Eurostar passengers are facing railway strikes and the suspension of the route to Disneyland Paris and Amsterdam.
In a blow to leisure and business travel, the direct link from King’s Cross, London to Marne-la-Vallée for Disneyland Paris was suspended on June 7 until the end of 2023. Passengers will need to change at Lille or Paris Gare du Nord as part of changes announced last year.
Also the direct link between King’s Cross and Amsterdam will be suspended from June 2024 until, at least, May 2025. This is to enable major engineering work at Amsterdam Centraal. The connection with Rotterdam will also be suspended.
Amsterdam Centraal has been served from London since 2018 and is to undergo a seven-year renovation to create more space, as passenger numbers are expected to grow by one-third up to 2030.
“We have taken the decision not to run the direct Disney service between London and Marne-la-Vallée in summer 2023,” Eurostar said last year. “Whilst we continue to recover financially from the pandemic and monitor developments in the proposed EU Entry-Exit system, we need to focus on our core routes to ensure we can continue to provide the high level of service and experience that our customers rightly expect.”
In addition, there is likely to be some disruption this summer, with strikes set to affect the traditional Eurostar routes from London to Paris and Brussels. Here is the lowdown.
Can you still take the Eurostar to Paris Gare Du Nord and Disneyland Paris?
“There’s been a series of ongoing strikes in France since March 7,” a Eurostar statement reads, adding: “New days of mobilisation may be announced by French unions at short notice.”
It said the latest strikes in June will not affect Eurostar itself but passengers could be delayed for connecting services into France. It is advisable to check before travelling to see if fresh strikes will affect journeys.
However, as for the link to Disneyland Paris, this connection will not be running directly from London until the end of the year for the reasons outlined above.
“We’ll be reviewing our plans for 2024 during 2023,” Eurostar has said.
For holidaymakers looking to get to Euro Disney, Eurostar suggests catching a train to Lille Europe and taking a connecting French high-speed train (TGV) from Lille Europe to Marne-la-Vallée – Chessy. Alternatively, book for Paris Gare du Nord and from there take local RER trains to Disneyland Paris.
For the latest updates, visit Eurostar’s website.
Can you still take the Eurostar to Amsterdam?
Yes, at least until June 2024 when the 12-month hiatus begins. However, there may be some industrial action or engineering works that mean services are delayed or cancelled.
Visit Eurostar’s website for updates
What are the Eurostar destinations from London?
Core routes connect through Ebbsfleet and Ashford in Kent directly to:
- Amsterdam
- Brussels
- Lille
- Paris
- Rotterdam
