Dukey

I will be arriving at Heathrow in early morning and need to take a train over to Paris where I will change to another train to Zurich!

Please do not ask why i am not flying into Zurich directly..or Paris that matter..long story)

Anyway, I would rather NOT deal with RailEurope if I don't have to and have some notion, perhaps incorrect, that on the Eurostar site if you indicate you are from the US (yes, I am) that prices are higher.

I'm a bit confused and could use some advice on this.

I will also be returning to London a week later from Amsterdam and will need a reservation for that trip as well.

How far out can I make the booking(s) no more than 30 or 60 days?

Appreciate the help and thanks in advance.

alanRow

From past experience fares for "US" based folk can be lower than anyone in the EU can get - and of course you can book much further in advance.

But a lot depends on when you are booking, when you are travelling, who else has booked that journey, how the exchange rates are doing since Eurostar set the prices...

BUT there's nothing stopping you clearing the Eurostar cookies from your computer and pretending to be French, British or Serbo-Croat if you want.

As for who to book through, may I refer you to www.seat61.com

Dukey

Yes, Alan, thanks very much for your reply and I am familiar with seat61 also (great site).

I'll try comparing seat prices on the Eurostar site and see what happens.

Much appreciated.

Huuhu

Dukey:

I have had good luck with Budget European Travel (BETS) out of Ann Arbor which specializes in train travel. www.budgeteuropeantravel.com

111op

This doesn't answer your answer -- but have you booked the Paris-Zurich train yet? If not, why not investigate that flight from London to Zurich?

hetismij

I would also look into flying back to London from Amsterdam - the train journey is long and tortuous, which ever route you take.

111op

I'm sorry that my sentence was poorly phrased (I wrote it too quickly), but I think you get my question.

111op

Oh yeah -- BMI used to fly AMS to LHR.

If you're leaving from LHR, that can be a bonus. Check and see whether they still do this route. I flew it once and connected to my trans-Atlantic flight this way.

Rumseydog

I recently booked tickets directly from London to Paris directly through the Eurostar website (www.eurostar.com), choosing to pick them up at London St. Pancras station. I can't recall what specific selections I made on the Eurostar website, but I didn't have any problem and got a great rate on two round-trip tickets.

In 2004, I booked train tickets all the way through to Basel, Switzerland. I love trains and hate flying, so spending extra time on the rails never bothers me and lets me see a bit more of the countryside.

Have a great trip!

Dukey

Thanks to <b>EVERYONE</b> who has replied!

Now to the particulars...I am not ruling our flying but there may be a luggage &quot;weight&quot; issue for me this trip..I have to make that decision SOON...although a lot of the purpose of this trip is to do some train travel.

Huuhu, thanks for the reminder about BETS..I was just thinking of them a bit ago...although I suspect all those North American agencies other than RE are probably forced to use RE's computer link with the railroad computer network...I wish I thought I could book the TGV portion Paris-Zurich on the SNCF site which I used successfully in the PAST until they changed things recently...

yk

With the &pound; being much lower now, you may find Eurostar UK price better than Eurostar US website. Make sure you check both and price them out.

bratsandbeer

We also booked our tickets through www.eurostar.com You can pick the time you want to travel and the price is different for the different times of day. The tickets were cheap compared to other websites.

lennyba

Hi Dukey - I was just looking at one way Paris to London fares and the cheapest I found was $98 (booking over three months out). I'm nearly positive that was on the eurostar.com site.

PeaceOut

Another recommendation for budgeteuropetravel.com

They are extremely knowledgeable regarding European train travel in particular.

I'm sure you already know this, but often buying a round-trip ticket on Eurostar is cheaper than a one-way. You just pitch the return trip ticket.

grumlin

We had good luck and prices booking the Eurostar with Rick Steves. The tickets were sent promptly by UPS and we got a copy of Rail time tables and a 20 percent discount on travel goods which we used for luggage locks and what not.

PalenQ

since booking thru rick Steves is really booking thru Raileurope - i think Steves sight for Eurostar tickets is really Raileurope Dukey may not want to do that - though don't throw the baby out with the bathwater as indeed Raileurope or its agents like Steve, BETS, etc. can be cheaper - so always compare here and there. Eurostar ticketing in U.s. thru RE, who i believe has a lock on the Eurostar franchise, is not e-ticketing with pickups in London - may negating the usual mailing fee that RE has. As always i suggest having someone do a manual search for Eurostar - RailEurope however charges +10% i believe to talk to anyone. I always recommend budgeteuropetravel.com and having Byron or some expert there do a manual search as RE's fares do not always show the cheapest fares that indeed can be booked thru them IME. You may well now, esp with the plummeting pound find eurostar.com in pounds cheaper now, at least i would think - but always check both sides of the pond as there seems little rhyme or reason at times in the fares. Can book up to nine months in advance thru RE.

Dukey

Here's an <b>update</b>, folks (and especially for you, Pal)...I just spent more than a half hour on the phone with Byron at BETS.

This guy is <b>wonderful</b> and has to be the most knowledgeable person when it comes to rail services I have <b>ever</b> dealt with...what a nice change!

We discussed the various options available and, for once, I am going to be lazy and rely totally on the travel agent!!!

Thanks again for all the replies and suggestions...they are really DEEPLY appreciated!

lennyba

What did you end up with, if you don't mind my asking?

Dukey

Even though it would be somewhat easier to fly (probably on Easyjet which I have used in the past and like) from Luton to Zurich and then later on from Amsterdam back to the UK...and even though it would mean (fairly easy) transport between those two other airports and heathrow, more than likely the plan is this:

arrive heathrow and then take the Eurostar to Paris, changing stations and then on to Zurich for an overnight.

I will leave the next day for a trip over the Bernina pass ending in Milan and later that night will take the CityNightLine to Amsterdam. Will spend three nights in A-dam and then take the train back to Brussels and on to London for the final overnight; fly home the next morning.

Will probably end up with a pass and pay some supplements..depends on the final numbers. Cannot make any reservations yet (I already have First Class FF mile tickets to and from Heathrow) and Byron is monitoring/working on the rest.

PalenQ

Dukey - you have never taken the Bernina Express? My favorite scenic train in Europe - what month are you going? If in summer there are open-air platform cars to ride in - this was an especial thrill for me - they are on some regular trains but not on the official Bernina Express trains that run also.

Bernina is the only line to cross the Alps north to south - all others tunnel under it. It's the steepest non-cog railway in europe - perhaps the reason it goes so slow.

It's also recently been named a UNESCO World Heritage Site - actually the whole Rhaetisch Bahn line from Chur/Reichenau up the Albula Line and the Bernina Line - both lines known for its prodigious at the time engineering works - such as the several spiral loops in the Abula part. Enjoy.