Great Western Coffee Shop

Crossing international borders - and I've just crossed my twelveth in about a month.  Some you hardly notice, some seem reasonably quick, those between the UK and the European Union a bit slower, and those on Eurostar in a slowness class of their own.  I have just taken around 40 minutes to go through the five stage of process at Paris (Gare du Nord) ... and I don't think any of the stages took personally more than 30 seconds.  The rest was queuing, crowd control barriers and all the rest.  With, irritatingly, the passport gates shutting and not letting anyone through while the queue just beyond subsided for security xray of luggage.

The the lounge are was - err - really inadequate for the number of people waiting and there were even queues with control tapes for the coffee bar!   I did find an upstairs "waiting room" area at the far end - spartan, but spacious for the small numbers who had also found it.

And why is the Transport for London map that's displayed (presumably) to help prople work out their route in London of 2013 vintage - not showing the Elizabeth line at all, and studiously ignoring Thameslink which is kinda useful from St Pancras. Or perhaps the map is just there as decoration to get people in the "mood" for London.

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Good journey on the train itself. I suspect the Interail reservation ap intentionally gives the words seats to Interail individuals - joining mum, dad and child, all of who put facemasks on when I joined them. Fortutely, as the train was about to start the stewardness suggested I move to another table for 4 where only 1 seat was taken, and I ended up with an excellent travelling companion. But that's not a rail story.

And so to St Pancras.  Look - all I wanted to do was to drop down 2 floors to platform "B".  Of course, I couldn't do that - from the very rear of the Eurostar we had to walk to the very front to get off the platform, wiggly-wiggle past some bored looking customs officers then, hey back along the whole length of the station again at the middle level.

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This, of course, was just a single journey - but I can't say I found my outbound journey last month any more pleasant.  With just a handful more staff, the queues could be cut - but of course that would eat into Eurostar's profits, wouldn't it?  I do resent the really hefty "reservation fee" on Interail to use Eurostar - I suppose I get the feeling I've paid already and this is a wheeze to make me pay more. Sleezy!

Errr....Eurostar hasn't yet moved back into profitability, as far as I'm aware.

How much was the Interrail reservation fee for E*?

Forty (40) Euros.

My wife and I recently experienced Eurostar as part of a 'Great Rail' holiday (other tour companies are available). We received our tickets which included seat reservations by email. As you would expect, all 25 members of the tour party were reserved in the same coach. However, at check-in, a number of members of the tour party - including my wife - were given different reservations in another coach, whilst passengers not associated with our tour party were given the seats 'vacated' by our party.

This happened in both directions. Eurostar have yet to answer my complaint.

Other than that experience, I could not fault the service.

The Eurostar lounges were designed for a "freedom of movement" UK boarder and not the check and stamp passport we have inflicted on ourselves.

The security and passport checks at Gare du Nord has always been painful much smaller area than St Pancras, I have always found the Official Staff pleasant and efficient.

St Pancras station layout works well for the separation of embarking and disembarking passengers and because we in the UK have always wanted to control our boarders it means you can only exit past a board official 

Sorry Electric Train...

It is the (misguided?) obsession with "protecting our borders that makes life more difficult for those who want to be boarders onto Eurostar!

Indeed - I don't disagree. Further thought though

1. Paris would have been far better and everyone saved half an hour queueing yesterday if they had all four X-ray machines up and running, not just 2 out of the 4.  Even 3, allowing one to be serviced

2. London needs to be bigger, as it is.  Higher throughput - trains to Brussels and Amsterdam as well as Paris - and potentially Frankfurt/Zurich etc in the future and - who knows - restoration of trains to the ski resorts and to Disney

3. If you go past officials from the UK in Paris, why do you need to go past another in St Pancras?

I think that it is customs at St Pancras, rather than border controls. After all, there are duty free shops at Gare de Nord

1  It is France after all 2 of the X-Ray machines were obviously at lunch  ;D

2 St Pancras is a bit constrained for space although if there really was the revenue space in some of the retail units could go or space found in the upper-level old station buildings, it reality the number of Brussels terminators could cease with more through trains to Amsterdam

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Interestingly I have had 3 cross channel trips this year (one by car and two by campervan) using ferries and Le Shuttle.  Passports have been carefully examined and stamped but we have seen no customs officers despite the new rules on food stuffs banned by the EU and alcohol restrictions in the UK.