Hi all--

I've taken the Eurostar from London to Paris several times, but always purchased tickets in advance. I'll be in London the end of November and may be heading to Paris from there, but it's going to be hard for me to estimate in advance the precise time I'll be leaving. Are tickets generally available if I just show up at Waterloo? Is it way more expensive to buy them day of? (I qualify for a youth fare)

It will likely be on a Monday or Tuesday and I will return to London on a Thursday. I have a feeling the first two or three trains of the morning will be quite full with business travellers..

thank you!

Hi M,

>Are tickets generally available if I just show up at Waterloo?<

The closer you get to the travel date the fewer low cost tickets available.

Be prepared to pay full fare.

...and be aware full fare will cost you an arms and 2 legs...

Thanks--guess I'll tie down my price and buy ahead!

whoops, meant to say plans not price.

If you're 60 and over you can get a good fare of about $95 one way and this ticket is changeable once in Europe up until the time of the train without penalty.

Instead of waiting till the last minute and pay the full fare (which can be around &pound;150-180 <b>one way</b, you may want to consider getting flexible tickets. You should be able to compare fares on internet.

Or if in the U.S. book a $89 one-way fare and if it doesn't work out just eat the cost - potential savings are great, however if you use it. These fares are hard to get however so book as early as possible (I always refer Eurostar info to BETS - 800-441-2387 - Eurostar experts in my experience) - compare fares at www.eurostar.com for those in pounds as there may be cheeap tickets on there as well. Or investigate cheap flights (www.whichbudget.com) Eurostars can be booked up to nine months in advance usually - except at certain times when schedules aren't loaded - the early bird does get the worm here.

I'll just book it in advance..it's only about $100 r/t for me with the youth fare. thanks gang

And the youth fare i believe can be changed once in London without penalty so is an absolute bargain. Could be wrong about this as RailEurope recently changed all the fares and policies. Call BETS and find out i suggest about the conditions but i think you could change it - that said you can change it if space in that category on the train you want is available - it may or may not be. Youth fare is for folks under 26 and there are several tiers of pricing, starting at around $50 each way. Again weekdays Mon-Thu will often see more availability though if available this fare can be used on any train any day.

&lt; Could be wrong about this as RailEurope recently changed all the fares and policies. &gt;

Raileurope don't set Eurostar ticket fares &amp; policies - Eurostar do, so for the current information check the www.eurostar.com website

Put in Oct 30 on eurostar.com and found cheapest ticket ('within 2-3 days flexibility') and was 40 pounds or about $75 - cheapest for same date on RE was $53 - so even with RE's $15 booking fee and BETS $5 mailing fee ($15 from RailEurope) you're much better off securing this ticket well in advance as you could pay much much more if you wait to London.

For those who say RailEurope is a rip-off that inflates ticket prices absurdly, i guess eurostar.com is a rip-off agency as well. (On most tickets RE is a rip-off but not on Eurostar and not always - compare always.)

RailEurope's $53 youth fare is non-refundable and non-changeable whilst it's $70 youth fare is non-refundable but can be changed once in London up until the time of the train.

www.eurostar.com - all youth fares, regardless of price are non-exchangeable and non-refundable.

I don't know who sets fares and policies but conditions and fares on both sites have varied greatly for years and currently still do. If buying ticket in pounds check www.eurostar.com for ticket conditions - if in the U.S. check RailEurope. Senior fares and pass holder fares similarly are much more restricted on www.eurostar.com

The only thing I would say is that very often Rail Europe will show a fare, you will order a ticket and lo and behold you will get a message back that fare is not available.

Rail Europe does not operate in real time while the Eurostar site does and as you noted does not charge to post tickets to the USA.

That's one reason i recommend dealing with BETS or anyone who access to the euronet computer because then you will get the real quote on what is really available and can book at that moment.

Suppose you could call RailEurope and do the same but i believe they charge $25 to take a phone order - trying to marshall business to their web site.

&lt;Rail Europe does not operate in real time while the Eurostar site does and as you noted does not charge to post tickets to the USA&gt;

real time or not the fares an admittedly un-exhaustive search on www.eurostar.com show that that site could be often much more expensive for the same ticket... and in the case of youth, senior and passholder fares have drastically more severe conditions for the exact same product.

If originating your Eurostar trip in Paris you can check the French rail site www.voyages-sncf.com for fares in euro from Paris to London and then compare with raileurope or BETS.

Eurostar check-in now 45 minutes. When booking a train, especially an early train keep in mind that Eurostar has extended their previous 30 minute (think it was 30 or 35) mandatory check-in time in order to be sure of boarding the train.

GeoffHammer said on another site that the eurostar web site still says 30 minutes minimum so now i don't know.

I called RailEurope and they say 45 minutes and this is printed on their tickets they say...so to be safe i'd go 45 minutes early rather than 30 - though if it says 30 on your ticket that would be OK i guess. So whatever it says on your ticket i guess.