City to city in barely two hours – a day in Paris thanks to Eurostar

A weekend, a month, a year – no matter how much time you spend in the French capital, you never seem to get bored.

Its perpetual allure means you can never say you have truly ‘done’ this beautiful European city.

And, of course, since 1994, it has been reachable from our very own marvellous capital in under two-and-a-half hours, thanks to Eurostar. 

To put that into context, that’s just about the time it takes me to reach our offices in Catford from my north London home by bus.

I have travelled through the city en route to other French and Spanish destinations, and spent many a happy long weekend there. 

But this time I wanted to find out just what could be crammed into a single day trip – something which would have been impossible pre-1994, and Eurostar.

Rising early at 5am, myself and my 11-year-old daughter, Nellie, took the Tube two stops from Holloway Road to King’s Cross & St Pancras, arriving at the Eurostar departure point an hour-and-a-half before our 8am train time.

We were swiftly through passport control and, after a short wait, were on our way. One bonus of the Eurostar passport control is that both the UK and French border officers check your passport at departure – both at St Pancras and Gare du Nord – meaning when you arrive at the other end there’s no fuss – you just step off the train and into the city.

We arrived in Paris at around 11.30am French time and hopped on the Metro to Chatelet, a short walk down one of the main shopping streets – the Rue de Rivoli – from our first destination, the imposing Louvre Museum, after a quick baguette for lunch.

Another tip –  if visiting the Louvre, make sure you book in advance, otherwise you will be in for a long, long wait. Many professions gain free entrance, too – as do under 18s.

Our booking was for 1pm and, after spending a couple of hours in the Louvre, including a peek – at first from some distance – at the Mona Lisa, we moved on towards our second stop of the day, the wonderful Shakespeare & Co bookshop on the Seine’s Left Bank, down by the Notre Dame.

From the Louvre we crossed over the Seine and turned left, past the famous ‘bouquinistes’ – those amazing green lock-up kiosks that flank the river, and which house the most delightful and curious collection of second-hand books. It is no exaggeration to say you could spend a whole day trip simply perusing what’s on offer at these most quintessentially Parisien kiosks.

A few hundred yards down the Left Bank of the Seine we reached our destination – Shakespeare & Co. There’s always a queue here. Being a tourist destination as well as a genuine haunt for the bookish, the owners ensure only a certain number of people can enter at any one time, giving those inside the best chance to find the gems they never knew they wanted.

Eleven hours after getting out of bed, and on the go since then, it was time for some liquid refreshment. Where else in Paris than the Great Canadian Pub. OK, we were thirsty and desperate for a stop off. It served a purpose – and was, in fact, a nice bar.

Time was ticking and, after a look around the outside of the Notre Dame, clad with scaffolding as the authorities attempt to save it from the damage caused by the devastating fire of five years ago, it was time to head back towards the Gare du Nord, stopping opposite the station for a bowl of moules and chips – something I just can’t leave France without.

We were seamlessly through passport control and, after another short wait in departures, we were back in the comfort of the Eurostar, exhausted but fulfilled, knowing that the next stop was a stone’s throw from home.

What a wonderful day out – I would recommend it to any Londoner – just maybe avoid the Olympics.

Benefits of travelling by Eurostar

• Seamless city centre to city centre travel, stations located in the heart of the destinations.
• No need for expensive, lengthy airport journeys
• Sustainable travel
• Carbon footprint from one flight the same as making 14 Eurostar journeys.
• Extra baggage allowance
• Eurostar offers each person two suitcases and one piece of hand luggage with no weight restrictions and at no extra charge.
• Fast and convenient check-in
• Dedicated check-in for Business Premier passengers
• No additional checks on arrival
• Comfort and space on board to work or unwind.
• No queues or baggage reclaim upon arrival – simply take your bag with you on board.

Paris

• Eurostar operates 17 trains a day from London St Pancras International to Paris Gare du Nord, with one-way fares starting from £39 (based on a return journey)
• All tickets are flexible, with no exchange fee on changes up to seven days before departure
• Fastest London-Paris journey time is 2hr 16 minutes.
• Eurostar tickets can be booked 330 days prior to the departure date.
• Tickets are available from www.eurostar.com

Pictured top: Charlie and Nellie on the Eurostar (Picture: Charlie Stong)