Bikes on Eurostar?

Yep, makes total sense, will do

I get that coordinating between companies or countries is tricky, but it's one company, and one route. I'm sure there are reasons why it's not working smoothly, but still feel it should. Seamless systems for countless dumb consuming activities we don't need, and the boring stuff that actually makes life easy always lags.

Re seat61, that looks like a very lovely website, thanks.

I'm sure there are reasons

There are a couple.

1. Brexit
   
2. See 1.
   

Yup. Basically St Pancras wasn’t designed for full boarder control so there’s no space to process a full train load so meaning every train is ⅔ full. Causing issues and high prices. All Brexit.

Yeah, we were there plenty early last time and it's so backed up, they have to squeeze 3 lines into one normal row of humans. Basically we were just held until after the train before had left while all the latecomers for the previous train were smooshed by us. Fucking shitshow. Covid, what Covid, etc.

Repost.

When I travelled with my boxed bike last month they actually upgraded me to business as there was no other way to guarantee that I could be on the same train as my bike because of the queues

I've basically written them off for bike carriage these days. It was shit before Brexit but it's totally fuxxored now.

As I didn't make my connection in Basel due to delay I was on a Locarno train change at Arth Goldau. Very well worth it as it slowly dawned that the most scenic meandering train on the other side of Zugersee was my Lugano.

Anyone got a rinko bag they don't want?

https://www.theguardian.com/money/2023/aug/17/eurostar-derailed-my-efforts-to-book-a-bike-on-to-one-of-its-trains

At the moment you have to bag up your bike for the London - Paris route. You have to take your bagged bike up to the Euros dispatch counter at both London and Paris stations for check-in as before.
On arrival at the other end they give you back your bagged bike on the platform, you carry it through the exit yourself. The bag is security zip-tied, so you need a pair of scissors to open the bike bag (don't leave this in the bike bag like I did).
This costs £45 each way and about 2 weeks to sort out.
I'm now 90% sure you can save yourself £45 each way by just carrying the bike bag on board yourself, which will regardless be within the 85cm length limit for standard bags. Would be a pain on a busy train through.

I'm now 90% sure you can save yourself £45 each way by just carrying the bike bag on board yourself, which will regardless be within the 85cm length limit for standard bags. Would be a pain on a busy train through.

No chance, even in pre-brexit days they didnt allow this. I tried a couple of times. Fuck Eurostar, driving is way easier.

We did back from Paris in 2012 with bikes wrapped in bin-bags, but we got some very stern suggestions that this wasn't really ok.

...scratching my head why they didn't walk the 500m down from the Guardian office to the Eurostar dispatch counter to find out the details properly.

In these times they appreciated fixies in laundry bags.

Work from home.

I'm flying everywhere. Eat me, Eurostar.

You used to be able to take your bike bag on board - I did when I took the Eurostar to Lille/Valence for the Marmotte in 2010 and again coming back from a London to Paris ride in 2011 - but they'd already stopped that before Covid and now it would be a definite no-no.

'I'm still waiting for an email' would be an appropriate response these days. It takes days and days for a reply (I tried to change trains because the French ones from Basel were booked out - that follow-up email took three days).
In the end it was just my bike boarded both ways. But they both had three members of staff ready and available to carry my bike bag and put it on the trolley.

Although less convenient, probably more expensive, and more time consuming, the Harwich -> hook of Holland ferry was easy with fully assembled touring bike.

I’ve done Harwich>Hook and found it pretty straightforward too.

Has anyone tried Le Shuttle yet?
https://www.eurotunnel.com/uk/travelling-with-us/vehicles/bicycles/

@pastry_bot has. It was a vehicle with a trailer actually.

It was a long time ago, it seemed a strange process but like all bike shuttles which you think might never turn up in the god forsaken place you are directed to, it did and I don't recall too many issues. No doubt they've made it more difficult in the +10years since I did although it actually looks pretty simple according to that page!

I took the eurostar a couple of weeks ago and there was a guy there was a bike bag, carrying it onto the train (on the London end). No idea how he got it through security, maybe now they're all employed by Serco or Mitie they don't care? Bit of a risk though