I really like Eurostar - it's fast, efficient and comfortable. One really useful tip from seat61 was to buy Paris Metro/RER tickets on board from the cafe bar - they're €2 for each trip (€1.80 if you buy from a Metro ticket machine) but the extra 20c is well worth avoiding the hassle. We arrived exactly on time at Paris Nord and followed seat61's instructions to the RER Line D. We arrived at Gare de Lyon with over an hour to go before our Thello sleeper train was due to depart, so wandered around the streets until we found an excellent Chinese restaurant and bought two takeaway meals for less than €20 in total. Part 2>

Being enthusiasts of railway travel and tiring of airports, we decided to travel by train from the UK to central Italy in early November 2019. Here are some reflections on that journey which was quite an experience in the outbound direction! I would also like to record thanks to Mark Smith's excellent maninseat61 website which is essential reading for anybody considering rail travel in Europe.

Day 1 (Sunday morning): We made our way from the west of England to London's Paddington railway station, arriving just before noon. Having requested a standard-class quiet coach seat, our carriage was perfectly situated to head away from the main entrance and get the Hammersmith & City tube to King's Cross underground station - far easier since it's a direct line. We arrived at the entrance to St Pancras International station but it was very busy, being the weekend following the UK and French school's half term. Having been processed by security (about a 30-minute process, given the crowds), we found a seat with an hour to go before departure time. We were called in plenty of time and boarded an E320 Eurostar set (the more recent variety) and found our seats quite easily. These sets have the benefit of free wifi; while it's nothing like fast broadband it generally works and allows you to track your train via Realtimetrains or Opentrainmaps.