eurostar timings

[LethargeMarg]

Complete eurostar novice and had not realised about the early check in.
our current uk train arrives one hour before departure meaning realistically we will join the q about 20 mins before the gate closes.
eeek!!! will try and change uk train as to push eurostar back will be an additional £200.
has anyone travelled this summer and can advise if my current train times are at all realistic??? My mum says she thinks we will just make it but i’m feeling v anxious and v stupid for not realising this will be an issue

@Decorhate oh absolutely - Eurostar staff are general much more helpful than airport staff. We nearly missed our train once as there was a meltdown at Gare du Nord border control (there was a power cut that killed the e gates). Eurostar staff were coming along the queue and pulling people for our train out of the queue ad bringing them to the front.

just an update for anyone who might read this with a similar concern. from getting off the train at st pancras to getting through the gate it was only about 15-20 minutes so we probably would have been ok although if we had been even a few mins late on our original booking i guess we would have missed it.
the queues were really short and in train order (at 1115 there were quite a few people going through gate for the 12 o’clock train) so i do think had we been cutting it fine they’d have prioritised us and we would have made it. oh well im a worrier so it would have probably caused so much stress and maybe our train would’ve been delayed etc

Depending on whether there is another train leaving at a similar time it can be fast or slow. Officially check-in closes 20 minutes (maybe 30?) before departure but I've no idea how strict they are about it

Better safe than sorry. The queues are hard to predict. I was there this morning and the queues were snaking right round the corner towards the Thameslink bit.

I've never needed to do this going out from the UK as we live in London, but can you book your whole journey via Eurostar, including your train to London? You can do this going back - we usually book our whole journey back from France to London with Eurostar. This mens they calculate the transfer time for you and if you miss your Eurostar due to delays on the French train they have to put you on the next train back free of charge.

I've been on trains that made unscheduled stops at Lille to pick up delayed passengers before.