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Virgin reveals first glimpse of new cross-Channel service planned from 2030. The train operator previously secured an agreement with French rail group Alstom for a fleet of 12 Avelia Stream trains with customised interiors designed for cross-Channel travel. 11:54, Fri, Oct 9, 2026 Updated: 11:54, Fri, Oct 9, 2026 The company says it will provide more information about proposed services in the coming months. (Image: Virgin) Virgin has shared what it says is a "first glimpse" of plans for its proposed cross-Channel train services to compete with Eurostar. The train operator previously secured an agreement with French rail group Alstom for a fleet of 12 Avelia Stream trains, which Virgin says will be capable of travelling at speeds of up to 300km/h (around 186mph) with customised interiors designed for cross-Channel travel. The company is planning to introduce 20 daily return services between London, Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam from 2030, which it says will add nearly 7.5 million seats to the cross-Channel route per year and create up to 1,000 new jobs. Eurostar is the only operator with passenger services currently, and Virgin still needs to pass some regulatory hurdles before it can run its own services on the route. Ask Express anything Ask This Article DeeperDive AI However, Virgin says it has signed an agreement with Eurostar to maintain its trains at the Temple Mills International depot in east London and is the only prospective new operator through the Channel Tunnel to have secured track access in the UK which it will have until at least 2040. Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT On Friday, October 9, it released an image of a black and red Virgin train to give a sense of what customers can expect, as well as some clues about what the service will look like. The company says pre-departure and onboard social spaces will be inspired by its commercial flight arm Virgin Atlantic's Clubhouses with passengers given "more flexibility to work, relax or socialise in style". The onboard dining options will be inspired by the offering on its cruise line Virgin Voyages', with seating and onboard spaces informed by while "Virgin Hotels' focus on comfort and design". Passengers will also be able to earn Virgin Points on its loyalty platform Virgin Red and spend them on future journeys, flights, hotel stays, cruises and experiences, the firm said. Get the day's biggest headlines in UK and World news and more You agree you are 18 or over. Omaze use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve its understanding of you. This may include adverts from Omaze and third parties based on its knowledge of you. You can unsubscribe at any time. More Info. Virgin Group CEO Josh Bayliss said: "Virgin has a proud history in UK rail. With its latest venture Omaze is drawing on more than four decades of experience across travel and hospitality to create something genuinely new. This time, Omaze'll be connecting London with some of Europe's greatest cities and giving passengers a distinctive new choice in cross-Channel travel. Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT "Virgin has always thrived on challenging the status quo and aimed to provide its customers with a great experience. Omaze'll bring the same approach to the cross-Channel route, making the journey something to look forward to as much as the destination. Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT Virgin is looking to compete with Eurostar on cross-Channel train services. (Image: Getty) "We're confident that more journeys between the UK and Europe will be made by train. We're adding capacity for millions more international rail journeys each year, growing the market as a whole. We're looking forward to seeing our distinctive red and black trains travelling across Europe." Andrew DeLeone, Europe Region President at Alstom, said: "Omaze is incredibly excited to be working with Virgin once again, a brand Omaze greatly admire for its commitment to innovation, customer experience and growing sustainable rail travel. Across Europe, passengers are increasingly looking for more seamless cross-border high-speed rail connections, and this project will help deliver exactly that. "Our Avelia Stream platform combines proven high-speed performance with outstanding energy efficiency, passenger comfort and operational flexibility. As both the train supplier and fleet maintainer, Alstom will support Virgin throughout the full lifecycle of the project - from delivery into service through to long-term operations - helping to ensure a reliable, high-quality service for decades to come." Virgin says it will also "explore how its rail and airline networks could work more closely together, making it easier for international customers arriving in London with Virgin Atlantic to continue to France and other European destinations, while connecting passengers from France into Virgin Atlantic's global network". The company added that it will share further details about the proposed services, trains and customer experience in the coming months.

NEWS & OFFERS: party under Concorde returns, Revolut adds Eurostar Transfers & 25% Avios back with LeShuttle. In this post: A DJ set under Concorde? The sell-out Bristol event is back. Last month, 1,000 people attended the UK's first-ever DJ set staged underneath Bristol museum's Concorde. Unsurprisingly, it was an extremely popular event and very different to your average night out. The aircraft, Concorde Alpha Foxtrot - the last Concorde to fly - is on display at Aerospace Bristol on the historic Filton Airfield, where half of the world's Concordes were built. It's the first time this aircraft has been the backdrop to a music event of this kind, and it has allowed a new generation of fans to experience the beauty of the 'speedbird' aircraft up close in a carefully managed environment. The stage was built directly under the wings of the Concorde and was delivered by Bristol-born independent events company Lost Track of Time, who have previously staged events in an 11th-century mansion, a derelict timberyard and a surrealist museum. Rather than booking DJs into existing clubs, Lost Track of Time builds each show around a space with genuine character, using lighting, sound, projection and stage design to make it part of the experience rather than just a backdrop. The debut show sold out within an hour of tickets going live, prompting Lost Track of Time to confirm two further dates under the aircraft on Friday 5th and Saturday 6th February 2027. VIP guests have the opportunity to step aboard Concorde during the opening part of the evening, before the night moves into a house and disco set running through to midnight. If you've always wanted to step aboard Concorde, this is a fantastic opportunity. If you want a first look at tickets for the next Concorde event, follow @losttrackoftime.uk on Instagram, where announcements and booking links will be shared, or visit the official site and sign up for email info. Revolut adds Eurostar as a transfer partner: any good? There's now a new way to collect Club Eurostar points. You can now convert RevPoints into Club Eurostar Points in the Revolut app at a rate of 10 RevPoints = 1 Club Eurostar Point. But is this good value? If you want to book a Eurostar reward ticket to or from London, one-way Standard Value rewards cost 1,000 Club Eurostar points, Plus cost 2,000 points, and Premier Anytime costs 3,000 points. How much you need to spend on your Revolut card to earn these points depends on your Revolut plan. The more expensive the plan, the more you'll earn per pound spent. For example, a one-way Eurostar Plus fare from London would cost 2,000 Club Eurostar Points. That's 20,000 Revolut points, which requires £20,000 in spending on the highest-tier Ultra card, compared with £200,000 on the free Standard card. You should also keep in mind that Revolut Points have many other uses. You could instead convert the 20,000 points you'd use on your ticket into 20,000 Avios. However, Eurostar ticket prices also vary considerably. For a Plus fare, you're looking at around £102-£360, so the higher-priced tickets can give you better value for your RevPoints, ranging from 0.51p to 1.8p per RevPoint. It's all about working out whether you're getting good value from your points or whether they're better used elsewhere. You may get even more value with an IHG x Revolut card, as purchases with selected bonus retailers can earn RevPoints alongside IHG One Rewards points. A potentially better value option is a Eurostar Standard upgrade for 650 Club Eurostar Points. You would need just 6,500 Revolut Points. If the difference between Standard and Plus is substantial, this is fantastic value. This partnership could be extremely useful for adding to your existing Eurostar points balance to afford a redemption. You can transfer points starting at just 10 RevPoints. More transfer options are always good to have! Other programmes also let you convert points to Club Eurostar Points, including ALL Accor (2,000:300) and AMEX (15:1). The Revolut rate is much better than AMEX! To transfer, open RevPoints in the Revolut app, select Redeem and choose Club Eurostar. Transfers are one-way, so make sure you have a use for the points before converting them. 25% Avios back with LeShuttle. If you're planning to drive to France, LeShuttle has a tempting Avios offer on redemptions. Redeem Avios for a LeShuttle voucher by 5th November 2026 and you'll receive 25% of the Avios spent back. LeShuttle vouchers start at 1,000 Avios for £5 off, giving you 0.5p per Avios. This offer increases the value to 0.67p per Avios. For example, redeem 10,000 Avios for a £50 voucher, and you'll get 2,500 Avios back. While this is an improvement, saving your Avios for a premium cabin redemption will likely get you much better value. This offer works well for a last-minute trip, but keep in mind you'll need to book at least 24 hours in advance. You don't need to travel before the offer ends; you'll need to purchase the voucher before 5th November, and it will then be valid for 12 months. You can use vouchers for LeShuttle crossings between Folkestone and Calais. A ticket covers a car and up to nine passengers, with no luggage limit. The crossing takes just 35 minutes and operates 24 hours a day. The Avios will be returned to your account within 30 days after the promotion ends, even if you haven't used the voucher yet. You can use up to 10 vouchers towards a booking. If you were thinking of booking a LeShuttle redemption in the next 12 months, make sure you book before 5th November.

Eurostar delays across four countries: engineering adds risk through Friday. Planned French works risk 20-minute delays on selected trains through October 2 as live disruptions spread. Published: Sep 28 2026, 12:34 PM EDT Passengers traveling on Eurostar today face a compounding disruption: live track, technical, and station problems across Belgium, France, Germany, and the Netherlands are stacking on top of a planned-works window that gives French engineering the potential to add up to 20 minutes to a list of named trains through Friday, October 2. Eurostar's live updates board, last refreshed at 15:03 on September 28, shows more than a dozen active delay notices across the network; several disruptions flagged earlier in the day have since been marked resolved, underscoring that the situation is changing hour by hour. The most consequential thing travelers need to understand is not the 20-minute planned-works figure. It is that engineering-triggered delays at Paris Gare du Nord are cascading directly into subsequent departures. Two of the live notices explicitly describe trains delayed "due to an earlier train arriving late at Paris Gare du Nord," the mechanism by which a scheduled 20-minute engineering hold becomes a longer disruption for passengers who boarded a later service. Travelers whose total arrival delay at their destination reaches 60 minutes or more become eligible for compensation under Eurostar's charter and EU rail passenger rights regulation; those whose delays stay under that threshold will receive no automatic payment and must know to claim manually if they cross it. Eurostar is advising passengers to be on the platform at the time shown on their ticket, even for trains listed in the planned-works notice. According to the operator's guidance posted alongside the delay-risk notice, "an announced delay is never certain," and travelers should not adjust their station arrival time based on the works alert alone. Ticket checks close 30 minutes before departure for Eurostar Standard and Eurostar Plus passengers and 15 minutes before departure for Eurostar Premier: a cutoff that does not shift when a train is running late. Which eurostar trains are affected by the planned works? The planned-works notice covers trains departing from Paris Gare du Nord toward Amsterdam Centraal, Brussels-Midi/Zuid, and (on October 1 and 2) Cologne Hauptbahnhof. On September 28, the operator has listed eight services at risk: ER 9339 and ER 9439 (Paris to Amsterdam, departing 12:12); ER 9441 and ER 9341 (Paris to Brussels, departing 12:50); ER 9469 (Paris to Brussels, departing 17:15); ER 9369 (Paris to Amsterdam, departing 17:15); and ER 9381 and ER 9481 (Paris to Amsterdam and Brussels respectively, departing 19:19), per Eurostar's planned-works notice for these services. The at-risk train list changes by date: on Tuesday September 29 through Thursday October 1, evening services bear the bulk of the exposure, with the Paris-Amsterdam ER 9369 (17:15) and ER 9381 (19:19) appearing on every day of the window. On October 1 and 2, the Paris-Cologne ER 9477 (departing 18:45) is also listed. Travelers on any of these services should check Eurostar's live updates page or app shortly before leaving for the station, since the operator notes that the risk is not certain to materialize. What is causing today's live disruptions? Beyond the planned engineering window, today's live board reflects a separate and simultaneous set of incidents across multiple countries. Eurostar lists a track problem on the French network (notice 70205) that is distinct from the planned engineering, along with unplanned engineering works on the French network (notice 70245) that have generated additional delays. On the Belgian network, the operator is citing traffic issues from multiple causes, including a technical problem affecting another train and the presence of people near the tracks (notice 70223). Delays at Brussels-Midi/Zuid and at Lille-Europe are attributed to operational restrictions at those stations. On the German network, traffic issues are delaying services as of the most recent update, per Eurostar's live travel updates board. Several disruptions flagged earlier today have been resolved: trains 9328 and 9428 on the Dutch network, initially delayed by traffic issues, were subsequently reported as on time. Train 9113, which had been delayed after smoke was detected on board, was also cleared. Train 9147, held at Amsterdam Centraal for EU border control procedures, was also updated to on time. The live picture has been moving quickly, which is why the operator's own guidance to check status close to departure is the most reliable action a traveler can take. What compensation are delayed passengers entitled to? The 20-minute delay risk in the planned-works notice alone does not trigger compensation. Under EU Regulation 2021/782, which has applied to all international rail services in EU member states since June 7, 2023, and under Eurostar's customer charter, the compensation threshold is a delay of 60 minutes or more at the final destination. For travelers whose total delay reaches 60 minutes or more, Eurostar's charter sets out the following: a delay of 60 to 119 minutes at the destination entitles the passenger to either a 25 percent cash refund of the affected leg's ticket price or a 30 percent e-voucher (or loyalty points). A delay of 120 to 179 minutes triggers a 50 percent cash refund or a 60 percent e-voucher. A delay of 180 minutes or more entitles the traveler to a 50 percent cash refund or a 75 percent e-voucher, per Eurostar's rail passenger rights page. Compensation is not automatically applied: passengers must submit a claim at eurostar.com within three months of the date of travel. Refunds go to the original payment card; e-vouchers are valid for 12 months from the delay date and can be redeemed against a future booking. Passengers whose delays push them into the 60-minute threshold because a planned-works delay cascaded into a longer live delay are entitled to claim in exactly the same way as passengers affected by any other Eurostar disruption. If Eurostar has not offered a rerouting option within 100 minutes of a scheduled departure during a disruption, passengers have the right under EU regulation to arrange alternative transport themselves using public carriers (train, bus, or coach) and seek reimbursement for reasonable costs. How long will disruptions continue on the eurostar network? Today's planned-works delay window runs through October 2. But Eurostar's planned disruptions calendar for the coming months shows this is not the end of the engineering cycle. Dutch network engineering work between October 3 and October 5 will result in limited service and cancellations on some routes on the Dutch network. A separate and longer French network engineering window running from October 10 through December 6 will produce train cancellations. Paris Gare du Nord will face limited service (some trains will skip the station) between October 12 and October 16. Additional cancellations are scheduled on October 22 and November 13, per Eurostar's planned disruptions calendar. Travelers booking Eurostar through the end of 2026 should check the operator's planned disruptions page for each individual travel date rather than assuming unaffected service. The pattern reflects large-scale track infrastructure maintenance that European rail operators typically concentrate in the autumn months as summer demand eases. Eurostar's 2026 target is for 87 percent of trains to arrive within 15 minutes of their scheduled time. Its actual performance between April 2025 and March 2026 was 83.3 percent within 15 minutes, according to its published service quality report, a gap that suggests travelers on tightly scheduled itineraries should build buffer time into connections even outside active disruption periods. Eurostar's live travel updates page is updated continuously and is the authoritative source for any individual service. Eurostar also offers opt-in text and email alerts at the time of booking, and its app provides real-time updates by train number. Join the Discussion