Racks above your head on most European trains will take small & medium bags, holdalls & suitcases up to & including backpack-sized.  This is a London to Paris Eurostar...
	Racks near the entrance doors will take larger items.  This is Eurostar.
	As well as car-end & overhead racks, on many trains you can fit a medium suitcase, backpack or holdall between the seat backs...  This is an Italian high-speed Frecciarossa...
	Many trains now have luggage stacks inside the seating area.  This is an Austrian Railjet...

Luggage on trains, the basics... Click for left luggage at stations

With train travel, you keep your luggage with you throughout your journey.  Unlike travelling by air, you do not check your bags in, and there is usually no separate baggage car.  This means you have access to your bags throughout the journey, and they are unlikely to end up at an airport a thousand miles away from your destination!  You get onto the train with your bags and put small and medium sized bags on the luggage racks above your head, larger items on the racks at the end of the coach or in many cases between the seats inside the coach seating area.  It's that simple!

Luggage limits on trains...

Unlike airlines, there is generally no weight limit for luggage on European trains.  Just remember that you will have to carry it!  Eurostar theoretically limits luggage to two large items per passenger, with a maximum 85cm in any one dimension, plus a small item of hand luggage, but fortunately in practice they're not fussy about it and won't measure your bags if they're a tad over, nor worry about an extra carrier bag or whatever.  There is room for luggage on Eurostar on the luggage racks above the seats and for larger items on the racks at the end of each coach.  Porters are a thing of the past, but most major stations have self-help luggage trolleys.  Sometimes these require a coin to release them, which is returned when you return the trolley.  Eurostar website baggage information page.

Labelling your bags..

It is now compulsory to label all your bags when travelling on Eurostar or on any French train, with your first name and surname.  Paper labels are normally supplied with your Eurostar tickets if you need them (look in the ticket wallet or ask at the information desk inside the Eurostar terminal), but it's better to buy proper ones and keep them attached to your travelling bags.

Luggage safety...

Some travellers seem to worry about their bags, especially overseas visitors who are unfamiliar with train travel.  There's no need to worry, and no need to padlock your bags to the racks!  Luggage theft on trains is extremely rare - simply use the racks directly above your seat wherever you can (the overhead racks will usually take even backpack-sized bags) or use the racks inside the seating area if there are any, right next to where you're sitting.  This should be obvious, but in case it isn't, laptops, passports, iPhones, cameras, wallets and tickets should all be in your daypack kept with you in your seat, never left in a suitcase by the entrance door.  You then take your day-pack with you to the toilet or buffet car, unless you're travelling with someone else who can keep an eye on it for you.

Prohibited items...

It goes without saying that firearms & explosives are prohibited on Eurostar (there are special arrangements for sending licensed sporting guns by registered luggage).  But annoyingly several 'normal' street-legal items are prohibited which can catch people out.  These include gas canisters (admittedly a potential fire hazard in the Channel Tunnel), mountaineering ice axes (allowed on every other train in Europe but for some ridiculous reason not permitted on Eurostar, in theory at least, see the traveller's report here) and knives with a blade longer than 3", which catches out people who buy a nice set of Sabbatier kitchen knives in Paris (but knives with a blade shorter than 3", for example small penknives, are fine).  You are allowed to take your own wine or beer on board, but Eurostar may confiscate any 'excessive' alcohol, for example if you look as if you're going to cause trouble.

Registered baggage on Eurostar...

Eurostar passengers may send up to three items from London to either Paris or Brussels as registered baggage, at an extra charge (approximately £12-£20 per item).  See the Eurostar website baggage information page for details.  However, this service only operates between London, Paris and Brussels, not to other destinations beyond Paris or Brussels.  To send luggage in advance from your home address to other EU countries, see the next paragraph...

Send your luggage in advance with www.carrymyluggage.com...

If you live in the UK and would like to enjoy your train journey into Europe free of any heavy luggage, www.carrymyluggage.com will collect your luggage at your home address a few days before you leave, and will deliver it to addresses all over the EU, so it will be waiting at your hotel when you arrive.  It's not cheap, reckon on around £78 per case each way, but this is door to door, covering collection from your home in the UK or other EU country and delivery to an address in another EU country.  If you quote promo code 'seat61' you'll get 10% off the cost.

Left luggage at stations...

	Left luggage lockers.  These are the medium-sized lockers at Paris Gare du Nord.  They easily take a back-pack-sized roll-along like the bag shown here, which is 25" (64cm) high.
	This shows the largest lockers at Paris Gare du Nord, which will easily take a large suitcase.

Left luggage offices in London...

• London St Pancras has a left luggage office run by the Excess Baggage Company, where you can deposit items for £8.50 for the first 24 hours or part thereof, then £5 for each 24 hour period after that.  Open 06:00-22:00 Monday-Saturday, 07:00-22:00 Sunday.  Bags are X-rayed before deposit.  The left luggage is located on the lower concourse, near the toilets and domestic (Midland Mainline) ticket office, a short walk from the Eurostar area.  See www.left-baggage.co.uk.

• London Liverpool Street has a left luggage office near platform 10, handy if you're leaving or arriving on the Dutch Flyer train & ferry service to Hoek van Holland & Amsterdam.  Open 07:00-23:00 daily.  See www.left-baggage.co.uk.

• London Euston, Charing Cross, Victoria, Waterloo, Kings Cross, Paddington also have left luggage offices see www.left-baggage.co.uk. 

• Birmingham New Street, Edinburgh Waverley, Glasgow Central, Leeds, Liverpool Lime St, Manchester Piccadilly also have left luggage offices, see www.left-baggage.co.uk, and there's a small office at Holyhead.  Other stations in the UK generally don't have left luggage facilities.

Left luggage lockers in Paris...

• There are left luggage facilities at several Paris stations, so you can leave you bags and explore between trains.  However, there are no left luggage facilities in Paris for bikes, surfboards or skis.

• The Gare du Nord has left luggage lockers ('consigne automatique' in French), open 06:15 to 23:15 daily.  The locker area is located downstairs under the main concourse opposite platform 3 - when you walk off the end of the Eurostar platforms onto the concourse, look for downward stairs just ahead and to the right of you.  All your bags (even those you're not leaving) are X-rayed before entering the locker area as a security check.  A small locker costs €5.50 for up to 48 hours and will take a medium-sized backpack.  A medium locker costs €7.50 and might take 2 medium backpacks.  A large locker (around 1 metre high) costs €9.50 and will take a large suitcase or 2 large backpacks.  No keys are involved, you shut your locker, pay the money and a receipt is printed showing a code for opening the locker.  There's are change machines which (if they're working!) can convert €10, €20 or €50 banknotes into the coins needed for the lockers.

• The Gare de Lyon has left luggage lockers, open 06:15 to 22:00.  X-ray check at the entrance.  Locker sizes and prices the same as Gare du Nord.  The locker area is downstairs in a corridor linking the two concourses.

• The Gare d'Austerlitz has left luggage lockers, open 07:00 to 23:30.  It's just outside the main street entrance to the station, you'll see it on your way in from the metro.  X-ray check at entrance.  Locker sizes and prices the same as Gare du Nord.

• The Gare de l'Est has a staffed left luggage office, open 06:00 to 23:45.  It's downstairs from the main concourse, in a corner off the shopping centre area.  Bags are X-rayed when accepted for storage.  Locker sizes and prices the same as Gare du Nord.

• The Gare de Bercy has no left luggage lockers, so use those at the Gare de Lyon 700m away.

Left luggage office & lockers in Brussels & Lille...

• Brussels Midi has both luggage lockers and a staffed left luggage facility near the Eurostar check-in and Thalys reception.  Both are open 24 hours a day, the staffed facility costs €4.00 per item per calendar day, the 3 sizes of lockers cost €3, €3.50, €4 per 24 hours.

• Lille Europe has a staffed left luggage facility, open 07:30-20:00.  It's hidden away at the extreme south end of the station's passenger concourse, beyond 'Accès A', and not well signed.  It costs €4 per item up to 2 hours, €5.50 per item for up to 10 hours, €9.50 for up to 24 hours.

Left luggage offices & lockers in other European cities...

It's usually safe to assume that any major city railway station in Europe will have a 'left luggage' facility, either a staffed facility or self-service lockers or both.  When changing trains with some time to spare, you can leave your luggage and explore the town.  Here are some examples:

• Amsterdam Centraal has luggage lockers in two sizes, €4.90 for the first 24 hours for a small locker (90cm x 45cm x 40cm), €7.60 for a large locker (90cm x 60cm x 40cm).  You can pay by Maestro or by Visa credit card, but not coins.  The locker area is open 24 hours a day.  Maximum deposit 72 hours.  There are similar lockers at Rotterdam, Utrecht, Den Haag.

• Geneva, Basel, Zurich, Bern, Lausanne, Brig & many other major Swiss stations have lockers, CHF5 for a small, CHF8 for a medium, per 24 hours.

• Rome Termini, Florence SMN, Milan Centrale, Venice Santa Lucia, Bologna, Naples Centrale & other major stations in Italy have a staffed left luggage office, open 06:00-24:00 in Florence, 07:00-23:00 Rome, 07:00-23:00 Naples, 06:00-22:00 Bologna, 07:00-21:00 Verona.  Price per bag €5 for the first 5 hours, then €0.70 per hour for 6-12 hours, then €0.30 per hour for the thirteenth & later hours. Maximum length of deposit 5 days, weight limit (which may or may not be enforced in practice) 20Kg per item.

• Munich, Hamburg, Düsseldorf & other main stations in Germany have small & medium lockers, open 24 hours a day, for €3 & €5 per 24 hours.  Smaller stations such as Berchtesgaden my also have lockers.

• Cologne has several unusual left luggage machines in the main corridor outside the ticket office.  The machines take you bag down to an automated storage area and retrieve it again when you come back.  Price €4 per 24 hours, or €2 for up to 2 hours.

• Berlin is an exception.  Berlin Hauptbahnhof has both lockers and a staffed 'Gepack center' (left luggage) is open 06:00-22:00 daily, €5 per item, X-ray machine in use.

• Vienna, Salzburg, Innsbruck & other cities in Austria have lockers, small locker €2.00, medium €2.50, large €3.50.

• Prague Hlavni has luggage lockers in one size that will fit a backpack or small case but not larger suitcases.  Lockers cost 60 koruna (about £2) per 24 hours, maximum permitted time 72 hours.

• Budapest Keleti has a left luggage office open 24 hours next to platform 6, and luggage lockers at the end of platform 9, 400 forints per item per 24 hours for a small backpack-sized locker, 600 forints for a large locker.  A limited number of the lockers accept euro coins, €2 for a small, €3 for a large.

• Denmark:  Copenhagen has a staffed left luggage office and lockers, in the far right corner as you walk in the main entrance.  Open 05:30-01:00 Mondays-Saturdays, 06:00-01:00 Sundays.  Staffed office 55 Kr per item, small lockers 50 Kr, larger lockers 60 Kr.

• Madrid Chamartin has luggage lockers open 07:00-23:00 daily.  Small locker 3 euros, medium 3.50 euros, large 5 euros.  The lockers are across the road from the main concourse.  There's an X-ray check of all bags entering locker area.

• Madrid Atocha has luggage lockers open 05:30-22:20 Mon-Fri, 06:15-22:20 Saturdays, 06:30-22:20 Sundays.  Small locker €2.40, medium €3, large €4.50.  The lockers are in the old trainshed with the tropical gardens, at the far right-hand end as you walk away from the modern train departure concourse. There's an X-ray check of all bags entering locker area.

• Barcelona Sants has luggage lockers, open 05:00-23:00 daily.  Small locker €3, medium €3.50, large €5.  There's an X-ray check of all bags entering locker area.  However, there are no lockers at Barcelona Franca station where the trenhotel from Paris arrives.

• Warsaw:  Warsaw Centralna has luggage lockers in the passageway at the top of the steps to the platforms, around 9 zlotys (£2) per locker per 24 hours.  There's a staffed left luggage office off the same passageway, 7.10 zlotys per item per 24 hours, open 07:00-18:20, 19:00-06:20 with breaks 10:00-10:15 & 14:00-14:30.

• Ljubljana:  €2 & €3 luggage lockers, on platform 1.

• Zagreb:  15 & 20 Kuna luggage lockers.

• Belgrade:  Left luggage office open 24 hours in the far left-hand corner of the open-air concourse as you stand with your back to the trains.  110 dinars (around €1) per item for 24 hours.

• Bucharest:  Left luggage office at Bucharest Gara de Nord, 50m past the Relay newsagents.  4 Lei (around €1) per 24 hours.

Can you help?

It's difficult to keep this page 100% updated without your help.  If you have any price updates, or updates will left luggage information at other major stations across Europe, please email me.