Hi!
My fiancé and I are wanting to travel from London to Strasbourg on December 26 2023.
From what I can see, there will be a reduced timetable for this day. Are we better off changing our trip to avoid travelling on this day?
Answer
boxing day 2023
Best answer by thibcabe
Trains are running as usual in France but yes hardly any trains run in Great Britain that day. However as long as you can make it to St Pancras that day it won't be an issue.
Please book the Eurostar ASAP, it will be a very popular travel day. Seat reservations cost 30€ and there's a passholder quota.
All trains before 15:31 are already sold out between London and Paris. Either you leave at that time or there's an easy alternative…
- Eurostar London St. Pancras - Lille-Europe 11:04 - 13:26 30€
- TGV Lille-Europe - Strasbourg 14:03 - 17:37 20€ 2nd class or 20€ 1st class incl. upgrade (!)*
(Also possible to take the Eurostar to Lille earlier or later but then you don't have a connecting train to Strasbourg unless you change in Paris.)
You can book the Eurostar on interrail.eu (if available) or on https://www.b-europe.com/EN/Booking/Pass#TravelWish.
Same thing for the TGV : interrail.eu or https://travel.b-europe.com/Eurail-GE/en/booking-tgv#TravelWish
*Available through the B-Europe link.
Trains are running as usual in France but yes hardly any trains run in Great Britain that day. However as long as you can make it to St Pancras that day it won't be an issue.
Please book the Eurostar ASAP, it will be a very popular travel day. Seat reservations cost 30€ and there's a passholder quota.
All trains before 15:31 are already sold out between London and Paris. Either you leave at that time or there's an easy alternative…
- Eurostar London St. Pancras - Lille-Europe 11:04 - 13:26 30€
- TGV Lille-Europe - Strasbourg 14:03 - 17:37 20€ 2nd class or 20€ 1st class incl. upgrade (!)*
(Also possible to take the Eurostar to Lille earlier or later but then you don't have a connecting train to Strasbourg unless you change in Paris.)
You can book the Eurostar on interrail.eu (if available) or on https://www.b-europe.com/EN/Booking/Pass#TravelWish.
Same thing for the TGV : interrail.eu or https://travel.b-europe.com/Eurail-GE/en/booking-tgv#TravelWish
*Available through the B-Europe link.
if it’s not too much trouble, would you be able to help me with our train rides to Interlaken Switzerland on December 28, and then to Paris from Interlaken on December 30?
I’m struggling to find the timetable for this period!
They haven't been uploaded yet on Rail Planner but it should be done soon. Either use the German planner bahn.com/DB Navigator app or the Swiss one sbb.ch/SBB app. They're both more reliable than Rail Planner anyway !
Strasbourg - Interlaken doesn't require reservations so you're good to go. Trains run every 30 min for most of the day and seat reservations aren't a thing at all. Full flexibility here : hop on whenever you feel like it and sit wherever you want. Remember to log the train to the app before boarding ofc. As a tip : train ends are generally less busy as people are lazy and board in the middle.
For Interlaken - Paris you have mainly 2 options :
- TGV Lyria from Basel SBB : 29€ mandatory seat reservation (2nd class)
- any TGV from Mulhouse/Strasbourg : 10€ limited fare, then 20€ mandatory reservation
As you can see you need to cross the border on a regional train in order to save a bit. Maybe take the route via Mulhouse (which TGVs from Basel take too) so you don't see the same scenery than 4 days before, although it is quite boring nonetheless.
The TGV Lyria should be available soon on eurail.com while domestic services are on b-europe (link above).
Don't hesitate for questions.
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