What to Do When Your Eurostar Train is Cancelled (or delayed)

Last Updated on 10th February 2024 by Sophie Nadeau

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If you’re a fan of train travel, then you’ve no doubt heard of Eurostar, whose most popular offering is a train directly from London to Paris. In just two and a half hours, you’ll be transported under the Channel Tunnel from city centre to city centre; all of the convenience of train travel without the hassle and stress of airports… until your train is cancelled. Here’s what to do when your Eurostar train is cancelled.

I have been travelling with Eurostar for many years as I’ve spent my adult life living between Paris and London, spending a few years in Paris before switching back to London and vice versa.

Unfortunately, as of 2024, I have definitely noticed an uptick in the number of delays and cancellations of the Eurostar post Brexit, Covid, and a myriad of other factors. When there are delays and cancellations, I have also noticed that you can be left for hours without any information which is why I’ve written this post.

During periods of severe delays, the ‘live tracker’ also can’t be relied on as I’ve often been on trains which are severely delayed and say that they’re still on time (or even that they’ve arrived when we’re still on the train stuck somewhere!)

What to do if your train is cancelled

If your train is cancelled, there are two options typically available to you:

• Get a full refund of your ticket (unfortunately if you have booked your ticket well in advance then this probably won’t make a dent in the cost of buying a new mode of transportation home like a flight)
• Get on the next available train (this is usually the next day, but during really busy holiday periods can be several days in the future. During your delay you might be able to claim for accommodation and food costs. You cannot reclaim the cost of your ticket or delay compensation if your previous train was delayed and you change your ticket for the next available one)

If your train is cancelled and there are no more trains available the same day, you can claim up to €170/£150 per room per night for a hotel, and food costs of €60/£50 for each 24-hour stay. You can also claim costs related to calling anyone who was waiting for you at your destination and transport between the station and your accommodation.

Unfortunately, if your train is cancelled around midnight (as ours once was), you will probably have no way of finding a hotel last minute, especially as you have to go through passport control again to be let out of the station. Gare du Nord actually closes for a few hours during the middle of the night and so you won’t be able to stay in the train station.

The area around the station is not the safest at night and so I recommend heading to a 24 hour fast food chain if you literally can’t find a hotel. I feel fortunate that we have friends in London and Paris who have always been able to accommodate us last minute and so we haven’t run into this situation.

There are lots of reports of Eurostar staff in Paris saying that passengers on various delayed trains are not entitled to claim for these things but the confusion likely arose as, if you are in your home town, then you are not entitled to a duty of care.

You don’t have the same rights travelling by train as on an airline

Unfortunately, important to note is that you won’t have the same rights as airline travel despite the Eurostar being a cross-country service. Aside from the fact that the Eurostar is typically a lot more expensive than flying, this is my biggest gripe with the train service.

And, while this is a legislative issue rather than a Eurostar specific one, it definitely is an issue which I hope is rectified soon (especially as more people turn to train travel for environmental reasons). Unfortunately, this means that:

• Eurostar does not have to cover expensive flights or other modes of transportation like the ferry: Unlike in aviation where the airline is bound to get you to your destination (or refund your alternative if you book a new flight/ mode of transportation yourself), no parallel exists in the train world. This can leave you hundreds of euros out of pocket, though your travel insurance might cover this.
• You will not recoup the cost of a prepaid hotel abroad: If you have booked a hotel abroad (say in Paris if you’re travelling from London), then you will not get any money back if you can’t reach the hotel due to a Eurostar cancellations. Check with your travel insurance if it covers this.
• You won’t receive compensation: Rather annoyingly, if Eurostar cancels your train, you won’t receive any compensation as you would if you were travelling via a plane. It’s actually more convenient if your train is delayed because this way you’ll get compensation (if delayed by a certain amount of time) and actually get to your destination.

Eurostar alternatives

If your train is cancelled then there are a few options to get between London and Paris. However, please note that if tunnel strike action affects your train, then this will likely also affect services such as the Eurostar car tunnel, meaning you won’t be able to get a coach.

• Flying: the obvious alternative is flying. However, if a lot of Eurostar trains are cancelled, then flights go up in price a lot and also tend to sell out (such as during the strikes of the 2023 Holiday Season).
• Taking a coach: there are regular coaches between London and Paris with Flixbus, which can be quite long but are the most budget friendly option. When I was a student I regularly took the bus between the two cities, and while it’s often pretty delayed, you certainly can’t beat the price!
• Ferry: Ferries run between Dover and Calais on a regular basis and crossings only take an hour. You can get from London to Dover by bus in around an hour and a quarter on the bus and you can get from Paris to Calais in around three hours on the train.

Tips to avoid cancelled Eurostar trains

In all of my experience, the most important thing you should do to avoid ending up with a cancelled Eurostar train is to avoid booking the last two trains of the day. Often, when trains are running behind due to technical reasons or an accident, Eurostar will end up cancelling the last train (or two) of the day.

This is usually because the last Channel Tunnel entry is around midnight and so trains can’t travel through to (or out of) the UK past this point. Having learned this the hard way (one time we were forced to wait in the waiting room at Gare du Nord up until midnight with no amenities or information- the cafés had all closed, the vending machines had run out, and the toilets were in a pretty bad condition), I now always avoid the final train of the day.

If I have an important event to get to such as a Wedding or a flight out of a major airport, I no longer can rely on travelling with Eurostar to reach my destination the same day (we missed a 30th Birthday, my husband getting back to work on time on a Monday, and a few other events due to severe delays and cancellations in 2023) and so now leave at least a day buffer.

What this means is travelling a day ahead of time to either London or Paris so that, in the event of a severe delay or cancellation, you won’t miss your important deadline.

What to do if your Eurostar train is delayed

As I mentioned previously, the process of dealing with a train delay tends to be much easier and simpler than a train cancellation (unless your delay turns into a cancellation, which is a story for another time!)

Typically, if your train is delayed then you should still head to the station for your scheduled time (around an hour to an hour and a half before your train departs depending on the departure station) unless otherwise instructed to do so by Eurostar.

I have been on trains which have been delayed both at the station and while we’ve already been aboard. If you are at either the station or onboard and the delay is quite long, then all of the food and drink available tends to sell out (as do the vending machines) so do come prepared with food and drinks if you know you’re travelling on a day where there will be delays.

Unlike on the plane, you can bring liquids through security, though you can’t consume your own alcohol so stick to soft drinks! I have been on lots of delayed trains for various reasons; for technical problems on the line, due to strike, and once unfortunately I was on a train which collided with another vehicle on the tracks and so our train was held for four hours while the French police conducted an investigation.

If you are on a delayed train and you are there for several hours, then the staff will often hand out bottles of water and a small snack such as a KitKat. If you are delayed by more than a certain amount of time (60 minutes) you may be eligible for compensation in either cash or as a voucher to use of Eurostar (I always opt for the voucher as it is worth more money):

• 60-119 minutes delayed: 30% of the cost of the affected leg as a Eurostar e-voucher or 25% of the cost of the affected leg as a cash refund
• 120-179 minutes delayed: 60% of the cost of the affected leg as a Eurostar e-voucher or 50% of the cost of the affected leg as a cash refund
• 180 minutes+ delayed: 75% of the cost of the affected leg as a Eurostar e-voucher or 50% of the cost of the affected leg as a cash refund

In order to claim the voucher you usually have to wait until at least 24 hours after your train has arrived (sometimes the system can take a few days to allow for you to apply). You can apply for a voucher up to 3 months from the date you were due to travel after your delayed train and the voucher is valid for 12 months from the the date of your delayed train.

A final note

As someone with an intense fear of flying and who would always opt to take a train I enjoy taking the Eurostar and find it pretty easy to use when everything goes smoothly. However, it is much more expensive than taking the plane and you do not have as many consumer rights, which is definitely something to consider if you’re travelling during a stressful travel period (such as over Christmas).

If you’re looking for more Eurostar reviews, here’s what it’s like to travel in Eurostar Standard Premier and a review of the Eurostar Business Premier lounge in London.