How to take the thrilling high speed rail journey from London to Amsterdam

Note that London is in a different time zone to mainland Europe, it is one hour behind, so when looking at a timetable the journey will look as though it's an hour longer.

The current timetable typically comprises departures from St. Panrcras International at:

• 06:16 on Monday to Friday
• 08:16 daily
• 11:04 daily
• 18:04 not Saturday

If the timings of these direct trains don't suit, you can travel on one of the (usually) much more frequent alternative journey options which involve changing trains in Bruxelles/Brussels.

Final Destination: Amsterdam Centraal / Amsterdam CS

All trains also call at: Bruxelles - Midi and Rotterdam Centraal
These trains do not call at Ebbsfleet International or Ashford International.
These trains also don't call at Antwerpen-Centraal or Schiphol Airport

Departing from London

Eurostar is currently suggesting that Standard and Plus Premier ticket holders should be at St Pancras International, ready to board 75 mins before departure; and that Premier ticket holders should be there 30 mins prior to departure.
This advice does not mean that you should be generally at St Pancras International station, this much time ahead of departure - and therefore can use this time to have a meal or shop.

The departure gates will close 45 mins prior to departure for Standard and Plus ticket holders; and 15 mins prior to departure for Business Premier ticket holders.

It is up to you to allow time to pass through check-in etc and board the train, though teams of staff will aim to ensure that you won't miss the train if time is tight.

If you arrive after the ticket gates or checks close, Eurostar staff can deny boarding, but if you're there before the train’s departure time, you can ask at the ticket office for a seat on the next available train. If isn't fully booked you can be issued with a replacement ticket, but you had originally booked Standard or Plus tickets, you will be charged an additional flat fee.

Our guide to taking a Eurostar from London is here.

Book early and save: Yes

Online bookings open: up to around 6 month of the travel date.

Note that when travelling with Eurostar, the cost per leg when booking a return journey, is typically cheaper than the price of the single leg when booking a One Way /Single ticket.

Flexible tickets

On Eurostar trains to and from London, the only ticket type are the Flexible tickets, but it is the class of service you opt to travel by, which impacts on the terms and conditions of travel.

*Exchanges

Book to travel in Standard or Plus class:
The booked date and time can be exchanged to a different departure to the same destination up to one hour* before departure time.

• If the cost of your new ticket is more than the cost of your original ticket, you will be required to pay the difference;
• If the cost of your new ticket is less than the cost of your original ticket, you will not receive a refund of the difference.
  Note that on your day of departure, if your journey to St Pancras is being compromised and you know that you won't make the booked train in time more than an hour ahead - Taking time out to access the service you booked with and making an exchange, will typically be a cheaper option than having to re-book.

*Tickets that are exchanged less than seven days before the departure date to a new later departure date cannot then ne refunded

Book to travel in Premier class:
The booked date and time can be exchanged to a different departure to the same destination up until 48 hrs after your booked departure date.

• If the cost of your new ticket is more than the cost of your original ticket, you will be required to pay the difference;
• If the cost of your new ticket is less than the cost of your original ticket, you will not receive a refund of the difference.

On the travel day Eurostar offers a boarding guarantee to Premier ticket holders, enabling any other departure to be taken at no extra charge.
Though Eurostar may not be able to offer the same travel class or the same onboard services such as catering.

The Eurostar ticket terms summary is here

Refunds

Book to travel in Standard or Plus class:

• Up to seven days or more before the date of departure you will need to pay a fee of £25 per person for a one-way / single ticket and £50 per person for a two-way / return ticket - So you will only receive any sum you paid in excess of these sums.
• Less than seven days before the date of departure, tickets are non-refundable - Also applies if you exchanged a ticket to an alternative departure, under seven days ahead.
• If you have booked return ticket, but only want to cancel one way, you will in effect receive the price you paid for this single leg and not the typical cost of a one-way only single journey.

Book to travel in Premier class:
Tickets are refundable with no fee up until 48 hours after your original departure time, but they become non-refundable when the 48 hrs has passed.

If you have booked return ticket, but only want to cancel one way, you will in effect receive the price you paid for this single leg and not the typical cost of a one-way only single journey.

The Eurostar ticket terms summary is here

Seat Reservations

Reservations are mandatory so seats are assigned when booking - But after a booking has been completed, you use the ‘Manage Your Booking’ facility, which can be easily found on the Eurostar website and select specific seats within the travel class you have chosen.

As the fabulous Seat 61 explains here in detail (scroll down to 'Choosing A Seat') some seats on Eurostar services are better than others.

You don't need to have booked the ticket with Eurostar
You will need to enter a Booking Reference number - but other booking agents such as Trainline, Rail Europe, SNCF Connect, B-Europe and NS International, will also include this number on the communication sent to you.

Using Rail Passes on Eurostar:

Rail pass users can now pay reservation fees to travel on Eurostar trains, in a similar manner to other international European high speed trains.

The new rail pass reservation fees are similar to the cheapest single journey ticket prices, but as those cheapest tickets can sell out quickly, it's likely that the rail pass reservation fees will save money.

You can purchase these online with no booking fees with Rail Europe - see this guide on how to do this.
Booking in advance is recommended as it's not unknown for rail pass reservations on Eurostar services to sell out days or weeks in advance, there is evidently limited availability per departure.

Or you can obtain a rail pass reservations without paying a booking fee at Eurostar stations.
However, if you want to do this on the day of travel be prepared to be flexible re: the train you will take.

If you are a UK resident, your rail pass + reservation is only valid if you take a train from the UK on the first day that your pass is valid for.

If the timings of the direct trains don't suit, the other option for taking the journey by train from London to Amsterdam is to make a connection between trains in Bruxelles-Midi station.

The newly rebranded Eurostar (formerly Thalys) trains depart the Belgian capital in most hours for Amsterdam Centraal, hence onward transfers being possible from the Eurostar trains from London, which don't travel further than Bruxelles.
Hence there being more journeys per day available when taking the combination of Eurostar + Eurostar (formerly Thalys), compared to travelling direct to Amsterdam.

On the journey options with a total travel time of less than 4hr 50min, the connecting time on to the Eurostar (formerly Thalys) is around 45mins - which should ensure a stress-free transfer at Midi/Zuid station, even if the Eurostar arrives more 20 mins late.

Using rail passes

There are also now newly introduced ECD services which depart
However, they arrive at Amsterdam-Zuid station, which lives up to its name with a location to the south of the tourist heart of the city, in its main business district.
Though Amsterdam Zuid is connected to the city centre by line 52 of the Amsterdam Metro - So if your final destination in the city is convenient to the Metro stations at Vijzelgracht and Rokin

Users of [Eurail and InterRail passes]/train-ticket-guides/our-guide-to-using-eurail-and-interrail-passes/) don't have to pay reservations on these ECD - because reservations aren't available when travelling by them.

In contrast the rail pass reservation fees on the Eurostar (formerly Thalys) trains are near the top of the most expensive fees for rail pass users list.

The fees for rail pass users on the direct London to Amsterdam trains are similar to when travelling to Bruxelles, but they tend to sell out faster.
So if they are not available the combination of Eurostar + InterCity trains becomes the cheapest option when using Eurail or InterRail passes.

At St Pancras:

Eurostar is currently suggesting that Standard Class And Standard Premier ticket holders should be at the Eurostar departure area in St Pancras International 90 mins before departure; and that Business Premier ticket holders should be there 45-60mins prior to departure.

The departure gates will close 30 mins prior to departure for Standard Class And Standard Premier ticket holders; and 15 mins prior to departure for Business Premier ticket holders.

Our guide to taking a Eurostar from London is here.

Note that London is in a different time zone to mainland Europe, it is one hour behind; hence what can seem like a discrepancy between the journey time and the interval between the departure and arrival times.

Book Early And Save: Yes

Online bookings open: up to 6 months ahead of the travel date
This booking period tends to be shorter when looking up journeys between mid August and mid October.

Seat reservations are automatically included when booking tickets on the Eurostar and Eurostar Thalys trains

Eurostar ticket terms summary:

The only ticket type are the Flexible tickets, but it is the class of service you opt to travel by, which impacts on the terms and conditions of travel.

*Exchanges

Book to travel in Standard and Standard Premier class:
The booked date and time can be exchanged to a different departure to the same destination up to one hour* before departure time.

• If the cost of your new ticket is more than the cost of your original ticket, you will be required to pay the difference;
• If the cost of your new ticket is less than the cost of your original ticket, you will not receive a refund of the difference.

Book to travel in Premier class:
The booked date and time can be exchanged to a different departure up until the end of the previous day, without having to pay any price differences on any other charges.

The Eurostar ticket terms summary is here

Refunds

Book to travel in Standard and Standard Premier class:

• Up to seven days or more before the date of departure you will need to pay a fee of £25 per person for a one-way / single ticket and £50 per person for a two-way / return ticket - So you will only receive any sum you paid in excess of these sums.
• Less than seven days before the date of departure, tickets are non-refundable - Also applies if you exchanged a ticket to an alternative departure, under seven days ahead.

Book to travel in Premier class:
Up until the end of the day before departure date, tickets can be refunded at no additional cost

Seat Reservations on the Eurostar

Reservations are mandatory so seats are assigned when booking - But after a booking has been completed, you use the ‘Manage Your Booking’ facility, which can be easily found on the Eurostar website and select specific seats within the travel class you have chosen.

You don't need to have booked the ticket with Eurostar
You will need to enter a Booking Reference number - but other booking agents such as Trainline, Rail Europe, SNCF Connect, B-Europe and NS International, will also include this number on the communication sent to you.

What if you miss a booked connection in Bruxelles:

There is relatively new E.U. legislation which protects travellers against financial loss in the event of missed connections due to train delays, and it applies to 'through tickets'.

Eurostar classifies end-to-end journeys involving Eurostar + Eurostar Thalys trains as 'through tickets',
Though these new E.U. 'rules' protecting against financial loss don't apply in the exceptional circumstances causing a delay to the Eurostar, which can include - extreme weather conditions, the behaviour of a third party such as persons on the track; and on-board emergencies.

So in summary, SMTJ's understanding is that;

• if a delayed Eurostar causes a missed connection in Bruxelles tickets can be transferred to the next departure
• if a delayed Eurostar in non-exceptional circumstance results in a missed connection into a Eurostar Thalys train AND an overnight stay in Bruxelles is then required, there will be compensation for the cost of the overnight accommodation;
• if exceptional circumstances cause a missed connection into a Eurostar Thalys train, the overnight accommodation costs won't be covered;

Much more info is available on this ticketing guide.

Using Rail Passes on Eurostar:

Taking this combination of trains can be a good option if the timings of the direct London to Amsterdam trains don't suit.

Rail pass users can now pay reservation fees to travel on Eurostar trains, in a similar manner to other international European high speed trains.

The new rail pass reservation fees are similar to the cheapest single journey ticket prices, but as those cheapest tickets can sell out quickly, it's likely that the rail pass reservation fees will save money.

You can purchase these online with no booking fees on B-Europe.
Booking in advance is recommended, as it's not unknown for rail pass reservations on specific Eurostar services to sell weeks in advance, there is evidently limited availability per departure.

In the unlikely event of missing the booked connection in Bruxelles/Brussels, due to a late arriving Eurostar, reservations can be transferred free of charge to a subsequent Eurostar Thalys departure at the SNCB International Ticket Office in Bruxelles-Midi station.