How to take a thrilling high speed rail journey from London to Angers for access to the Loire Valley

The variations in the end-to-end journey times are due to the differences in the periods of time between the arrival of a Eurostar in Paris and the departure of a TGV train on to Angers.

The end-to-end journey times of under 5hrs mins all allow less than 1hr 15mins to make the transfer in Paris from the Gare Du Nord to the Gare Montparnasse.

So targeting the journey options with an end-to-end time of more than 5hrs can be a good idea.
In the rare event of the Eurostar arriving in Paris 20 - 40 minutes late, making those fastest connections into the TGV on to Angers will become a race against time!

An option is to split the booking into London to Paris and Paris to Angers journeys so that you can set a connecting time that suits you.

Or an option is to target the alternative journey options involve changing trains in Lille
The big tick in the box for changing trains in Lille is the avoidance of the awkward transfer across Paris.

Though there are also three ticks in the box for choosing this routing via Paris:
(1) More departures to choose from
(2) Tends to be cheaper
(3) The end-to-end journey time is quicker

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.

Departing from the Gare Montparnasse

The Eurostar will arrive in Paris at the Gare Du Nord, but the train on to Angers will depart from the Gare Montparnasse

This guide explains how to make the transfer between the two stations on the Paris Metro.
What's good to know is that the journey from stepping off the Eurostar to being on the concourse at Montparnasse will typically take around 40 -45mins - and the journey is not step-free.

The easier public transport alternative is to take bus line / route 91
Though you will need to allow at least an hour to make the journey, so this won't be possible when booking end-to-end journey tickets.

Or avoid the need to make your own way across the French capital by making a connection between trains at Lille Europe station; see option 2.

Using Rail Passes:

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 on B-Europe.
Booking in advance is recommended as it's not unknown for rail pass reservations on specific Eurostar services to sell out weeks in advance, there is evidently limited availability per departure.

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 for both trains.

Your ticket will not include the Metro train across Paris from the Gare Du Nord to the Gare Montparnasse.

When searching for tickets on Eurostar 'Angers Saint Laud' will be appear in the 'To' search box, Angers-Saint Laud is the name of the station in central Angers.

The very cheapest tickets tend to sell out particularly quickly on the alternative route via Lille so this routing via Paris tends to be cheaper.
They're also generally more likely to be available if you can travel on a Tuesday - Thursday, or are happy to set off from London early in the morning.

Eurostar train's general ticket terms:

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 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.

General ticket terms for TGV InOui trains

The terms on SNCF Connect state:
'Tickets can only be exchanged (adjustment to the current fare) and refunded prior to departure: 40% of the price 6 days prior to departure (€15 max fee). From 30 minutes prior to departure, tickets can be exchanged up to two times (for the same day and the same journey), and are non-refundable after the first exchange'.
Which could be clearer, but it seems as though the three key things to be aware of are:

1. Exchanges and refunds are free up to 7 days before departure.
2. If you are travelling on a TGV InOui train and want to amend your booking in the 6 days before departure, you must pay an amendment fee of €19 per person per person for an exchange or a refund.
3. In the 30 minutes before departure, refunds cannot be requested and exchanges are only allowed for the same journey later that day. The same amendment fees apply to the exchange.

Making the connection in Paris:

There is relatively new E.U. legislation which protects travellers against financial loss in the event of missed connections due to train delays, but it only applies to 'through tickets'.
The Eurostar terms and conditions specifically state that when booking journeys which combine Eurostar + Eurostar Thalys trains 'through tickets' will be issued.
'However, 'for all other journeys that combine a Eurostar Service and a service provided by another carrier (such as the TGV on from Paris) including when purchased in a single commercial transaction, those tickets will be separate contracts and issues regarding delays, missed connections, cancellations, compensation, and the management of aftersales will be handled accordingly'.

But SNCF, which operates the train on to Angers, has signed up to Agreement on Journey Continuation (AJC) policy for when a traveller holds separate transport 'contracts' for an end-to-end journey involving more than one train.
So this agreement applies both when 'a bundle' of tickets / contracts is issued as the result of a single transaction - and if travellers have bought several different tickets for their journey, even from different sales channels/ticket providers.
As long as the passenger had planned enough connecting time to change trains (called “reasonable connecting time”), the AJC will apply.

So in usual* circumstances, if a delay to a Eurostar has caused a booked connection on to Angers to be missed, replacement tickets/reservations will be issued at the Gare Montparnasse.
*= But that new E.U legislation specifically states that in exceptional circumstances, the train operators do not need to issue replacement tickets - and the terms and conditions on the SNCF Connect website reiterate this.
These exceptional circumstances specifically stated in Regulation (EU) 2021/782 of the European Parliament include:

• extraordinary circumstances not connected with the operation of the railway, such as extreme weather conditions, major natural disasters or major public health crises...
• ...the behaviour of a third party... such as persons on the track, cable theft, on-board emergencies, law enforcement activities or sabotage.

Making a London to Angers journey via Lille typically involves taking the Eurostar, which departs London daily at 13:01.

The connecting time between trains at Lille Europe station is typically scheduled to be around 2hr 10mins

Making the connection between the Eurostar from London and the TGV to Angers at Lille Europe, has the major advantage of avoiding the need to make the comparatively awkward transfer between the Gare Du Nord and Gare Montparnasse stations - if you take the alternative route via Paris.

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.

There is a daily TGV from on Lille Europe station to Angers, which is usually scheduled to depart at 17:39, but as the waiting time in Lille between trains will be more than two hours, the ticket agents typically won't offer the journey with this combination of trains.

However, if you would prefer to spend just over two hours in Lille than make the transfer between the Gare du Nord and the Gare Montparnasse in Paris, then an option is to book separate tickets for the London to Lille and Lille to Angers journeys.

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 for both trains.

Look out for the end-to-end journey which typically departs London at 13:01.

Eurostar train's general ticket terms:

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 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.

General ticket terms for TGV InOui trains

The terms on SNCF Connect state:
'Tickets can only be exchanged (adjustment to the current fare) and refunded prior to departure: 40% of the price 6 days prior to departure (€15 max fee). From 30 minutes prior to departure, tickets can be exchanged up to two times (for the same day and the same journey), and are non-refundable after the first exchange'.
Which could be clearer, but it seems as though the three key things to be aware of are:

1. Exchanges and refunds are free up to 7 days before departure.
2. If you are travelling on a TGV InOui train and want to amend your booking in the 6 days before departure, you must pay an amendment fee of €19 per person per person for an exchange or a refund.
3. In the 30 minutes before departure, refunds cannot be requested and exchanges are only allowed for the same journey later that day. The same amendment fees apply to the exchange.

Making the connection in Lille:

There is relatively new E.U. legislation which protects travellers against financial loss in the event of missed connections due to train delays, but it only applies to 'through tickets'.
The Eurostar terms and conditions specifically state that when booking journeys which combine Eurostar + Eurostar Thalys trains 'through tickets' will be issued.
'However, 'for all other journeys that combine a Eurostar Service and a service provided by another carrier (such as the TGV on from Paris) including when purchased in a single commercial transaction, those tickets will be separate contracts and issues regarding delays, missed connections, cancellations, compensation, and the management of aftersales will be handled accordingly'.
Hence Eurostar not selling tickets for this route.

But SNCF, which operates the train on to Angers, has signed up to Agreement on Journey Continuation (AJC) policy for when a traveller holds separate transport 'contracts' for an end-to-end journey involving more than one train.
So this agreement applies both when 'a bundle' of tickets / contracts is issued as the result of a single transaction - and if travellers have bought several different tickets for their journey, even from different sales channels/ticket providers.
As long as the passenger had planned enough connecting time to change trains (called “reasonable connecting time”), the AJC will apply.

So in usual* circumstances, if a delay to a Eurostar has caused a booked connection on to Angers to be missed, replacement tickets/reservations will be issued in Lille Europe.
*= But that new E.U legislation specifically states that in exceptional circumstances, the train operators do not need to issue replacement tickets - and the terms and conditions on the SNCF Connect website reiterate this.
These exceptional circumstances specifically stated in Regulation (EU) 2021/782 of the European Parliament include:

• extraordinary circumstances not connected with the operation of the railway, such as extreme weather conditions, major natural disasters or major public health crises...
• ...the behaviour of a third party... such as persons on the track, cable theft, on-board emergencies, law enforcement activities or sabotage.