On Mon, 17 May 2004 11:54:00 +0100, Sam Holloway
wrote:

Hi folks,

Could anyone who's been on Eurostar from Waterloo comment on how early
it's worth checking-in? The tickets say I must arrive no later than 30
mins before the departure (which is fair enough) - is it worth turning
up much earlier than this in practice?

Be very careful as to which day you are travelling. If it is mid week
and not at peak times I doubt you'd face any queues whatsoever - 30 mins
will be fine. However Friday / Sunday evenings - for the usual weekend
dash home (for those working in either capital) or weekend away can
cause Waterloo to jam solid. Be careful about school holidays / ski
breaks or similar. Allow loads of check in time if travelling at a peak
time.

I once took well over an hour to reach the train having had to queue on
Waterloo main concourse, then in line in the Eurostar ticket hall, then
to get through security and immigration, then to get to the platform and
on to the train. It was absolutely horrendous. All the trains were late
and everyone was very tense and fed up with people panicking that they
were going to miss their trains. It took over 30 minutes for Eurostar
management to wake up to the fact that they had a crisis on their hands
and that they needed to reassure their customers that they would not be
left stranded.

Also take care to pack your luggage sensibly, don't carry anything that
is likely to cause problems at the security check and make sure you can
transfer all keys, coins etc into your hand luggage for the x ray check.
All that helps get through security faster.

On the return be aware that you have to clear French and UK immigration
in Paris and then French customs. Oh and then you may have to clear UK
immigration (again) and UK customs in London - I really do find this to
be completely ludicrous. Still it keeps civil servants employed I
suppose.

Enjoy Eurostar - just try to ignore the tedium in getting through the
terminals.
--
Paul C


Admits to working for London Underground!