It certainly is a possible journey !
First Rail Planner is not a good planner. Use bahn.com : it is reliable but it won't show ferries.
Here is a useful page (and website !) : https://www.seat61.com/trains-and-routes/london-to-paris-by-ferry.htm
What is your travel date ?
Here is a good itinerary :
- London St. Pancras - Dover Priory 10:07 - 11:12
- 7£ taxi or 30 min walk
- boarding 90 min prior (unfortunately)
- P&O ferry Dover Harbour - Calais 13:40 - 16:10 30£
- walk or free bus to the town center
- TER Calais-Ville - Lille-Flandres 17:31 - 18:47
- TER Lille-Flandres - Mouscron 19:09 - 19:29
- IC Mouscron - Bruxelles-Midi 19:49 - 21:14
This is for a weekday, timetables are surely different on weekends.
Let us know for questions !
Thank you very much for this detailed answer! This is of great help!
The trip shall be in August. I've heard you need to make the reservations in advance.
Maybe one more question: is it allowed to take luggage with you on the ferry? I mean, this should be part of a longer trip, and I would have a trolley with me...
Eurostar has a limited quota which can sell out weeks in advance yes.
The ferry has a lot more capacity but I'd still recommend to book it a few days in advance at least.
All the trains here are reservation-free. Simply add the train to the app before boarding and then find a free seat :)
Only high-speed trains in France, Italy, Spain + cross-border trains such as Thalys and Eurostar require seat reservations. The latter two have a quota which can sell out quite far in advance. Night trains are also extremely popular so book well in advance.
No problem for luggage (on any trains) as long as you can carry it yourself.
