; something I wasn't aware of is the very cheap domestic portions available from them attract a railcard discount, making them cheaper. Cost me less than if I'd booked the whole lot in one go, which I couldn't do that far out anyway.
 

stut

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Not sure why P&O don't take foot passengers overnight, although there are reduced facilities on board the night sailings, perhaps the public transport connections at either end don't run at night, and they don't want people walking around the port.

I imagine it's so unpopular as to be uneconomical. Foot passengers need additional gangways to be lifted and supervised, and a terminal to be staffed (or a bus to be run). Not really worth it if your revenue is going to be £8 a night.
 

johnnychips

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Outward journey fine but now sat in field for ages just inside French border between Brussels and Lille. Anybody know what's up

Edit - moving not as bad as thought. Will miss advanced ticket booked fom kings cross so I suppose will have to get train manager to sign ticket?
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Ticket Manager stamped and signed it with long explanation. However nobody checked ticket at Kings X or on train to Donny anyway. :|

Thanks to everybody who helped assuage my fears for this trip, which were groundless, but also answered some interesting points and gave info about the status of foot passengers (or lack of them) on ships. ;)
 
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brianthegiant

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My experience is that if you arrive at Eurostar gates, after the deadline for last people to pass security etc, but before the train has actually left, under normal circumstances they will let you take next train even with non-transferable ticket.
Whilst they recommend 30mins (10mins for business premiere), in practise I have found you can scrape through with 10 min to go in standard class, though its better to allow some contingency if possible.
 

tripleseis

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We were late for our Eurostar to Paris last week due to delays on the Northern Line. Thankfully they just put us on the next available train with no additional charge.
 

NY Yankee

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This question probably has been asked a million times, but how long does it take to travel from London to Paris on Eurostar, and how is the experience?
 

ainsworth74

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This question probably has been asked a million times, but how long does it take to travel from London to Paris on Eurostar, and how is the experience?

It takes about 2hrs 20mins (bit less on some services a bit more on others) and as for the experience I've never personally done it but there is a fair bit of information on Eurostar's website here and as always when it comes to travelling by rail in Europe (and most anywhere else) the man in seat 61 has something to say here.
 

Oscar

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If you want a description of the experience, then I can do my best, having done it many times. You check-in at London St. Pancras (or at Paris Gare du Nord on the return journey) at least 30 minutes before departure. This means that you press the barcode on your ticket against one of the ticket gates (or show it to Eurostar staff; sometimes there is a short queue at this point), then go through airport-style security scanning and then show your passport to French police. This normally only takes around 10 minutes. Then you are free to wait in the departure lounge underneath the platforms at St. Pancras where there are a few shops, you can get out money or simply wait on the usually ample seating. About 15-25 minutes before the train leaves (exact time seems to depend on when the train is ready) boarding is announced and everyone (the trains are 18 carriages long and can hold many hundreds of passengers) goes up one of two escalators to the platform (the escalator used depends on which end of the train you are booked in - Eurostar tickets are only sold with reservations). When the train leaves you travel through tunnels for about 10 minutes, then continue down to the Channel Tunnel on High Speed 2 at up to 300 km/h, crossing the spectacular Medway viaduct. Some trains stop at Ebbsfleet or Ashford. The trains enter the Channel Tunnel after around 35 minutes. The time in the tunnel is normally around 18 minutes and as far as I know the train travels at 170 km/h. After leaving the tunnel the train travels non-stop to Paris at 300 km/h along a high speed line to Lille and then the LGV Nord (some used to stop at Calais-Fréthun or Lille-Europe but these stops are now exclusively served by London - Brussels Eurostars). You will hardly see Lille as you pass through it mostly in tunnels. The northern French countryside is mostly very flat, particularly in the Nord-Pas de Calais region (Calais/Lille area) and so the journey is not particularly scenic.
When leaving Paris Nord you will need to pass through both French and UK Border Agency passport/visa (possibly for non-EU nationals) checks and go through security. In Paris you go up an escalator from the main concourse to go through these checks in an area above ground level on the western side of the station before redescending to the platforms via escalators (they are blocked off when a Eurostar is leaving).
On the London - Paris route on-train announcements/announcements in the departure lounges are bilingual English/French, with the language of the country the train is physically in coming first. All Eurostar staff speak both languages well.
You can save money on Eurostar tickets at the moment by choosing a version of Eurostar's website which allows you to buy in euros as well as by joining Eurostar Plus Points (or Frequent Traveller for business travellers).
See Seat 61 for another description (with photos).
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
To get back to the original subject, I remember seeing something recently amidst the revelations about two Advance Purchase tickets being used in succession being treated as one journey that not only London Intl/Estar CIV + Eurostar but also Advance Purchase to London Terminals + Eurostar is treated as a through journey. Do this remove the advantage of CIV tickets of being put on a later train in case of delay? Or is this only really relevant to UK-bound journeys as Eurostar may not follow these rules?
 

Mike C

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NY Yankee : I guess you're from NYC?! Or from the USA somewhere? If you get a flight over here to the UK I will book you a return on our train and you can experience it for real!

The summary by Oscar is pretty good though. It is 160km/h in the tunnel though. 140 for shuttles.
 

NY Yankee

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I'm from NYC. Given the opportunity, I would move to London, but it's not as easy as simply filling out an application. I'm trying to save some money so I can visit London sometime in the next 5 years. Oscar, thanks for the description.
 

dfurn

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Best to book Eurostar tickets telling the site you are from the US as that way you don't pay a credit card surcharge. So NY_Yankee would be best doing it before he leaves!
 

pitdiver

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Travelled on the E* when it used Waterloo Intl. The journey was a real grind through Kent but once into the Tunnel and into France it was an experience. Only went to Paris for the day just to ride the E*. As I worked for LUL in those days we were entitled to a special price. Made a good day out, but not impressed with Paris.
 

NY Yankee

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There's other things to do in Paris besides ride the trains. The women there are sexy, and there are all of the restaurants, museums, Eiffel Tower, and Arc de Triomphe.
 

MidnightFlyer

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There's other things to do in Paris besides ride the trains. The women there are sexy, and there are all of the restaurants, museums, Eiffel Tower, and Arc de Triomphe.

I was most disappointed with Paris - it gets built up so much, but away from the centre (even in it in places), it is very run down and looking sorry for itself, beggars etc, certainly not what you'd expect in the 'romantic capital of the world'. Give me London any day.
 

jon0844

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I was most disappointed with Paris - it gets built up so much, but away from the centre (even in it in places), it is very run down and looking sorry for itself, beggars etc, certainly not what you'd expect in the 'romantic capital of the world'. Give me London any day.

I have to agree, although my wife seems unable to see any of that and loves the city!

Personally, going to Paris (I've been on many day trips for business over the years) means enjoying Eurostar - and I really look forward to the train journey in both directions far more than being IN Paris!

When Eurostar first opened, I took a return to Brussels just to experience the train. Got there, waited an hour or two, then came straight back. Once the new trains and services begin, I'm sure I'll be testing them out too.

People speak of the 'romance' of GNER, but I always found Eurostar (up until recently going Leisure Select or whatever the 'cheap' first class was called) to be the best of the best. I really can't wait until trains go further into Europe without changing.
 

Greenback

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My wife is just the opposite. She hated Paris and said she will never go back! I, on the other hand, quite like the place!

We both enjoy the Eurostar though, including the St Pancras experience!
 

tripleseis

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Paris is a wonderful place, full of charm, character and interesting things (and I'm not talking about the obvious tourist sights either), but like all big cities has it's dingy rundown parts as well. I can't wait to go back again. The metro is great but the stations on the RER are in serious need of a refurb!
 

w0033944

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Here's a hypothetical question for those who've been on Eurostar: I'm a wheelchair user (yes, one of those awkward people, I'm afraid - electric wheelchair NOT scooter before floor damage etc. gets mentioned). Oscar mentioned escalators from the waiting area to the platforms - is the service therefore inaccessible for those who cannot stand?
 
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