Just wondering how it works in practice as we may need to use it if we go over to the UK this month or next. I know you can book tickets in advance, but what happens when you actually get to Calais or Folkestone? What about passports, customs, etc? How much time do you need to allow for these before boarding? Anywhere to get a snack, go to the toilet, etc?
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Itâs pretty much the same as for the ferries really.
You rock up and either show your ticket or buy one and if youâre lucky and theyâre not busy theyâll usually put you on the next train if you want to even if your booking is for a later one. If itâs not a busy time it only takes a few minutes to get through. The passport checks etc are all done at the departure side.
There are a few options for snacks etc at the terminals but the choice is not fantastic and itâs expensive.
Once on the train you are supposed to stay in your car for the entire trip but there are toilets if you need to use them so you can walk down the carriage for that.
We only used it a few times because although it takes less time than the ferry we prefer the ferries as you can walk around and stretch your legs and get a bite to eat or a coffee etc.
Not only that, the tunnel is just dull, there is no sense of elation when you see the white cliffs getting closer and closer.
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Book in advance. Numberplate recognition on arrival will produce a ticket to hang on your mirror. Passports and customs for UK done in France and visa versa going back.
Signs inside and outside the restaurant/shop area state when you should roll. Boring but quick trip. There is internet throughout the tunnel. Drive off on the left side of the road with no further checks.
Done it about 20 times. After Swiss trains I always worry about the filthy condition of the outside of the tunnel shuttle trains and wonder whether they maintain them like thatâŚ
Because it Costs Money And we cant have that.
Seems to be a curse, remember the hovercraft?
They could have been world class but they let them get rumdown And filthy.
They were just for foot passengers, though so I guess they faded away from lack of popularity. There canât have been that many people just popping across for a day trip or a walking holiday.
The hovercraft were just too inefficient. Fantastic to travel on but fuel-guzzlers.
I Read the Story about them, They used RR proteus Turbinen First Developed in WW2.
Perhaps if Money would had Not been a Problem then perhaps with an Engine Upgrade.
Its important you put on some headphones and play the following to ablute âContinental Europeâ from your system.
Now youâre home.
I have a few Vera Lynn shellacks which I play on one of my gramophones when I want to annoy my very German motorbike hating neighbours.
I canât imagine the amplification is great, you need beefier speakers to upset the peace.
Yeah, we prefer the ferry, but Iâm thinking that maybe the weather would stop those while the Eurotunnel would still be running. Just trying to bone up on the alternative to the ferry so I know whatâs what if we do decide to go that route.
I usually take the ferry to Dover as I would have had a 8hr drive from CH and need the rest & refreshment before the final push to London. However on the way back I take the tunnel so I can get cracking on the drive across France.
We might go to the UK this summer. The tunnel scares me far less than the driving on the wrong side once you get there. And from experience with ferries in the Baltic Sea, I am grateful for the tunnel option.
Interesting read komosomolez. Thanks. 
AFAIK, no passengers have died as a result of travelling in the Eurotunnel. The same canât be said for ferries.
It was closed for six months due to a fire in 2008.
Only trucks and their drivers were travelling on that train and some were treated for smoke inhalation.
Iâd hate to imagine a carâs EV battery going up in smoke in the confines of a tunnel but thereâs not a lot of data on it at the moment.
Your brain quickly adapts, the main pain in the arse (driving solo) in a LHD vehicle is car park ticket barriers. Although this year I am better prepared.
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I thought youâd know me better by now.
âLoudâ concert needles and both doors open generally do the trick.
Gets the job done when the kids downstairs play their godawful music and I put something soppy and German from the 1950ties on the spinny thing.