 Poster: A snowHead
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I have had a look around on the Net to find out how to book online from Waterloo to Moutiers, or Bourg. I can only find sites that eventually ask you to e-mail them and they'll quote back to you.
Is there a direct book-online Site?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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I must be losing it! I was only looking at this site the day before yesterday. It's all that working out who owns a fish and whether cows drink milk. 
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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It won't give you a day if the train does not run on that day, try out on a friday night and back on a sunday morning I just tried it for travelling Friday 26th at 20.12 returning 03/04 leaving at 09.59 to Bourg and it worked fine, mind you I'm not sure I'd want to pay the £320 it quotes but there you go
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Go to www.raileurope.com, this is the UK booking arm of SNCF so you can book tickets right through to BSM, Aime, Moutiers etc. However much better to call them as they sometimes have specials which are not listed. Prices do seem to vary but there are always a few £99.00 return tickets from London to BSM. These are ot advertised in any way and the agents will not advise their existence. France is devided into a number of sectors for rail travel BSM is in sector C and the cheap return fare from London to any sector C station is £99.00. You do not to travel on the vomit express, the ski train but travel on the Service De Nuit which has couchettes and goes from Gare d'Austerlitz every night. Eurostar from Waterloo to Gare De Nord, then cab or metro to Gare D'Austerlitz. Couchettes can be booked from £12.00 and if you upgrade to 1st class you get a free meal and wine on Eurostar. We've travelled to BSM and back for £130.00 and it's really good, by travelling overnight you arrive at about 6.30/7.00am and you leave at 21.30/22.00 so you sleep both ways and get an extra days skiing.
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I was trying to get out on a Sunday back Sat night arriving Sunday. I checked the timetables and they said there were trains almost every hour.
I am trying to do a bit of homework for next year. So I can visit David in La Rosiere, or PG in Bourg.
So far it's all v. frustrating.
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Michael, you can do it! The service de nuit runs every night and I believe ther is a day service as well. If you go to ww.raileurope.co.uk but the SNCF website is not exactly user friendly so I always call them. They are usually very helpful, the number is 08705 8484 848.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Thanks. I'll persevere.
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Most useful -I have someone who wanted to rent our apartment next year but is threatening to pull out because we're changing from Saturday to Sunday changeover and he wanted (??!) to take the snowtrain whcih only runs on Friday night. I will pass the info on. A lot of people over here don't realise there's an ordinary, far superior, night train - and it's really difficult to find the times/ prices/ book online. Thanks!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Just tried RailEurope. This time I got this message:-
We have taken your request into account but no fare is available. Please change your requirements.
Now I have no problem with the message but change it to what. A little guidance on what to change would be helpful. I'm not asking for anything unusual here. Just a simple return trip.
Web designers watch out. I know where you live. 
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Michael B, the best option is to call them, be aware however that if you are trying for a timetable next year it won't be ready yet, timetables for next winter come out arround september, whilst they may be the same they may not as I found out when the barstewards cancelled my favorite journey from brussels to Switzerland
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I tried the websites summer before last for a London - Amsterdam rail trip. Same problem you had, the trains I chose had no availability. Phoned Raileurope and said 'I want this £69 deal (or whatever) what trains can I use' and they quickly came up with the answers. First train on Sunday morning, no connection from Southampton. Not exactly what I wanted to hear, but at least an answer.
The websites need a reverse look up - plug in the price and see what trains are offered.
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You know it makes sense.
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Michael B, I agree with D G Orf: I use the RailEurope webite to see what is available, and then phone them on 08705 848 848 to book.
They have always been very helpful and sometimes find trains I did not know about, or offer useful facts (e.g. First Class Eurostar fare includes dinner with wine - when they come round and ask "which wine?" they will offer red or white, but not mention champagne also available).
I am training out to Val Thorens on April 8th by Eurostar then night train from Austerlitz, all booked though Rail Europe (2 months ago) with very helpful RailEurope-person.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Wish I was close enough to London to use the Eurostar.
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Poster: A snowHead
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The trouble with a lot of European supposed connections is that they seem to depend on you being able to catch the first or second Eurostar from London, something that for a lot of people is jy=ust not possible without overnighting in or near London, something I for one do not want to do, when the Eurostar service first appeared there was a lot of talk of Eurostars running from other UK stations e.g Southampton and going to a lot more destinations, but in general we are still stuck with London to Paris. Lille or Brussels with the occasional train elsewhere, of course people are put off by the fares but I'm sure if they went to more destinations it would be more popular and fares could come down
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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WE were due to gat a service from Newcastle just before the Hatfield crash, which connected wtih the Eurostar, but it never materialised
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Originally it was going to be very much like a mainland European train with border controls on board, but once the UK decided that immigration had to be land based and then that the train needed airport style check in security then running the Eurostar from just any station became impossible. In the UK only Waterloo and Ashford have the border controls and security gates, therefore international passenger trains can't run from elsewhere.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Which once agian shows what a beauraucratic nightmare we live in ! 
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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It's interesting that the technology gas existed for years to have border controls on board, I suppose the Home Office felt they couldn't cope with a train load of passengers on the move! I seem to remember years ago being on a trans-Europe train and the German border guards started checking passports somewhere in Holland. They had a portable passport reader on wheels, you wouldn't need anything more than a handheld device now.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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I suspect they are more concerned with the risk of bombs being planted than they are with passport control, still it should not have been difficult to set up a dedicated area in a few stations such as they did at Lille
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| D G Orf wrote: |
| Which once agian shows what a beauraucratic nightmare we live in ! |
Whilst that may be true. I think, unfortunately, that airport style security is the only thing that would keep the reactionary right wing press in this country happy.
If it wasn't for that then the Daily Mail would have an endless supply of stories of illegal immigrants stowing away in Eurostar toilets, coming to swamp us and destroy our way of life.
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FAQ
I got the following message over and over with no explanation of what to do.
