by No-one could have predicted the disastrous and tragic end to 2023 which resulted in a flooded rail tunnel outside London forcing Eurostar to cancel its services in and out of the city on December 30, which which affected an estimated 30,000 passengers. The train operator was facing a last-minute strike by France’s Eurotunnel workers on December 21, which led to travel chaos ahead of Christmas as passengers struggled to get home for the festive season.
It was what a French newspaper With Figaro was deemed a “tough end to the year” for Eurostar, which finally seemed to be getting back on its feet after the twin blows of Brexit and the pandemic. After an emergency refinancing deal in 2021, the company’s merger in 2023 with European operator Thalys gave hope. “As the Eurostar Group we will be more resilient to future external shocks,” a spokesman told the Telegraph at the time.
Although the new Eurostar Group reaches more destinations than a year ago, there is a change in Lille, Paris or Brussels for UK customers to get to. Meanwhile, a direct service to Disneyland Paris has been removed from the timetable indefinitely, along with stops at Ebbsfleet and Ashford International. Will 2024 – the 30th year of Eurostar – bring better news for British customers?
“Eurostar services will not stop at Ebbsfleet or Ashford International or go direct to Disney in 2024, and we cannot make any promises for 2025,” a representative told the Telegraph. “Although we are close to getting back on track, with 11 million passengers traveling with us on our cross-Channel routes in 2023, we will continue to face the financial consequences of the pandemic for several years to come. Borders are also becoming more complex, and the launch of the EU Entry/Exit System requires us to be careful. We are continuing to focus on our core channels, where demand is highest, and on stabilizing our business, operations and customer experience.”
Anticipate ETIAS
Given the issues already arising from post-Brexit border checks, rail expert Mark Smith of The Man in Seat Sixty-One believes the brand is right to be wary of Europe’s new regulations on third-party nationals , which is to be implemented by the end of the year. 2024. “There are still some peak trains that go out with empty seats because they can’t process everything at St Pancras,” he said. “The ETIAS travel authorization scheme and the Entry/Exit System are going to ruin everything again, possibly”.
Eurostar says it is preparing for the changes by investing in upgraded e-gates for Paris and London, as well as adding a new manual control kiosk and electronic gates in Brussels. He also hopes to use Smartcheck, which allows customers to register their passports before going to the station, to use facial recognition to speed up border controls.
On the right track?
One of the operator’s recent success stories has been the launch of a direct route between London and Amsterdam in 2020. But one section of the route will stop for six months from June 2024, as construction works will mean a station Amsterdam Centraal upgrade that will not exist. sufficient space to facilitate security checks for British passengers returning to the UK. It’s a frustrating break, although Eurostar hopes to increase train frequency once the work is complete.
The company reintroduced another popular service at the end of 2023. The ski train to the French Alps was canceled in 2020, and Travelski, a tour operator that made charter trains, took over the popular route to the slopes. by rail between December and April.
For 2023/24, Eurostar has claimed the route with a service destined for five Alpine stations and which will run until the beginning of February. However, unlike the Travelski option (and the original Eurostar service), Eurostar Snow involves a change at Lille for passengers – and all their ski gear. Even worse, anyone planning a ski trip after February 4th will have to book two separate train tickets and dash from Gare du Nord to Gare de Lyon for the onward journey from Paris.
“[The initial closure] it affected the resorts down in the French Alps because that’s their livelihood, and that’s why they chartered a ski train,” Smith said. “But Eurostar didn’t want to play ball with that anymore, so now we have this Eurostar/Thalys hybrid. It’s a shame.”
Another of the group’s new routes (albeit with more changes) should delight more people during 2024. England football fans will be able to get to the Euro 2024 matches by train thanks to a service to Cologne and Dusseldorf via Brussels. Eurostar is also the official travel partner of the British Olympic Association and hopes to transport 1.7 million supporters to the Games via its Paris routes.
With no competitors on the London-Paris service, Eurostar should be able to maximize profits during the competition – but that could change in the future. New operator Evolyn hopes to run trains between London and Paris Nord as early as 2025, although experts believe that is an optimistic target.
Sir Richard Branson also has his eye on the route, and Railtech reports that Dutch start-up Heuro wants to offer a service between London and Amsterdam by 2028, running up to 15 trains a day.
“That’s madness,” says Jerry Alderson, director of campaigning organization Rail Future. “Even in 20 years, they will not increase to that number. The big problem is that St. Pancras doesn’t have the resources”.
The fee is fair
If and when settlement issues are resolved, Eurostar may need customer loyalty and affordable prices to help it retain passengers against the competition – so it would be wise to focus on a number of issues between the meanwhile. The operator recently got into hot water with the Advertising Standards Authority after a £39 summer fare deal prompted customer complaints about a lack of seats that were deemed available.
And while none of the Christmas disruptions were the fault of Eurostar, passengers took to social media to lament the lack of customer service afterwards. A representative of the brand defended: “On both days, when external factors created a very challenging situation, customers were given the option to exchange their tickets or receive a refund. Those stranded were supported with hotel and taxi compensation. Additional services were also arranged in the days following the incidents.”
However, the Reverend Dr.
“London is not the start of the journey for a large number of Eurostar passengers,” he said. “So much time and money had already been spent arranging for St Pancras to be on time for their respective trains (traveling to London and hotels for an early departure) and Eurostar treat them as ‘local passengers’ who only need Coming back. on another day. Most of them can’t. Although the flooding was not Eurostar’s fault, the complete failure of any communication strategy in terms of proactive information and empathy was appalling.”
