Nearest Eurostar terminal to Holyhead

biohaiid

Does anyone know the nearest Eurostar terminal to Holyhead?
Or the one best suited to travelling from Holyhead to France as quickly as possible.

mimihops

I think the best route is Holyhead to London Euston station with rail & sail and then you can connect to the Eurostar in St Pancras which is very close to Euston. I haven't done this trip yet so there might be better options, but it's what I am looking at doing anyway. The site seat61.com is brilliant for checking all the timings and options.

dienbienphu

yes london

biohaiid

Thanks, everyone.
I was actually thinking Birmingham, it seems closest to Holyhead and we can get to Lille from there. Think we may have to change at London though. What do you think?

thebiglad

Eurostar Train goes from St Pancras London and Ashford (Kent)

Any other Eurostar tickets you see will be change in London

Birmingham trains go into Euston so you will still have to walk or take underground up to St Pancras International.

The Sail/Rail option is probably best from Ireland as it is less changes as it is direct to Euston.

If you are considering flying into Birmingham and then Eurostar, consider Luton - it has a train connection to St Pancras in 35 minutes and gives options on flights.

Civilian_Target

Like biglad says, get the sail/rail deal to Euston, and change for the Eurostar at St. Pancras. It's generally the cheapest and easiest option. Unfortunately, I don't know of any way to buy a connecting ticket, meaning that if some delay on the boat causes you to miss the eurostar, you won't get a refund on the eurostar ticket. So honestly, it's easier (and often cheaper) to fly, or if you're going to North-West France, take the boat from Cork

Since the European trains are wider than regular english trains, they can't share platforms, so you have to go to London (or a few other stations) to get any train that connects to europe.

Stinicker

How about sailing to France as a foot passenger with Brittany Ferries or Irish Ferries, seems alot easier than going the sail & rail route. Afraid of flying?

biohaiid

Thanks for all the advice.
I was actually looking for this info. to start of my interrailing trip, so the sail and rail ticket wouldn't actually save me money.
But we will get the train to Euston and the eurostar to Lille then, I think.
And no, not afraid of flying. Just trying to get the most use out of our passes on this trip.

Thanks again!

Strumms

It's a nice trip to do I have done it a couple of times. There are very few direct trains from Holyhead to London these days in fact the connectivity as regards the rail timetable and the ferry arrivals isn't what it was so you will wither change in Llandudno, Chester or Crewe. Usually a 20 minute wait. The average trip from Holyhead to Euston is 4 hrs and very scenic in parts.

As for the Eurostar it's a great experience, the terminal in St Pancras is worth getting there early to check out and the journey itself is enjoyable hurtling through they tuning French countryside...

schemingbohemia

I didn't realise you could use the inter-rail on the Eurostar, presume you have to book in advance, are there restrictions on times you can use it?

biohaiid

schemingbohemia wrote: »

I didn't realise you could use the inter-rail on the Eurostar, presume you have to book in advance, are there restrictions on times you can use it?

Oh, I kinda just pressumed you could/

seanmacc

Stinicker wrote: »

How about sailing to France as a foot passenger with Brittany Ferries or Irish Ferries, seems alot easier than going the sail & rail route. Afraid of flying?

Bearing in mind that there is always very limited foot passenger space on the direct sailings to France and on arriving into Cherbourg the train station is a good hike from the port. With Irish Ferries a foot passenger on the France route is 83 euro (this does not include a cabin only a reserved seat) or 64euro if you have an Interail or Eurorail pass. Never just show up at the port and expect to get on. As it gets nearer the summer less foot passenger space is available and the price goes up.
I can't seem to get prices for Britanny ferrys or Celtic Link at the moment.

JustAddWater

biohaiid wrote: »

Oh, I kinda just pressumed you could/

It's been 8/9 years since I did it, but no , I wasn't allowed use the inter-rail pass for the tunnel. It was full whack for me but check if you're able to now

biohaiid

JustAddWater wrote: »

It's been 8/9 years since I did it, but no , I wasn't allowed use the inter-rail pass for the tunnel. It was full whack for me but check if you're able to now

Thanks for the info. I'll have to check that out!

seanmacc

http://www.interrail.eu/support/using-pass/eurostar-covered-my-pass

Is the Eurostar covered by my pass?


Get pass holder discounts

No, the Eurostar high speed train connecting London with France and Belgium isn't included in the InterRail pass. However, InterRail travellers can get a discount known as the 'Pass holder' fare.

It's not possible to book the 'Pass holder' fare online.

How to get the 'Pass holder' fare

There are 2 ways to purchase a discounted Eurostar ticket:
Directly from Eurostar terminals
By calling the Eurostar booking center on +44 (0) 1233 617 575

Conditions

All fares are subject to availability and the InterRail pass must be valid in either the country of departure or arrival.

There you go. It doesn't say how much it is but if it the same as the ferries it would be 30% off the station/terminal fare.

The station/terminal is expensive, depending on the train and destination you would be looking at around £200ish and take 30% off if that is the case. You maybe better off booking online way in advance. I'd ring them and ask.

biohaiid

seanmacc wrote: »

http://www.interrail.eu/support/using-pass/eurostar-covered-my-pass



There you go. It doesn't say how much it is but if it the same as the ferries it would be 30% off the station/terminal fare.

The station/terminal is expensive, depending on the train and destination you would be looking at around £200ish and take 30% off if that is the case. You maybe better off booking online way in advance. I'd ring them and ask.

Thanks for that!
I;m now thinking it may be easier to get a direct flight to where we want to start off in Europe. We were only going doing the ferry and eurostar option cos we thought it would work out much cheaper, but in fact it doesn't.

schemingbohemia

You could actually use this ticket and then just not show up for the second part of the journey from Brussels. €59 but I think you need to book well in advance as there are only a few of this price seats on each service.

http://www.bahn.de/i/view/GBR/en/prices/europe/london-cologne-special.shtml

Marcusm

If you're booking a decent amount in advance, it's generally fairly easy to get a £70 Eurostar ticket to France.

biohaiid

Thanks for all the great advice, but I think we're gonna go with a Flight, it works out much cheaper at the end of it all

roundymac

AFAIK Brittany Ferries don't accept inter rail.

biohaiid

roundymac wrote: »

AFAIK Brittany Ferries don't accept inter rail.

Irish ferries and Stena Line do.