Travelling to the Alps with a bike by train: step by step.

Bon voyage @Kramer!

It’s not as much hassle as it sounds.

I’ve now dropped my bike off at Eurostar luggage services, where the extremely friendly staff gave me very specific instructions about where to pick up and drop off my bike in Paris and back in the UK – detailed on the confirmation email that they’ve already sent me. Also very specific instructions to make sure I’ve checked in for the train that I’ve said I’m getting on when it’s called.

Only slight confusion is that there is “Luggage Services” with quite a big queue on the way to “Travel Services”. It could be easy to get the two mixed up if you didn’t have your wits about you. Then you could end up queueing for ages only to find out that you’re in the wrong place.

I’m checked in for the Eurostar, fairly simple, took 15 minutes total. Departure lounge was a scrum but now a train is boarding it’s ok.

Slightly worrisome is that the start of the “Inspector Sands” announcement keeps starting and stopping. 😳

So, now on the sleeper train. The transfer across Paris was €40 in a taxi. Lesson learned. Next time I’d find a quiet(er) corner of Gare du Nord (🤣) and build my bike up to ride across to Gare Austerlitz. Austerlitz is a quiet station, only two trains per hour, so it would have been better to wait somewhere else.

The sleeper train is busy and cramped. Apparently only second class people travel by bicycle, so it’s six to a compartment. Annoyingly I think there are some empty compartments, but they are locked and we’re squeezed in like Sardines.

The bike storage is pretty good, not least because it’s not easy to get bikes on and off the train. Even with it full of bikes, there’s room for bike bags too.

However there’s not much room for anything else. People are congregating in the corridors because it’s about the only place to stand up straight. I shall report back tomorrow about whether I manage to get any sleep.

Following this with interest! Well versed with the sweaty boxes that are sleeper trains but I’ve always been nervous about whether I’d trust my bike to make it. I’ll definitely be on this idea next summer if it works out

Not the best night’s sleep I’ve ever had, but not the worst either. My bike’s still here too.

The bike racks and surrounding luggage.

This is a stressful thread 😖

So I’m sat back at Euston station waiting for the last leg of my journey. Had a fabulous week of riding epic singletrack and a few bike park lines with Bike Alp in Briançon.

A few things I’d do differently:

• Keep more of an eye on the various European trains when they become available to book bike spaces. Because the Tour was in town last weekend the bike spaces went really early.
• Keep my bike assembled to transfer between Euston and St Pancras and Gare Du Nord and Austerlitz – far easier and cheaper to transfer than by using a taxi. I spent about £65 that I didn’t need to, as well as spending time hanging around Austerlitz with a bike bag when I could have been riding around Paris.
• There’s always somewhere reasonably quiet and safe to build up your bike without attracting too much attention in stations. Usually near the drop off points
• I’d only take a basic cable opportunistic combination lock for this journey – the train was full of families, trekkers and climbers. I didn’t feel it was worth taking a heavy duty chain.
• After consideration, and a full extra day’s riding yesterday, I’d do the sleeper train again. The guys flying home ended up delayed and getting home in the small hours of this morning anyway.
• I’d bring better ear plugs and eye mask than those supplied by SNCF
• I’d almost certainly bring an inflatable pillow and possibly a lightweight sleeping mat next time. Those Couchettes are firm and the supplied pillows are next to useless.
• I wouldn’t worry about snoring. Everyone accepts that you’re going to be cheek by jowel anyway and just gets on with it.
• If there were no bike spaces left, I wouldn’t worry about taking a bike in a bike bag and leaving it in with the bike spaces.

My Ground Control Tardis bike bag worked well and is small enough to go in my rucksack.

Total cost £343 there and back. Comparable to 2-up driving or flights, parking and transfers.

Here’s hoping that Eurostar is able to restart taking full assembled bikes London – Paris soon.

Big shout out to the Eurostar staff, especially travel services who’ve been super helpful.

Any questions, feel free to ask them and I’ll try my best to answer. ?

Nice to hear it all worked well.  good for you for doing it.  Trains are much nicer than planes IMO

I wouldn’t say I had a good night’s sleep last night, but I definitely had some sleep. And it definitely has been an adventure, I’ve had fun riding around Paris today.

Trains are much nicer than planes IMO

They are. The views from the train yesterday evening as it made its way down the valley were superb.

Trains are much nicer than planes IMO

caveat: in Europe. Or Japan. Or probably most places other than the UK.

My experience of travelling on UK trains with a bike has mostly been good to be fair. YMMV of course.

This would be a good article…

Or probably most places other than the UK.

Our Swiss clients have commented favourably on UK railways when we meet them off the train. As do the Germans and Austrians.