Eurostar Standard Premier review : France to the UK through the Channel Tunnel
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- Опубліковано 26 лис 2020
- Hi folks,
Welcome to this trip report bound to London onboard the latest Eurostar in Standard Premier class. The E320 made by Siemens
Enjoy and don't hesitate to comment :)
- TRIP INFORMATION -
RECORDED IN NOVEMBER 2019
Railway company: Eurostar
Train type : E320 Velaro by Siemens
From : Calais Fréthun to London St Pancras
Time : 1h02
Price : Around €100
LINK TO THE NEW PATREON PAGE : / simply_railway
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- EQUIPEMENT - Iphone XS + DJI mobile Osmo 2
English correction made by Michel Seignette de Kerobert
Credit sound :
Trainmania100
Charpentier Lucas
Credit thumbnail : Steven De Haeck : www.flickr.com/photos/stevend...
Well done. It's always a pleasure to watch your reviews! :)
I like Railways Explained reviews and videos as well! 😎
I am your subscriber. Amazing content and you deserve a lot more subscribers and views.
Pity today there's just a single Paris-London E* and I doubt if it calls at Calais
Thanks guys. Keep up the good work
Can you have a videos of trains in Portugal
It never stops to amaze me that Calais is 55 minutes away from St Pancras.
Hi, Dan! Yep. It's a small world. People call the Atlantic Ocean 'the Pond', between the UK and North America, so I suppose that makes the Channel 'the Puddle'.
55 minutes is certainly quick, although the old V-2 rockets did it quite a bit faster. 5 minutes, straight to the heart of London. No return tickets, though... ;-)
Would be cool if there was a local service
@@EleanorPeterson wow, ive never heard the Atlantic called the "pond" but maybe thay just because I live on the west coast hahaha
@@ryankiser294 we call it the pond all the time in reference to like transatlantic flights. just like oh yeah, hop across the pond to englang or france etc.
The reason for Eurostar to go with the TGV trains was that they were required for safety reasons, in case of an emergency, to be able to move all the passengers over to one half of the train, detach the two halves and drive the one part out of the tunnel. Look at the two middle carriges on the E300, and you will see that they both have separate bogies, and not a shared one in the middle like a "normal TGV". That is where you can split the train.
The Velaro E320 can also do that, even with distributed traction. Siemens had to make a special version of the Velaro for Eurostar to allow for the train to be split by the train staff in case of an emergency. There are no power cables going between the two middle carriages.
Thank you so much for this information! That safety requirement seems to have been a well-thought-out one, and also amazing is the fact that Siemens made such a train to satisfy the splitting ability requirement even with distributed traction.
Finally I can take the train without fear
INTERESTING
the sound of the E300's is amazing at speed
Time traveling by train! Impressive!
Also, if simply Railway planned a bank heist... I would absolutely follow them, the amount of knowledge and planning is just immaculate!
For those who remember train travel on the European continent of the 1960s, this train seems to be at the comfort level of local trains with wooden bemnches.
I love watching train reviews wish I had someone to travel with who knew their stuff lol 😂 I’ve traveled on the EuroStar countless times and are using again next week. I’ve used it during 2020 when most people thought they couldn’t travel. It always makes me fall asleep lol walking the length of the train in 2019 it’s like racing the length lol the gap is always scary for me because I’m short lol and with my suitcase I’m on a wing and a prayer every time I skip over it thank you for the video
Great. What is like to ride Eurostar during the Pandemic ?
@@SimplyRailway It was still good service from the staff. They did try loading a different coach at a time i.e 1-8 my opinion everyone still rushed and it added more confusion for some.
There were 400 less passengers , people sat one seat alone then miss a row then another passenger(even if you’re with family) .
They asked if you could give details to be traced if anyone on board tested for corona only going to London though. No one did and I went February , twice in July , August and came home in September.
Once onboard no food was served but you could take your own they asked you to wear a mask 😷 unless you wanted to eat or drink. Was still a very comfortable journey (I travel alone ) . The queues were smaller 🙂 I traveled to Gare du Nord and will again on the 9th of December. I live in Yorkshire England and people say it’s just easier to fly but I enjoy the sights along the journey. I want it to snow in Paris haha 😆
Love your every single video Dude. Hats off to your attention to details.
I travelled in Standard premier last year and found the seats amazing! Far better than the German ICE 1st class
Love the Eurostar! One of my favourite way of travelling to Paris.
I was due to go Standard Premiere to Brussels back in April, so nice to see what I missed out on! And to look forward to what I can experience with a rebooked ticket next year!
I love your videos. Just keep it up 😁
Hello Thibault. Your videos are simply the best travel videos on UA-cam.
Foarte bine prietene, chiar îmi place cum filmezi toate călătoriile în orice continent 🙋♂️🙋♂️🙋♂️👏👏👏🚆🚆🚆🚆🚦🚦🚦mult Succes
Great video !!
Great video. Departing from Fréthun is fascinating. Designed and built with lots of optimism, and there just isn’t the traffic they expected. I agree with some others about the E320. They’re just not as comfortable or pleasant to travel on. The bright lights and hard materials feel so cheap.
You're unfortunately right...
For one more time excellent video.
Hello There, this is a really decent and in depth review throughout, thank you for sharing this, it's much appreciated. Cheers Peter :) p.s. the Crossing figure of 20NM for the Channel Tunnel is not what I epexcted, I expeected it to be longer than that.
That meal looks great!
Thanks for the review of the Paris to London Train / you always have clear and informative videos / We have subscribed and watch all your videos / did not realize the English Channel crossing was so short and how far inland London is from the coast / Thanks
Thanks Johnny
Thibault, your reviews are always with just the right amount of attention to detail. The unfortunate thing about your trip IS the detail. Freezing station, no lounge for Premier passengers, food that can best be described at Tesco Express fire sale, cramped seating, beverage holders that are more like an interactive art installation. So basic I wonder if it took lessons from Soviet Russia!
Looks nicer the new livery of Eurostar, faster the E320 but more historical the E300!
Nice content!
SUPER 🆙
The 373's won't be scrapped, they will return in traffic when there will be customers to take Eurostar services. One set is currently receiving the TBL1+ system so I think the 373's will first operate on London-Brussels services before going to Paris after the end of the lockdowns
@Simply Railway Nice, I've Always Wanted To Ride That Route And Train.
The Great Wen? Not heard that phrase for a long time, I enjoy your content alot.
Hi, Anthony! Ah, The Great Wen. There's a neat little pun in there for train spotters. Because a wen is a sort of pimple. Er, y'know, like a spot. For spotters. Work with me, here. Trains. Um, spots. Pimples. Boils?
Damn, it's all gone wrong. I didn't think this through properly, did I...
YES simply railway uploads again Ô YEAH
14:00
hyperloop- wait, that's illegal
Sit down Elon musk take down some notes!
Nice video!
My absolute FAVORITE train to ride and I also do Standard Premier.
Excellent one.
Awesome video. They should build a rail tunnel under the North Sea too. I would love to have some more European destinations from the UK
Nice video
great video on the Eurostar with those amazing velaro trains but it is sad because during this pandemic ridership drop by around 95 percent means they are struggling but i do hope as were now in 2021 passenger numbers will come back later in the year when i hope the current situation in Europe and everywhere else improves i also want to ride Eurostar this year if its possible from London to Paris and other destinations
The business premier looked passable, although if the seats aren't comfy, (and they didn't look it) then it's too pricey for what you get. Nice quiet train though...smooooooth!
Much prefer a good e300.
Their interior is also Pininfarina, but done better than on the e320 (padding, etc.)
Also the TMST feels like a much more solidly built train than most modern EMUs.
Nice review!
Even the ICE 3 has better seat comfort than this
I think that you should try Finnish Pendolino (Sm3) when you visit Finland next time. Nice video, stay safe, regards from Finland.
Riding the Chunnel is on my bucket list
50k subscribers!!!!!!!!!!
Awesome video as always :) I do like Calais-Frethun station... but the E320 is a joke, the E300 is so much better. Business Premier is also a joke, considering the price... there aren't that many benefits and lounge access is relatively easy without travelling Business. Stay safe ;)
6:11 everytime i flip the mirror, i do one face reveal
I can't help but notice you haven't reviewed any of the Shinkansen trains. When will come to doing that?
i don't think soon
i think he's mostly based in Europe and occassional USA videos, hasn't had the chance to go to japan yet maybe?
Next summer for sure. I'm working in the US right now. With he COVID it's hard to travel overseas
Simply Railway if I may make a recommendation, one of the trains I'd highly recommend is the 800 series on the Kyushu line. by far one of the best looking interiors in the fleet.
@@eX0dus77 Yeah I agree, the interior has a classic vibe to it.
Seats are the reason why i prefer E300 and the maximum speed of E320 is only 20 km/h higher so the journey will take you maybe 15 minutes longer but in higher comfort level.
The top speed is really irrelevant on the routes where you have an option if I remember correctly, as those routes have a 300km/h maximum speed. The acceleration of the e320s may be where the benefits are, though I haven't gone through the specifications yet...
I think that the reason Ebbsfleet International, Ashford International and Calais-Fréthun have such low amounts of passengers is the combination of the small amount of Eurostar services to stop there and the fact that it’s not allowed to use Eurostar for domestic journeys.
Thanks, I've never taken Eurostar yet :"(
Nice work. Shame that Eurostar bought a Velaro instead of new TGV trains. Sure the traction motor located on every bogies of Velaro allows the train to carry more passengers, but I think TGVs trains are much safer thanks to it's articulated design. Avelia AGV is also a good train too, it has powered bogies like Velaro and articulated design like most other TGVs.
The TGV seating cannot be beaten at all
TGV trains have a lack of barrier free infrastructure. Velaros are much better...
@@jannisjag247 But the jacobs bogies of TGVs keep them straight in the event of derailment, something Velaros don't have.
@@pikachu8508 As we have seen in Eckwersheim, that sometimes doesn't work...
@@jannisjag247 A TGV train derailed near Ingenheim over 270 km/h in 2020 and the train was fairly straight despite after the derailment thanks to jacob bogies design. It could be worse with conventional bogie design as carriages would have zigzag and hit those catenary poles that could resulted in more injuries or even deaths.
This is exactly how ICE derailment in Eschede killed hundred of passengers in 1998. The train derailed, caused the carriages zigzag and hit the bridge support pillar, the bridge collapsed as the result. Sure the train involved isn't Velaro, but The Jacobs bogie design could have make a difference here.
Good 😌
Between the E320, E300 refurb, and E300 classic, which seat is better? Although I do realize that there are no more classic E300s in regular service save for the train used by Izy.
So, Calais have a High Speed Train Station for the Eurostar and for the English Channel High Speed Train crossing services... Didn't know it.
I thought Calais was just for the onboard car and lorry train services crossing the English Channel.
When was the Calais-Fréthun High Speed Train Station opened? Maybe toghether with the opening of the Channel Tunnel in 1994?
Finally, congratulations for the 51k subscribers, Thibault. See you the next week!
The station looks a little bit like an airport 😅
@@denjo3131 It looks like it because the UK isn't part of the EU Schengen Agreement and, from the first of January 2021, the UK isn't going to be part of the EU. So, for these reasons this station (And all the rest of the stations of the Channel Tunnel line between Paris and London) has a passport control and... Maybe a luggage check?
@@pedrorubiotejero_aka_prt yes, they all have a luggage check. The stations in southern France do not have any of these facilities and require passengers to get off the train at Lille, and get back on after checks. Calais - Frethun is indeed a SNCF station where stops the Eurostar - it also has another station where Eurostar doesn't stop, Calais-Ville. I'm guessting the station opened for the Channel Tunnel connection considering it opened (i think?) in 1993.
Hope it helped ;)
@@benjamintery7847 Ok, it's good to know it. Thanks, Benjamin
But the fares between London and Calais are *almost* as high as those to Paris. E* makes no effort to promote the London-Calais route.
Let's hope we see the E300's back in service in the future.
I'm guessing you're saying this because ES are only running E320s during the lockdowns? if that's the case, yeah they'll be back ;)
Yes
Let‘s hope Eurostar is going to survive!
I‘m really hoping the UK finally understands the importance of Eurostar and will give them funds to survive the crisis.
edit: here the link: www.theguardian.com/business/2020/nov/25/eurostar-calls-on-uk-for-urgent-support-as-it-fights-for-survival
@@sxflyer5410 Eurostar is owned jointly by SNCF. Thé French National Railway.
SNCB The national railway of Belgium.
CDPQ Based in Quebec Canada.
10% by Hermes Infrastructure based in London.
As the vast majority of the milage and most of the stations are in France and Belgium. They should be asking those governments to bail them out. Not expecting just the the British government that has not owned any part of Eurostar since 2015.
@@grahamsmith9541 Eurostar International Limited is a company registered and based in London, UK, which makes it a british company. It doesn’t matter if it is owned by SNCF and others, just like Austrian Airlines and Swiss got funding from Austria and Switzerland respectively, even though they are owned by the German airline Lufthansa.
You mention that the UK government has not owned any part of Eurostar since 2015. Which is correct, but the UK government also does not own any part of British Airways of EasyJet. Why are they getting money from the UK government then?
Your argument is like saying that Aer Lingus shouldn’t ask the irish government for money but instead the british and spanish governments, because Aer Lingus is owned by IAG (British Airways and Iberia).
Even Ryanair - an irish airline - got a loan backed by the UK government!
The UK is completely ignoring how important Eurostar is - this is the only passenger rail link from the UK to Europe! It is the only environmentally friendly international connection the UK has!
Also Eurostar‘s income was already severly impacted when the UK government made a 14-day-quarantine mandatory for people coming from France in summer - and the number of passengers on Eurostar plummeted. A government should always compensate for the financial damage their policies and restrictions cause.
Having to check in an hour before departure really negates the advantage of this service over flying.
Thibault ... is there a difference in meals between Business and Premier? If so what is it? As always, great presentation 👍🏻
In Standard Premier you are offered cold meals, whilst in Business Premier you'll be served a warm meal created by star chef Raymond Blanc and they taste really good. Also, champagne is included in Business and the snacks are of way better quality than those offered in Standard Premier.
Well everyday is a school day!
I've lived in London & my family is from London but I've never heard it referred to as the Great Wen before....it's a thing though!
Neither have I, I've never heard that anywhere...
@@fetchstixRHD I had to google, it's a thing but not much of one judging by the size of the Wikipedia page.
I'd love to use Eurostar more. However from central England, getting from my town to London costs as much if not more than a return Eurostar fare to Paris, Amsterdam, or Brussels. Plus, Eurostar has a monopoly on using the Channel Tunnel as you said.
I live near an airport and it's cheaper for me to fly to Berlin, Krakow, Budapest, etc.
If I'm in Mainland Europe, I'll always try to travel by train as much as possible.
grrreeeeat
8:05 yeah, this is big brain time
mantap
If the E300 can use standard uk gauge and 320s not then how do they share the tracks on Hs1 or the tunnel?
Nice videos. I would suggest to give a look to the timing of captions: some are on screen for too short a time, some others too long.
Really we need Regional Eurostar. The London-centred focus of Eurostar is a contributing factor towards the North-South divide.
What do you means by a regional Eurostar
@@SimplyRailway Regional Eurostar was a plan for Eurostars to go from Brussels and Paris to Manchester, Edinburgh, Leeds etc. Basically beyond London. Also there was Nightstar, the same concept just with sleeper trains.
Maybe a regional Eurostar could have prevented people to vote for Brexit.
@@ironmantrains Maybe, Eurostar could use the remaining 373 for such a regional Eurostar and buy some more 374 to replace the 373 on the London connections....
tu sais si il y a eu le projet d'utiliser les agv d'alstom? (traction répartie aussi, et beaucoup plus beaux imo)
May I ask how tall are you? I normally wouldn't bother with standard premier but I was thinking about it for the 4-hour Amsterdam-London trip, and I'm concerned about leg room.
This is amazing. Could you go back to Eastern Europe soon like maybe Romania, Bulgaria. ect.
Sure :)
@@SimplyRailway YAY ty i am romanian so it feels good to see trip reports on romanian trains
yes but is business premier worth double the price? it seems like the seats are the same area?
NICE VIDEO 😀🥰🥰👍👍👍👍👍 BYE
Boa viagem ai simply boa noite ai
Todo debom esse trem chega mais
De 300 klmr pó rora bem rápido
Done the eurostar few years ago lón to Brussels. Brilliant, don't think it done that speed. What's the top speed that it actually does. Cheers
Do they have an engineer on the train? I heard they were not run by humans? Reaction time is not super? And does the train sway at all? Coming to London in May and will ride the train to Paris for a day trip. Thank you!
3:55 i somehow missed the old livery tho...
Is it possible to travel on the Eurostar from Calais/Lille to Brussels?
Yes
yes possible, no trains currently calling at Calais for Eurostar but you can catch a train from Lille to Brussels.content-static.eurostar.com/documents/7106_November_Timetable_2020_085_EN.pdf
@@liamg5845 thank you!
La technique utilisée pour la bouteille d’eau est celle utilisée par les stewards eux mêmes!
Le rêve : des trains Paris - Lille - Londres - Edimbourg/Glasgow + Londres - Berlin / Zurich / Milan / Vienne...
4:20 question: did they widen the platform when the E320 came in?
I don't think they did
@@SimplyRailway imagine someone stuck in the gap...or the E320 is just too narrow
Comme tu le relèves, Eurostar est malheureusement trop cher...
Merci Thibault !
Pourtant, ca peut etre moins cher que l'avion car ES arrive dans les centres des villes, ce qui n'est pas le cas de l'avion ou il te faudra acheter des billets de train pour aller aux aeroports. En plus, le prix minimum de ES se situe a £29 - c'est abordable pour un trajet de 2 heures je trouve! Apres je suis d'accord que c'est seulement plus abordable que l'avion si tu vas a Paris - si ta destination finale est Nice ou Toulouse par exemple, un seul avion est moins cher que 2 trains ;)
@@benjamintery7847 Merci Benjamin !
Je ne savais pas qu'il y avait des premiers prix à £ 29.-... Bien de l'apprendre...!
Ce qu'il faudrait, c'est instaurer une concurrence : la deutsche Bahn (DB) avait annoncé il y a quelques années des trains pour Londres... Y roule-t-elle déjà ?
5:01 airplane flight
Can you have a video of Portugal trains
Sure. Next year
You held time in place for two hours
I've never understood the reasoning behind paying for premium services on Eurostar. It's a short journey and the standard seats are comfortable enough. I've never found edible food on the train either! Take your own food and drink and just pay the standard fair, preferably when the seats are announced and they are at their lowest cost. I travel to Brussels a lot (except for this year) and have tried both the business and standard premium seats and they just aren't worth it.
I wonder how successful a commuter train would be (French people working in London, mostly) given that 70,000 Frenchmen live there
Another Eurostar in the outro
The Eurostar e320 and the ICE 4 are the same train in different liveries and nobody talks about it
Because that is false
@@Sedna063 Yeah I kinda realised they have a bit difference
:D
Je parie qu'il fait froid dedans
Eurotunnel didn't make their regulation evolving themselves, Eurostar and Siemens forced Eurotunnel to modify the regulation
That's more likely indeed
Regrettably the new class 300 are uncomfortable and unstable compared to the original, in addition the service on board has been dumbed down from its opening levels considerably .
And why can’t Britain be in Schengen
You've been in the US too long if you thought that supper wasn't big enough!!!
The seats aren’t great, but the pros outweighed the cons
I agree
Türkisch trains pleasss from Türkey
Yht train and marmaray
First
Uh oh I see your face
bottle 🤣🤣
I'm getting tired of these constant State Farms add with Jusse Smollett playing that "Jake" guy.
Change country
E320 so plastic, even the exterior is PLASTIC!
russian comrade The plastic is chosen to prevent graffiti stains and vandalism
@@ag6371 NO! NO! A real European train had graffiti
the uk is yuk
Lack of Japan and China's bullet trains, your channel is incomplete.
Eurostar has gone bust ladies . Covid - Brexit etc....
the Game is Over and next step ; Tunnel Flooding ;- ).
Au revoir les Rosbeefs