lexluther

I am travelling from London to Paris on Dec 15 (one way). It seems like buying a return ticket is cheaper and throwing away the return part. These are the rates from the Eurostar website
Standard Value fare Adult (2) $47.00
Semi flexible Child $38.00
Total $132.00.

Is this a good fair? Does standard class assure a seat reservation or might I be standing? How do I get the tickets - mailed to me or pick them up at waterloo. Someone mentioned a machine at waterloo that gives you the tickets - Does this work with a US credit card? Is it better to just pay the fee to have them mailed to the US.

What about just buying a ticket at Waterloo day of departure. Is that cheaper?

LAwoman

Summer of '03, we purchased our Eurostar tix on the internet, direct from Eurostar. Used US credit card. Believe the fare was in GBP. Came out to around $80 round trip, but exchange rate was a little better then. Standard class & we were assigned seats & given confirmation number.

At Waterloo, we inserted credit card in the ticket machine and it printed our tickets. Very fast & easy! Have to use same credit card you used to reserve, I believe. Very similar to the machines a lot of airlines use to give you a boarding pass.

ira

Dear Lex,

Are the rates you are quoting per person each way for a RT ticket?

If so, this is the cheapest fare you are going to get. You won't get cheap tickets showing up on departure day.

The Eurostar is all reserved seating.
You will not have to stand.

You can either pick up your tickets at the station or have them mailed to you.

lexluther

thanks for the response. Ira I think the price was a one way price so the real far was double that $264 for 2 adults and one child.

ira

Hi Lex,

If you do it as a one way, it will be about $390.

xyz123

The best price I have found is the recent past is £59 return with restrictions. One way fares are well over £100 so obviously it pays to buy a return even if you have to eat the return...quite frankly an imbecilic way to price tickets.

Another point, for years the airline industry in the US tried to scare travellers by telling them that if they ate the return portion of a return ticket, they would bill them for the unrestricted one way fare. I don't know a single person they ever managed to snare that way.

I just don't understand why you can't buy a £29.50 one way ticket and not have to worry about this nonsense, it simply makes no sense.

bdoll58

I was in Paris last month and met some Americans who were in London and decided at the last minute to take the Eurostar. They paid dearly -- $500 each for just showing up and getting tickets. They said they thought about first class, but that was more than $1,000.