Paris-Brussels-London via train?

[Sami]

I have a work conference in Paris in December and want to tack on Brussels, Brugge and London but don't know how to figure out the trains. What would be the best route?

Should I take the Eurostar from Brussels direct to London? Is it nonstop? Here is what I am thinking for a quick schedule:

Paris for work, then take train to Brussels, then to Brugge, then to London. However, if the Eurostar is nonstop from Brussels to London (meaning it doesnt stop in Brugge to pick me up), would it make more sense to go to Brugge first, then Brussels, then London? If so, what is the most direct way from Paris to Brugge? Totally confused! And I don't want to have to waste money/time backtraking.

http://www.gate1travel.com/europe-travel/maps/7DAffAmsBrugesParis0607-l.gif

[Rosebud]

I responded to you in the France thread. Here's what I wrote, in case you didn't see it:

We did this last October. Trains to Belgium depart all day long from Gare du Nord. We took the high speed Thalys train from Paris to Brussels (it took about 1.5 hours, as I recall). You then connect to a short train (15-20 minutes?) to Brugge. It was a quick and convenient trip. Here is the Thalys website (http://www.thalys.com/fr/en/).

We stayed only an afternoon in Brussels and just walked around the Grote Markt/Grand Place. I would recommend spending more time in Brugge, which is really incredible and unique. We stayed two days there and would have liked to be there even longer. My photos and a complete review from both Brussels and Brugge can be found HERE (http://www.constantchatter.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10130).

The most direct route from Paris to Brugge is through Brussels.

If you want to go from Belgium to London, I would recommend flying instead of taking the train. It'll probably be faster and less expensive to take a flight on Easy Jet or Ryan Air instead of taking the train all the way from Brussels to London. Check out the airlines' websites.

My suggestion: Paris. Thalys train from Paris to Brussels, continuing on to Brugge. Stay in Brugge. Brugge back to Brussels. Fly from Brussels to London. Fly home from London.

How much time do you have for all of this, by the way?

[HeatherFL]

I agree with what Erin wrote. Paris/Brussels/Brugge is very easy. I haven't done the London trek, but have heard the same - fly to London. :)

~H.

[wildcat]

We hit all those places a few years ago when we spent 3 weeks in Europe. We started in London and then flew to Paris as it was cheaper (I want to say our tickets were about $30 each). Then we took the train from Paris to Brugge. I think Brugge is one of those places you either like or don't. We spent 1 day there and it was plenty;).

[jnettie]

This website (http://www.railsaver.com/) helped me plan our trip to Europe last year. It lets you compair prices on flights and trains to most major European cities and helps you find the cheepest routes or tickets.

This one (http://www.raileurope.com/us/) is good, too!