Train travel is to get sexier from next month. A sleek new station, branded the “place to meet”, opens its doors to Eurostar services at the same time as journey times get shorter, with the possibility of buying through tickets from across the country.

When Eurostar started in 1994, it took three hours to reach the French capital. From November 14, it will take only 2hr 15min, as the final stage of the high-speed railtrack comes on line, with top speeds of 186mph (300kmh). More is happening to make journeys quicker and smoother on the Continent, where the TGV Est link from Paris to Strasbourg opened in June.

With the Dutch high-speed link in 2008 and an extension of the French link through the Pyrenees to Spain the following year, large swaths of Europe will be much more accessible.

The start of the journey for most in the UK will be St Pancras, marketed as a fashionable venue rather than a station, with bars, restaurants, cafés and shops, including Europe’s longest champagne bar, at 90 metres.

Details: www.eurostar.com; www.stpancras.com.

Super-fast, super-sleek. Eurostar takes the next step

How much quicker will journeys be from November 14? The new service to Paris will take 2hr 15min - 20 minutes less than previously. Journeys to Brussels and Lille will also be quicker by 20 minutes at 1hr 51min and 1hr 20min, respectively. The time to Disneyland Resort Paris will be 21 minutes less at 2hr 34min. When Eurostar began in 1994, it took three hours to reach Paris.

Will passengers be able to avoid changing in Paris or Lille? Only for existing direct services, which will become faster from November. During the summer, from July until the end of September, there will be a once-a-week train to Avignon on Saturdays. The journey will take 5hr 40min and fares are yet to be set. The “Ski Train” to Bourg St Maurice will run twice a week through the winter, from December 22 until the first week of April, on Fridays and Saturdays. It will take 7hr 20min and fares start at £179.

Why didn’t Eurostar build the new track into Waterloo? St Pancras offers better connections for travellers. There are seven main lines that operate into St Pancras, Euston and King’s Cross: First Capital Connect (formerly Thameslink), GNER, Midland Mainline, Virgin, ScotRail, Hull Trains and Silverlink. There are also six Tube lines. The former Eurostar platforms at Waterloo will probably be devoted to domestic services.

Will prices change? No, at least not immediately. The cheapest return fare to Paris will still be £59 and Leisure Select tickets for first-class carriages will start at £119 for weekend returns, or £159 during the week. Eurostar has promised to maintain these prices after the opening of St Pancras.

What about check-in times? These will remain at 30 minutes for standard tickets and ten minutes for business class.

How many trains will there be each day? Up to 28 from St Pancras, including 17 to Paris, ten to Brussels and one to Disneyland Resort Paris.

What about other Eurostar stations in the UK? A new station is opening on November 19 at Ebbsfleet, Kent, close to the Bluewater shopping centre and junction 2 of the M25. Journeys will take ten minutes less to the Continent than those from St Pancras. There will be a Eurostar ticket shop in Bluewater. Journeys from Ashford, which opened in 1996, are 22 minutes quicker than those from St Pancras.

If it has a new stop in the UK, won’t the Eurostar be a lot slower than before? No. Most trains will travel directly to their destinations. However, some will make a single stop, either at Ebbsfleet or Ashford. A total of 12 a day will stop at Ebbsfleet and four at Ashford. It will be worth checking timetables, which are on the internet, if you want a nonstop service.

Isn’t a station also opening at Stratford? Yes, Stratford International will probably open in 2009, although there is no firm date yet. The reason for the delay is the amount of construction around the site in the build-up to the 2012 Olympics. This makes the station – which is ready to take trains – unsuitable for passengers.

How can you get to Ebbsfleet? There will be a fast-track bus service from local train stations. Parking at Ebbsfleet and Ashford will cost £11.50 a day. The car park is a five-minute walk from Ebbsfleet and 5-10 minutes from Ashford. Business-class travellers will have four days’ free parking.

Can you take a train from Ashford or Ebbsfleet to St Pancras or vice-versa? Not until 2009, when domestic services begin. The EbbsfleetSt Pancras journey will take 17 minutes on what have been dubbed “commuter bullet trains”. Ashford to St Pancras will take 27 minutes.

If you travel from other parts of Britain to St Pancras, will you need two sets of tickets, one for the domestic journey and another for Eurostar? A total of 65 towns and cities will offer a one-ticket service from November 14. The number is likely to grow steadily as the network expands. Tickets can be bought from Eurostar, or from local operators when booking systems are changed next year.

Will you be able to connect from Paris, Brussels and the other destinations to high-speed networks that take you farther into Europe? Yes. There is a plan from 2009 to have a network of seven countries with connecting high-speed track. Britain, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland and Austria will be part of the network, called Railteam, which already has a website: www.railteam. eu. It is likely to expand as new tracks are built across Europe, with Spain and Italy possibly joining soon.

What happens if you miss a connecting train? Timetables are being planned to make connections simple and convenient. Stations on the Continent will have information booths with staff who speak English. If passengers do miss trains, they can go on the next one without having to buy another ticket.

For these journeys, do you buy your ticket from Railteam or through Eurostar? Either from Eurostar or your regional train operator. Details: www.eurostar.com.

Countdown

1994 Waterloo International and Channel Tunnel open. Decision to build St Pancras station is agreed.
2003 Channel Tunnel to Fawkham Junction link in Kent opens.
2006 Stratford International completed.
2007 TGV Est high-speed Paris-to-Strasbourg link starts in June. Nov 13: Waterloo Eurostar station closes; St Pancras opens the following day. Ebbsfleet station opens on Nov 19. Dec 8: First Capital Connect’s station closes and a new Underground station opens at St Pancras.
2008 Dutch high-speed line linking Brussels and Amsterdam opens.
2009 French high-speed network extended through the Pyrenees to Spain. Stratford International due to open. Dec: Southeastern launches domestic high-speed services cutting journey times – 7min from St Pancras to Stratford, 17min to Ebbsfleet.
2010 Eurostar expected to carry 10 million passengers a year; up from 7.8 million last year.
2020 Earliest date for completion of High Speed Two, a 185mph line between London and Scotland via West Midlands. European high-speed network trebles in size to 15,000km.

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