Plans to stop Eurostar trains between the Netherlands and London in the second half of 2024 have been scrapped and replaced instead with business as usual, except for an additional 48-minute stopover in Brussels to complete passport control.
Initial fears that Eurostar trains would not depart from Amsterdam to London have been allayed, but the news comes with a catch. Trains will now have to stop in Brussels so that officials can check passports, whilst the station in Amsterdam undergoes renovations.
From June 14, this will be the case. The station in Amsterdam is temporarily unable to accommodate passport control due to the renovations taking place, and though plans originally were made to cancel all Eurostar services from Amsterdam to London, the company is now happy to push ahead with trains departing eight times per day with a short stopover in Brussels.
Despite the extra 48-minute stopover in Brussels, Eurostar trains heading to London should actually arrive in the same amount of time as usual. This is because passengers will no longer have to show up at Amsterdam Centraal so ahead of time.
According to NOS, travellers will not notice any difference in travel time with the relocation of the checks. When asked about the time added by the shorter departure time in Amsterdam, the chairperson of Eurostar told the broadcaster: "[Passengers] will soon lose that time at the controls in Brussels when they transfer there to the train to London.”
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