 A Eurostar (formerly Thalys) at Amsterdam Centraal.
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Thalys & Eurostar have merged
High-speed trains branded Eurostar link Paris, Brussels, Antwerp, Rotterdam, Amsterdam and Paris, Brussels, Liège, Aachen & Cologne, see the route map. It's faster than flying: Paris to Brussels in 1h22, Paris to Amsterdam in 3h20, Paris to Cologne in 3h20, centre to centre.
From 1995 to 2022 these trains were run by Thalys, a consortium of the French, Belgian & Dutch railways. Thalys merged with Eurostar in 2022 and Thalys trains were rebranded Eurostar in 2023.
The original Eurostars to/from London have different classes, catering, check-in, pet & bike policies from these former Thalys trains, so I shall call Eurostars to/from London Eurostar and the former Thalys trains Eurostar (formerly Thalys). This page is about Eurostar (formerly Thalys).
The 3 classes of travel explained
Travel tips: Luggage, WiFi, railpasses, food...
How to check times & buy tickets
Paris Gare du Nord station
guide
Rotterdam Centraal
station guide
Amsterdam Centraal
station guide
The 3 classes explained
Thalys switched from two classes of service to three in 2017, originally called Standard, Comfort & Premium. These were renamed Standard, Plus & Premier in November 2024. The trains physically have two types of seating, 1st & 2nd class, but on each departure some 1st class cars are designated Plus and others Premier. You choose your class when buying your ticket.
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Standard. 2nd class seating, power socket at seat & free WiFi.
Standard fare = changes to your booking can be made for a fee, 50% refundable. Standard Mini fare = no changes, no refunds.
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Plus. 1st class seating, free WiFi, power socket at seat, but no food or drink is included on these non-London routes.
Changes to your booking can be made for a fee, 50% refundable. You can use the NS Lounge in Amsterdam, Schiphol or Rotterdam, but not the Thalys lounges in Paris or Brussels. Prices are aimed at upmarket leisure travellers.
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Premier: 1st class seating with meal & drink included in the fare & served at your seat, access to Thalys lounges in Paris & Brussels as well as the NS Lounge in Amsterdam, free WiFi, power socket at seat. Prices are aimed at business travellers, tickets 100% refundable, changes can be made with no fee.
These 3 classes are clearly shown when you book at eurostar.com or www.nsinternational.nl but with other booking systems you may need to look at the fare details to see whether the 1st class fare you're booking is Plus or Premier.
What are the trains like?
Most of the fleet have now been refurbished with a new interior called ruby, shown below. The first ruby train entered service in late 2021. In the ruby refurbishment, the former cafe-bar has been replaced with a small standing area with a couple of vending machines. A refreshment trolley is usually available, based in the vending area.
A Eurostar to Paris at Brussels Midi platform 6.
Boarding a Thalys to Paris at Brussels Midi platform 6.
Travel tips
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Do you need to book in advance?
Yes. Reservation is compulsory on all Eurostar trains and tickets automatically include a reserved seat on a specific train. If you want to stop off it means buying two separate tickets.
Eurostar fares work like air fares, rising as the cheaper tickets are sold. So Paris to Amsterdam starts at €35 booked several months in advance rising to a whopping €149 for a fully-flexible ticket bought on the day. So book as far ahead as you can. Booking usually opens 4 months before departure, but sometimes less. More about when booking opens. How to buy tickets.
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Which class should you choose?
Eurostar (formerly Thalys) trains have 1st & 2nd class seating. 2nd class is called Standard and it's perfectly fine for most people, there's absolutely no need to pay for 1st class if you don't want to. Seats are arranged 2+2 across the car width.
There are two types of 1st class on Eurostar (formerly Thalys) trains, Plus & Premier (called Comfort & Premium before November 2024). These use exactly the same 1st class seating with seats arranged 2+1 across the car width, so as well as tables for 4 and dual side-by-side seats, you'll find tables for two and solo seats on one side of the aisle.
Plus gets you 1st class seating and you can use the NS first class lounge in Amsterdam, Rotterdam & Schiphol. But no food & drink is included.
Premier is aimed a business travellers with expensive flexible fares, a meal & drinks are included in the fare and you can use the Thalys lounges in Paris & Brussels as well as the NS first class lounge in Amsterdam, Rotterdam & Schiphol, more about lounges below.
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Seats facing forwards
These high-speed trains have a power car & driving cab at both ends. The train could enter service either way round so it's not possible to specify forward-facing seats as the reservation system doesn't know which seats will face which way. But this is not a big deal on a smooth-riding train, and for a couple or family, face-to-face seats around a table for 4 or a table for 2 are the nicest most convivial option.
However, Eurostar (formerly Thalys) trains normally run with car 1 or 11 at the southern (Paris) end and car 8 or 18 at the northern (Amsterdam or Cologne) end. From that, you can work out which seats face forwards when going northbound or southbound. Feedback appreciated!
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Seat maps
See Eurostar (formerly Thalys) seat map. Each trainset consists of 8 cars sandwiched between power cars. When two units run coupled together cars can be numbered 1-8 in the first unit and 11-18 in the second, or in some case 21-28. For seat map purposes, car 1 = car 11 = car 21.
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Luggage
You take your bags with you and put them on the large racks near the entrance doors, or on the overhead rack above your seat which will take backpacks and medium suitcases. All luggage must be labelled with your name.
There's a theoretical baggage limit of two large suitcases up to 32 Kg and one smaller bag, or one suitcase up to 32 Kg plus one bulky item (bike bag or skis, for example) plus one smaller bag, with prams & child buggies allowed in addition, but as no-one measures or weighs your bags and as there is free access to the train with no-one to stop you, you needn't worry unless you're trying to move house by train. More about luggage on European trains. Luggage lockers at stations.
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Boarding
Unlike the Eurostars to/from London, there's no check-in, you just walk into the station, look at the indicator boards to find your train and get on, any time before it leaves. Doors may be closed a minute or two before departure, so don't cut it too fine.
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Cafe-bar (lack of)
Thalys trains originally had a cafe-bar serving drinks & snacks. In the new refurbished ruby trains this has been replaced with a small social area with vending machines selling tea, coffee, snacks sold using contactless bank cards. There may also be a refreshment trolley, which uses this area as its base when not going up and down the train. Or you're free to take your own food & drink, even a bottle of wine of you like. Between Brussels & Cologne, the competing ICE3 trains have a bar and full restaurant service.
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Food & drink in Premier
Premier class fares include complimentary food & wine served at your seat. Between Paris and Brussels you'll get a light meal with wine & tea/coffee, between Brussels & Amsterdam or Cologne you'll get a snack (perhaps cake or nuts) with wine and tea/coffee.
Unlike Eurostars to/from London, there is no included food & drink in Plus class.
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WiFi & power sockets
There are power sockets (2-pin, 220v) at all seats & free WiFi. 3G, 4G or 5G mobile data reception works fine for most of the route.
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Baby changing facilities are available in car 1, 11 or 21 and 7, 17 or 27. There are special family areas in cars 6 & 7. Children under 12 are not allowed to travel alone on these trains.
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Bicycles
Folding bicycles and bikes in zip-up bike bags no bigger than 120cm x 90cm are carried, but not undismantled bikes. There's more detailed information at eurostar.com.
Between Brussels & Amsterdam you can take bikes on the alternative Intercity trains. Between Brussels & Cologne you can take bikes on the competing German ICE trains. For information on taking bikes by train in Europe, see the More about taking bikes on trains.
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Dogs & pets
Small dogs & pets in carriers no bigger than 55 x 30 x 30cm travel free, but larger dogs require a special ticket (not bookable online), see eurostar.com for more details. UK travellers should remember that the Eurostars to/from London don't take dogs, see the Taking your dog by train page for alternatives. Guide dogs go free on both Eurostar & Eurostar (formerly Thalys)..
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Wheelchair spaces are provided in car 1, 11 or 21, together with wheelchair-accessible toilets. There's more information for travellers with disabilities at eurostar.com.
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Interrail & Eurail passholders
If you have an Interrail or Eurail pass you must pay a reservation fee for Eurostar trains. See the Interrail & Eurail reservations page & select the country where your journey starts to see the cost for passholders and how to make passholder reservation online. Passholder reservations cannot be made at the normal ticket booking websites, See the Interrail & Eurail reservations page.
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First class lounges in Amsterdam, Schiphol, Rotterdam & Cologne
Anyone with a 1st class international ticket can use the comfortable first class lounges at Amsterdam Centraal, Schiphol & Rotterdam Centraal, with complimentary tea, coffee, soft drinks. Beer & wine for sale. Look for signs to the NS International lounge. First class railpass holders can also use these Dutch lounges.
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First class lounges in Paris & Brussels
If you have a Premier ticket you can use the Thalys first class lounges at Brussels Midi and Paris Gare du Nord. In Brussels, the lounge is outside the station, walk out of the main exit on the platform 1 side of the station and turn left, it's on the other side of the road almost at the end of that street, the Place Victor Horta. In Paris the Thalys lounge is in the rue de Dunquerque just outside Paris Gare du Nord, walk out of the station main exit and turn right along the station facade and beyond it across the road down the side of the station with the taxi rank in it.
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Meal, coffee or beer before boarding
In Paris, the Brasserie Terminus Nord (www.terminusnord.com) is directly across the road from Paris Gare du Nord, a great place for a meal, coffee or beer before boarding a high-speed train to Brussels, Cologne or Amsterdam. Seafood a speciality, their oysters are superb. See other suggested restaurants near Paris Nord.
In Brussels, see Brussels Midi station guide.
In Amsterdam for a coffee, beer or meal before boarding the train to Brussels or Paris, try the beautifully retro Grand Cafe 1e Klas on platform 2B - give my regards to Elvis, the cockatoo on the bar.
How to buy tickets
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Option 1, buy Eurostar (formerly Thalys) tickets at www.eurostar.com with no booking fee.
Booking usually opens 4 months ahead, but this can shrink to as few as 60 days ahead for dates after the major timetable change in mid-December. You may also find odd dates which open less than 4 month ahead if trackwork delays finalising the timetable.
You print your own ticket or can show it on your phone.
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Option 2, buy at the Dutch Railways site www.nsinternational.nl with no booking fee.
This can book journeys which include connecting trains to/from other Belgian or Dutch destinations such as Paris to Bruges, Amsterdam to Bruges or Utrecht to Ghent.
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Option 3, buy tickets at the French Railways website www.sncf-connect.com with no booking fee.
This can book journeys combing Eurostar with French trains to/from other French cities, such as Amsterdam-Bordeaux or Brussels-Toulouse or even Amsterdam or Brussels to London or Barcelona.
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Option 4, book at www.thetrainline.com or www.raileurope.com.
These are easy to use, allow payment in €, £ or $ and have the major advantage that they connect to multiple operators including the French, German, Spanish, Swiss, Italian, Austrian railways so you can buy tickets across much of western Europe in plain English all in one place. There's a small booking fee.
Route map
Paris to Brussels is 312 km (194 miles). Paris to Amsterdam is 524 km (326 miles).
Video guide: Eurostar Red (formerly Thalys) trains
This video shows the pre-ruby interior, some trains remain unrefurbished and still have this interior.