EuropeRookie

Can someone please suggest an inexpensive way to get to Paris from London by train? I am getting prices from 300 and up USD. I'd rather not deal with airports. Any other means of travel I would be open to. Thanks.

xyz123

First of all, don't book a one way ticket. If you are going in the morning, see if going for a same day return (round trip) will drastically lower your fare (choose any return trip the same day and eat the return)

If you're going later in the day, a tad more expensive is to try to book a return trip with the return any time past the Saturday after you leave...just choose the one that gives you the cheapest fare...

You should be able to get it down to around $100 or less total but do remember these fares come with no refund type restrictions.

ira

HI E,

Good advice from X.

Have you looked at www.eurostar.com and www.raileurope.com?

jody

Definitely book a round trip..and toss the other half.

I just looked, 1 way was £154.50, RT £29.50

EuropeRookie

I must be looking at the wrong site or doing something wrong I am getting quotes of 160+ USD. What site should I be trying?

EuropeRookie

thanks for the links ira.
I tried and am still get very high prices. Jody what site are you using please?

rkkwan

Well, what dates and times are you going? Discount fares are available on selected trains and times only. The later you book, the fewer choices you get.

Also, US$160 is not expensive to go between <b>city centers</b> of two major Europe capitals, 200+ miles and a body of water apart.

EuropeRookie

I will be leaving London to Paris on Sept. 16. To reply to rkkwan.....expensive is relative, I could fly first class to Paris and spend $2000, but I would much rather take the train for $50 and spend the $1950 elsewhere. Your idea of what is expensive and what isn't is probably different than mine. What I am looking for is an educated answer by educated travelers. Not the obvious conclusions you cited in your post. Thanks.

rkkwan

Eurostar.com

9/16 several trains at US$94 one-way.

Happier?

A first-class air ticket from London to Paris cost US$2,000? I searched for your dates, and both BA has business class one-way LHR-CDG fare for about US$800. Air France has LCY-ORY one-way business fares for about $750.

rkkwan

Hey, the bus is only &pound;19!

www.nationalexpress.com

EuropeRookie

thanks rk, what site did you find the train fare please.

NeoPatrick

&quot;Also, US$160 is not expensive to go between city centers of two major Europe capitals, 200+ miles and a body of water apart.&quot;

Really? I'm not sure I'd still agree with that statement these days when you can often get fares like 19 pounds or 29 euros on good budget airlines for trips like London to Rome, Venice to Amsterdam, or even London to Berlin -- just as starters.

rkkwan

eurostar.com

The official site for the train service. Anyways, I picked US as my country, so it gives me US$. Others have reported here that sometimes you may get a different fare if you choose other countries; and also after you clear the cookies on your browser.

rkkwan

I see what's going on. If you choose UK or Belgian as your country, you only get those &pound;150/230&euro; fares for your one-way London-Paris tickets for your dates.

Make sure you clear the cookies - I see two that they put on your browser - and then choose US again.

Let me see if you can get a cheaper roundtrip for UK.

EuropeRookie

Okay......I must be a moron. I keep seeing a fare of 154.50 GBP and can't find it cheaper. What am I doing wrong?

rkkwan

Okay, if I login with UK as my country, I can get a roundtrip for &pound;59. Which is cheaper than US for roundtrip; but more expensive than the US$94 one-way fare if you only need to go one-way.

rkkwan

I use a Mac, but it should be similar:

Go to the &quot;preference panel&quot; of the browser you're using. Not sure about Internet Explorer, but if you're Firefox, click on the &quot;Privacy&quot; tab.

Then click &quot;Show Cookies&quot;. Scroll down the list and you'll find a cookie left by eurostar.122.2o7.net, and another one by eurostar.com

Don't know which is relevant, but I remove both.

Next time you go to eurostar.com, you'll be asked for your country/language again. Pick United States.

xyz123

If you enter US as your country when you go to eurostar.com, it puts a cookie into your computer and every time you go there it will re-direct probably to rail Europe....there are some times that Rail Europe does have lower fares (they run specials from time to time) but they charge something like $15 per booking as a service charge plus sending you the tickets.

If you put UK as your country, you remain within the main Eurostar computer get real time availability (I have had it happen that I book a fare on rail Europe and a day later get a message the fare is not available and suggest much more expensive unalternatives)...once you get a fare, in GBP on eurostar.com that is the fare.

I have had lots of good luck travelling one way from Paris to Londn of getting a same day return for &pound;40 (&pound;20 each way) albeit somewhat in advance, and with restrictions (it may be the Paris-London same day return is cheaper than the London-Paris same day return)....eurostar.com, though, does post the tickets to you for free!

xyz123

...ah ha...I just answered my own question....I priced several different itineraries.....for your September date I came up with &pound;44.50 each way on a same day return...a day a little bit further I came up with &pound;29.50 each way on a same day return...but I also did a Paris-London same day return and it came up &pound;20 each way on a same day return (I wonder if it's possible to eat the origin and just take the return....I would suppose if you don't show up for the original, the computer invalidates the return!

EuropeRookie

Thanks for the information everyone. Very informative and helpful as usual.