Agoraphobe going on the Eurostar - can someone give me a step by step guide?

[Rolypops]

I am in the process of planning a trip to Europe this summer on the Eurostar to meet one of my bio parents for the first time. I have moderate agoraphobia and an anxiety disorder and am generally not the best traveller and don't do it very often at all. On the rare occasions when I have it's not been on the Eurostar and DH has sorted everything for me. This time I will be traveling from London on my own.

Would anyone be kind enough to tell me what to expect when getting the Eurostar step by step? I am here with indefinite leave to remain and have a current passport/residence permit etc so that is all in order. I have watched videos to show me what to expect but none of them show the actual boarding process. Do you put your wheely case through a scanner? (I will have a backpack and small wheeled suitcase). Do you scan your passport or does someone look at it? Do they ask questions? How far in advance would you suggest I arrive?

Although I have a minor health condition I am assuming the health insurance booked alongside the ticket will be enough for a short break? My health condition will almost certainly cause no issues while I am away.

Thanks in advance for any help, I am booking my ticket today and feel almost sick with the thought of it all!

OP, I hope you enjoy your trip. Eurostar will tell you on your ticket how long you should arrive before, go with what they say. All bags are scanned but there are no liquid restrictions etc like you have at airports. Passports are usually physically checked by UK and French border staff before you board, so you can get straight off the other end.

Your travel insurance policy document will list illnesses that must be disclosed prior to travel. Small print can be a bit of a maze, so if in doubt contact the policy provider.

The time transitioning the tunnel is actually quite short.

Are you being met from the train? Drop me a PM if you wish to discuss more about arrival etc.

You should arrive about an hour in advance. Sometimes you need to queue outside the entrance to the Eurostar section of the station. You go through tickets gates, then luggage and person scanner, then two sets of passport checks (UK and France). People queue in between these points, it can be quite busy but much faster usually than at an airport I'd say. Then you wait in the waiting area until the platform is announced. Again waiting area often very busy, there are lots of seats but sometimes none free. There's a shop with travel items etc. Then once your platform is announced (20 min before departure) you go up a lift or moving walkway to the platform and board the train. The train is just like any high speed train really, nothing different (except announcements in three languages). If you get off in Brussels, again the platform at arrival can be very crowded, with people slowly moving towards the exit. But no more passport check at that end as you've already got that done in London!

From memory I think it goes

You arrive at st Pancras and queue up at the Eurostar bit in one big queue

You scan your ticket and go through one of a number of electronic gates

You put your luggage through a big scanner - like at an airport but bigger as people aren't limited to hand luggage sized stuff. Everything goes through and there are no restrictions on liquids etc. in fact it's sensible to take a coffee etc through because there is more choice before you enter the 'lounge'

You retrieve your luggage and queue up for passport control which works very like an airport.

You're then in a big waiting lounge. It's indoors and nice, wooden floors and decent chairs. Although it can get pretty busy. There is a pret and another small shop/ cafe or two but these get very busy with big queues. There are loos, baby change etc.

You wait around there. Every so often a train will board and then there will be a big group of people gathering. There are screens telling you what is boarding as at an airport. The way boarding works is you go through a door and up a travelator (or possibly a lift?) to the level above where there is the train. Then you go to the right carriage, someone checks your ticket and you get on with your bags.

Then you're done! Good luck.

Taking the step to book this is a brave one, so props to you for doing it.

I haven't used the Eurostar in a while, but my memory is that the first thing that will happen is that you and your bags will go through a scanner, and your ticket and passport will be checked by a person. They might ask a friendly type of question eg. "First time going to [destination]?" or say "Enjoy your trip." and so no significant response is required. Once your documents have been checked and your bags scanned, they'll be given back to you.

Then there's a quite large waiting area similar to an airport with screens showing arrivals and departures and shops around the outside. I think they announce departures, but always best to keep an eye on the screens. When boarding begins, all you need to do is go to the platform for your train and board like you would do if you were taking a domestic journey. I can't remember if your ticket will be checked again to make sure that you're boarding the right train, but someone else who's used the Eurostar more recently will hopefully come along and let you know about that. There'll be luggage areas in the carriage and space above your head for your bags, so you can keep them close to you.

You might also want to think about how you're going to get to the Eurostar bit of St Pancras. It's well signposted and pretty obvious when you find it, but if your nerves are likely to be a bit on edge, it might be worth figuring that out now too (or even doing a dummy run if possible).

Enjoy your trip!

Also your coach and seat number are on your ticket.

There are videos of each step of the boarding process on the Eurostar website. It's designed for Autistic travellers but you might find it useful? www.eurostar.com/uk-en/travel-info/travel-planning/travellers-with-autism

It also advises quieter travel times if you haven't already booked.

Good luck!

I'd allow two hours prior to departure, I've been and the queues have been quite long. Better to sit and wait for a while than be late

Oh thanks so much everyone this is all SO helpful . With regard to health insurance I have just booked the 11 pound comprehensive insurance with my tickets, will that be enough? As I say the only health condition I have is a minor one which won't be causing me any problems.

I'm staying almost next to the station the night before but taking the first train out.

This is EXACTLY what I've been looking for, thank you! Not sure how I missed it on the site.

Probably a stupid question but - do I put my phone on the tray to go through the scanner?

You have to have your phone scanned but I think it can stay in your bag.

I hate queues when I'm travelling and I usually arrive at the beginning of the check in window for eurostar and it is fine.

You also normally get a seat in departures then too. Don't be shy about asking people to move their bags either. It really pisses me off that a suitcase needs a seat when people are standing.

There are only two food options once you are through - pret is marginally better but gets horrendously busy. My top tip would be to buy any food snacks from M&S before you go through eurostar security.

They don't care about liquids / toiletries the way they do at and airport.

Once on the train you can either put your bag above your head (the rack is decent size, but quite high) or in the luggage rack at the beginning of the carriage. I worry about my bag being nicked so prefer to have it above my head.

If you have time get a GHIC card.

Put everything on the trays to go through the scanner as you’ll walk through a scanner as your bags are scanned (one of the doorway type metal detector ones). If you wear a belt they will likely ask you to take it off and put it on the tray too, along with coats. I usually empty my pockets into my bag and put it all through the machine.
All bags go on trays, they’ll call you forward and you take a tray from under the table, put everything in it and push it forward to go onto the conveyor belt and be scanned. You can take more than one tray if you need the space.

Is this needed? As I say I'm not a British citizen so not sure if I qualify, also my surname on all of my medical records is different from my passport and residence permit so it is probably going to be a faff or even worse cause problems at the check in?

I've had a look at the GHIC and I'm not sure if it would all be sorted in time, as I am only going for a long weekend do you think it's necessary even though I have paid for travel insurance?

Would definitely recommend getting there as early as you can .That way you can have a good walk around and feel confident you know where everything is - and be near the front of any queues. Also the staff are very busy so it's preferable to have time to work out things out for yourself before asking them -theyre very nice if you do need help however.

Buy food and drink from the shops outside (there's a nice M and S and a Paul's for sandwiches) as once you're through the barriers everything becomes extortionate.

Once you're on the train make sure you have headphones and a puzzle magazine or similar. I always seem to get stuck near some arguing family or noisy students so you want to have the means of blocking them out.

But honestly, Eurostar is pretty good for signposts and getting through the processes is like a conveyor belt - you can't really get it wrong as there's nowhere else to move. So long as you aren't late you should find it all manageable.

I'm an anxious person too but I love travel so I've devised some strategies - my main means of coping are allowing more time for everything than is really necessary, printing out all tickets etc so I'm not worrying about WiFi breakdowns, doing plenty of research and always being armed with a means of distraction!

They offer a different boarding process for passengers with disabilities, which you usually book in advance.
This means you're not in a big queue for a long time.

Oh I'm not sure if you're not a British citizen.
You have insurance anyway.
Have a good trip