St Pancras now open for fast trains to Europe
Eurostar, the high-speed passenger train that links the Britain with the Continent has now started its services from London's new and impressive St. Pancras Station.
Eurostar's move to St Pancras International cuts journey times between London, Paris and Brussels by at least 20 minutes, creating an even more attractive alternative to short-haul flights. The new station, (pictured on the left) together with next door King's Cross and nearby Euston, can be accessed by rail from both north and south of the capital, with connections to seven mainline services and six London Underground lines.
Eurostar has so far received more than 1.2 million bookings for travel on the 186-mph train. City centre-to-city centre journeys between London and Brussels now take just 1 hour 51 minutes non-stop, London to Paris 2 hours 15 minutes, and London to Lille is one hour and 20 minutes. 
St Pancras International (see it as it was on the right) has been restored to its full 19th century glory and boasts fine shopping, fine dining and the Europe's longest champagne bar, which runs for 97 meters right alongside the new Eurostar platforms.
One way fares between London and Paris start as low as £59. The train operators say that high speed links to France and Belgium are just the beginning. They say that plans are already underway to provide Eurostar services to Germany, Italy, Spain, and Switzerland.
